D3football.com feature stories

November 13, 2024 The joy is back A year ago, a family tragedy nearly caused Zach Brooks to give up the game he loved. But he stuck it out, and his senior year at Whitworth has seen the joy of football return. More in a feature from Brian Lester.

November 6, 2024 Specializing in everything 'I said to myself that there's no way I will ever play here,' Daniel Sullivan thought after Grove City's first contact practice his freshman year. But Sullivan, who was brought in as a kicker, had a secret talent -- he could also play receiver. Joe Sager has more.

November 6, 2024 Rivals stand between Hope, playoff spot Calvin joined the ranks of Division III football programs this year, bringing D-III's premiere rivalry to a new sport. But Hope is honored to be part of this storyline, they're just focused on getting the MIAA's automatic bid. Brian Lester has more.

October 30, 2024 Expanded bracket gives TLU a shot Texas Lutheran has already won as many games this year as the last two years combined, and at 6-1, has a reasonable shot at a playoff spot even if the SCAC doesn't have an automatic bid. But the Bulldogs are trying to stay focused on Week 9, rather than Week 12. Brian Lester has more.

October 30, 2024 Headed for a MAC showdown Mike Cebrosky, in his first year as head coach, has King's headed into a conference showdown for first place with Delaware Valley, and he talks with Joe Sager about it.

October 23, 2024 Hilbert still hunting its first win Centenary (La.) and Calvin made their football debuts to much fanfare and have already notched a couple of wins, but Hilbert is in season three and still trying to build to that point. Brian Lester talks with the folks who are sticking it out through this process.

October 23, 2024 WashU healthy and fired up The regular season’s final stretch is here. And, Washington University has some momentum – and health – heading into Saturday's game with Wheaton. Joe Sager has more in a feature.

October 16, 2024 Platteville not surprised by hot start Ryan Munz's Pioneers are unbeaten, No. 6 in the country, and in his words, “the fun part for us as a program is we are right where we should be, where we expected to be and where we believe we could be.” Brian Lester has more.

October 15, 2024 North Park finally making progress A little over a decade ago, North Park snapped an unthinkably long conference losing streak. But it wasn't until last year that the Vikings sported even a .500 record, and their most wins in 55 years. This year, the team is off to a 4-1 start. How? Joe Sager has more.

October 9, 2024 'Score every time we have the ball' The goal sounds simplistic, but for the Ursinus offense so far, it's been fairly achievable. The Bears have scored 45 or more points three times in their first four games, including 20 in a fourth-quarter comeback last week at Muhlenberg. Brian Lester has more.

October 8, 2024 Healthy again and loving it A.J. Jackson missed almost all of 2022 and played through an injury in 2023, but the 2019 D3football.com first team All-America pick is finally feeling healthy and he's helping lead unbeaten Lake Forest. Joe Sager has more in a D3football.com feature.

October 3, 2024 FDU-Florham off to a hot start The Devils are 4-0 after winning an early season showdown against Lebanon Valley. Joe Sager dives into the potent FDU offense in a D3football.com feature.

October 2, 2024 Rochester taking another step forward At 4-0, the University of Rochester is already one win short of matching its 2023 total. But that unbeaten start is just one goal, and Liberty League play is next. Brian Lester has more in a D3football.com feature.

September 25, 2024 'It was not shocking to us' Mary Hardin-Baylor went to UW-Whitewater and put its name back in the Division III football conversation in a big way. As coach Larry Harmon sees it, "This win over Whitewater is a trampoline and we’re going to take a big jump and go forward as a team and build on it.” Brian Lester has more.

September 24, 2024 'We can't get too caught up in the hype' It's been a great start to the season for Salisbury, that's for sure. But with one of the best 3-0 starts in Division III football, it's hard for the Sea Gulls to avoid the hype. Joe Sager adds to it in a D3football.com feature.

September 19, 2024 Road only gets tougher for Oshkosh The Titans of UW-Oshkosh have had multiple players step up as the team has gotten off to a 2-0 start against Top 25 competition. But this is the WIAC, and things will not get any easier. Brian Lester has more in a D3football.com feature.

September 17, 2024 The old man in the backfield Will Blakey grew up in St. Paul, Minnesota, but instead of going straight to college, he spent six years as an aircraft mechanic in the Air Force before returning to football, ending up at St. John's, and being a mature influence on the Johnnies at 26 years old. Joe Sager has more.

September 12, 2024 Wheaton with a chance to start again After a Week 1 loss, the Wheaton Thunder find themselves evaluating what went wrong, remembering the positives, and essentially going back into training camp before they play in Week 3. Brian Lester has more in a D3football.com Feature.

September 10, 2024 Illinois College with a chance to grow Last season, the Blueboys of Illinois College were drummed out of the playoffs fairly quickly in a first-round loss at Wartburg. But IC spent the offseason focusing on what it learned in that game and trying to grow from it. Joe Sager has more.

September 4, 2024 Calvin ready to kick off They said it would never happen, but in reality, it seemed inevitable. Calvin's first varsity football game is here, and the Knights take the field this Saturday. A feature by Joe Sager.

September 4, 2024 At Centenary, football is back Centenary played 10 games last year in a developmental season, but starting Saturday, it counts, as the program returns after an absence of nearly 80 years. "Now that we have guys back and a year under our belts, it’s exciting," said their team captain, and Brian Lester has more.


November 21, 2023 Aurora lighting things up on defense The Spartans needed a pick-me-up from the defensive side of the ball on Saturday and got it, as the defense allowed no points and had seven takeaways against Coe. And Don Beebe, the former NFL wide receiver-turned D-III head coach, couldn't be happier. Brian Lester has more in a Road to Salem feature.

