Mars Hill
5-6 2025 finalMars Hill spent 32 years under Tim Clifton — the longest-tenured North Carolina college football coach — and Kevin Barnette now inherits a program defined by stability and tasked with finding the next mountain.
The Lions rest in the shade.
Mars Hill spent 32 years under Tim Clifton — the longest-tenured North Carolina college football coach — and Kevin Barnette now inherits a program defined by stability and tasked with finding the next mountain.
Tim Clifton retired after 32 years, and Kevin Barnette, a Mars Hill native and longtime defensive coordinator (31 years under Clifton), took over in August 2025. Barnette's first season (2025) went 5–6 as the program transitioned.…
Offseason
69 days
until kickoff · Sun Aug 30 · 17:00 UTC
The 2026 Outlook
The Pulse on Mars Hill
What moved it — offseason · last 30 days
Aspiration Ladder
Brief Part III §33.4 · Mars Hill
The baseline for a successful season.
Earns a Super Region playoff qualifier bid.
Entry into the 32-team national bracket.
The Division II national championship game.
Mars Hill · Next-Season Outcome Band
Floor / Base / Ceiling
Variance assumed at ±2 wins from last-season record. Replace with the season-path projection once preview data is built.
Who We Are
Fanbase Health Index · Mars Hill · low confidence
Growing (55)
Home-Field Advantage · Mars Hill · 2018-present
Strong
72% home win rate vs 52% on the road. margin runs +7.1 better at home.
Act IIILast Season Reviewed
2025 season · tap to expand
Recent Form · last 10 games
Cooling
Two of five. Schedule has caught up.
South Atlantic Standing · 2025
8th in the South Atlantic
Mars Hill is 8th of 12 in the South Atlantic at 5-6. The path to the title is steep — the focus is on playoff positioning and rivalry wins.
| # | Program | Record |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Newberry | 12-2 |
| 2 | Wingate | 9-3 |
| 3 | Emory & Henry College | 8-3 |
| 4 | Carson-Newman College | 7-3 |
| 5 | Catawba | 7-4 |
| 6 | Lenoir-Rhyne | 6-5 |
| 7 | Anderson (Sc) | 5-6 |
| 8 | Mars Hill | 5-6 |
| 9 | Wilson | 3-8 |
| 10 | Greeneville | 1-9 |
| 11 | UVA Wise | 1-9 |
| 12 | Limestone | 0-0 |
Schedule Strength · Mars Hill · 2025
Balanced
Average opponent win rate 54% across 11 finalized games. Balanced slate across the conference slate.
Moment of the Year · Mars Hill · 2025
Won 21-7 vs Mary Hardin-Baylor
Week 5 of 2025. The single game that defined the season's arc.
From the Archive — Mars Hill
2024: Won 34-9 at Newberry
In 2024, the program won 34-9 at Newberry — a comfortable road result that left the 25-point margin on the books.
The Lions roar.