November 14, 2023 Kohawks got the call Coe was just hoping for an invitation. Now that the Kohawks have it, they’re ready to make the most of it. Joe Sager has more in a Road to Salem feature.

November 9, 2023 In the NWC, a battle of unbeatens The Northwest Conference has never come down to a battle of unbeatens in the final week of the season, until this Saturday when Whitworth will try to upend Linfield. Brian Lester talks to the teams in a D3football.com feature.

November 7, 2023 'Everyone is behind Colin' Ithaca came into this season with a preseason All-American at quarterback. But because of an injury, A.J. Wingfield is among the people coaching up freshman Colin Schumm headed into this weekend's Cortaca Jug game. Joe Sager has more in a D3football.com feature.

November 2, 2023 'Our goal is to put a zero on the scoreboard' Brockport has been awaiting another chance to make a splash since an early-season loss to Susquehanna, and they've been dominant, especially defensively. Brian Lester has more in a D3football.com feature.

November 1, 2023 Lyon's season of road trips One of the newest D-III football programs is from Batesville, Arkansas, but to fill out a schedule this year, Lyon College has been to western New York twice, to Texas, and is going to Iowa as well. It's a lot of time on the road, and Joe Sager has more in a D3football.com feature.

October 25, 2023 Athleticism makes Blazek a threat A three-sport athlete in high school, UW-Platteville defensive end Justin Blazek uses his basketball and baseball experience, plus his experience on offense, to help him up front with the Pioneers. Brian Lester has more in a Defense Week feature.

October 25, 2023 Schuermann: Honed technique From playing rugby to COVID-year workouts to copious video prep, Johns Hopkins defensive end Luke Schuermann has built himself into a two-time Centennial Conference Defensive Player of the Year. Riley Zayas has more in a Defense Week feature.

October 25, 2023 Coury: Relentless pursuit of the football Robert Coury, who plays linebacker with his twin brother Tommy, is part of a defense that thrives on experience playing together and perhaps a little twin telepathy. Joe Sager has more in a Defense Week feature.

October 24, 2023 Grover finds creativity in middle Owen Grover has played outside linebacker and middle linebacker for Wartburg, but the fifth-year senior moved back inside for good this year and he has enjoyed the challenge. Joe Sager has more in a Defense Week feature.

October 23, 2023 'Savvy' Harmel leads on and off field It's not uncommon for Trinity (Texas) head coach Jerheme Urban to look out of his office and see his star linebacker, Caleb Harmel, walking down the hall, with a group of linebackers trailing close behind. They're heading to study game video, preparing for a game and perfecting their own craft at the same time. Riley Zayas has more as Defense Week continues.

October 19, 2023 Augustana making noise Everybody is glad Tim Swaney is back, except perhaps for Augustana's opponents. Brian Lester has more on Swaney and the 5-1 Vikings in a D3football.com feature.

October 17, 2023 Precision, efficiency: Carter St. John When you put those words together in conjunction with the name of Alma's starting quarterback, it sounds like the slogan for a high-end watchmaker. And with so few ticks between plays when the Scots have the ball, perhaps that makes sense. Joe Sager checks in with Alma's Carter St. John in a D3football feature.

October 11, 2023 Berry: Looking to remove all doubt The Vikings are looking to secure an at-large bid to the playoffs after a couple of years away, and hope to keep the momentum rolling through the second half of their schedule. More in a feature by Brian Lester.

October 11, 2023 River Falls has football fever The Falcons are flying higher than any point in nearly 30 years, and No. 4 UW-River Falls welcomes No. 7 UW-Whitewater to campus. Joe Sager has more on an exciting time in River Falls, Wisconsin.

October 5, 2023 Randolph-Macon piling up the points The Yellow Jackets are at a high-water mark in their history in the D3football.com Top 25, and have gone for 50 or more points in each of their first four games, plus 70 this past week. Brian Lester checks in on the buzz at Randolph-Macon.

October 4, 2023 Tufts football takes 'family' literally Most football teams consider themselves a family, but at Tufts, that definition goes above and beyond, as four sets of brothers suit up for the Jumbos. Joe Sager talks about what keeps them coming, and coming back, in a D3football.com feature.

September 27, 2023 Augsburg win a 'prove-it' game The Auggies came away with the Hail Mary win at Gustavus Adolphus on Saturday, giving them a win against a quality opponent and some momentum in the program's rebuild under coach Derrin Lamker. Brian Lester has more.

September 27, 2023 It's football, not feetball Like many young boys, Derik Smith aspired to play college football. He achieved it yet had to overcome some adversity along the way to do so. The Hope defensive end had part of his right leg amputated when he was 9, but that didn’t stop him from becoming a top-tier athlete. Joe Sager has more in a D3football.com feature.

September 21, 2023 Maryville flips the script The Scots started off last season as a hard-luck 0-3 team, but went on to win four of their last five, and are 3-0 to start this season as well. Brian Lester checks in on the excitement in Maryville.

September 20, 2023 PAC already in playoff mode The Presidents' Athletic Conference is playing nothing but conference games the next two years, and that means that games with conference title implications start early. Joe Sager checks in with the top contenders in a D3football.com feature.

September 14, 2023 'When Nile says something, guys listen' Last year, quarterback Nile McLaughlin helped lead Wartburg to the national semifinals. This year, his leadership is taking a different form. Brian Lester has more.

September 13, 2023 Thompson stands alone among D-III QBs Wabash's senior quarterback, Liam Thompson, has had the unique -- by D-III standards -- opportunity to attend the Manning Passing Academy the past three summers. How that happened, what he learned, and more in a feature from Joe Sager.

September 7, 2023 Eastern joins the D-III party The newest Division III football program took the field on Saturday, and the Eastern Eagles seemed more than up to the task. Brian Lester has more.