FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[Brady12]

Am I the only one who thinks we need to pump the brakes on the Mammoths?


This didn't age well as the crazy NESCAC year continues. The little three could be epic this year.

[muleshoe]

Is anyone else having issues with the Bates stream of the Colby game?

I was having issues in first half but 2nd half was fine, except for Colby's offense... ugly win, but there's no pictures on the scoreboard I guess. Leg 1 of the CBB complete

[nescac1]

Solid win for the Ephs today as the Ephs went up 35-3 before taking Johansen (dominant once again) and Oris (huge game, TBs eyes must light up when they see Bowdoin out there) and some other starters out in the fourth quarter.  This is the worst Bowdoin team in awhile as the Ephs dominated the line of scrimmage on both ends of the field. I think Bates may be their only chance for a win and 0-9 may be in the cards.

For Williams, the injury concerns at WR/TE and DB are really starting to mount.  Hopefully Raymond was being extra cautious today and he gets a few guys back soon, as it really felt like he was auditioning guys at DB and WR, with loads of players who had never or barely ever seen the field cycling in and out from the first possession on.  Jimmy Montesano and Holden Gehring both missed the game and both are critical players down the stretch of the season for Williams, and that's on top of several season-long injuries hampering the depth at receiver and DB.  Williams played four first year DBs today (never all at once but usually two on the field together) and they acquitted themselves pretty well, but it would be nice to see some of the injured vets return.

As for WR, it's getting a bit crazy, again with injuries taking a toll.  Zach Falls is clearly turning into a star, his size/speed combo is extremely rare in NESCAC, but the Ephs have cycled through seemingly a zillion guys at the other receiver spots, including two guys who are primarily DBs and now THREE converted QBs.  Today Henry Machnik saw his first action at WR and looked like he could be a weapon there as he seemed to be perpetually open.  Mozawal even played some at WR before coming in for his first collegiate action at QB, where he had a tough go of it but at least got some valuable reps and got a taste of the speed of the college game. Another massive FY target, Davin Bailey, also had his first career catch.

Oh, and by the way, as per the usual (this has been going on for years), for some reason I can't fathom, Williams refuses to update its starting lineup, as six listed starters were not in fact starting and several didn't even suit up. Very weird.

The Williams defensive front continues to dominate, super sophs Luke Mangini, Will Gale, Ben Yedid and Zakkai Moore were everywhere and all four are making cases for all-league consideration (last year's fifth FY starter, DB Andrew Kreakie, has yet to see action this year and is presumably injured).  Despite three INTs today, the Eph secondary is more concerning especially coming up against Middlebury which always hurts you with the passing game.  Would be great to get Gehring back for that one but I have no idea how serious his injury is.  If not, hopefully Raymond can settle on a DB rotation after getting a long look at a lot of different options today. 

As for Bowdoin, they just got blown off the ball repeatedly on both sides of the ball.  Credit to Peter Macauley who was TOUGH out there, he got hit very, very hard repeatedly and hung in there and toughed it out with big plays both with his arm and his legs. A lot of his stats came late against the second-team defense, but still, I thought he played very well overall considering he was running for his life and took some vicious hits. 

I think you kind of have to throw week one's results out as a lot of teams were figuring out who they are.  Once you do that, you have a pretty clear top four of Trinity, Wesleyan, Williams, and Amherst pretty closely grouped (I'd say in that order, right now), a middle tier of Tufts, Midd and Colby, and Bates, Hamilton and Bowdoin bringing up the rear (although Colby is teetering on the edge of that bottom tier as well).  Michael Berlutti has taken a lot of flack here, but man, Tufts sure seems to miss him, trying three QBs already this year after four years of Berlutti controlling the offense effectively.  As Amherst and Williams can testify this year, having a legit QB (especially a two-way threat) makes all the difference in the world. With Trinity/Williams/Amherst/Wes mostly playing each other in the final few weeks of the season, this NESCAC season should go right down to the wire. 

[Nescacman]

Am I the only one who thinks we need to pump the brakes on the Mammoths?


This didn't age well as the crazy NESCAC year continues. The little three could be epic this year.

Touche on that one...we were a bit surprised with the result in Middlebury yesterday. Maybe we shouldn't have been after speaking with Coach Mills this week on the 9 Weeks pod. Good for them. Congratulations to Coach Mills and the Lord Mammoths. The NESCAC is a better place with two decent purple teams.

[JEFFFAN]

Who knows how it will play out, but it is good to season (a) a good Amherst quarterback and (b) a good Amherst offensive line.   This program couldn't block to save its life for the past 5-6 years, but this group is giving the QB some time.  Fun to see my Lord Jeff program alive again.

[Nescacman]

Who knows how it will play out, but it is good to season (a) a good Amherst quarterback and (b) a good Amherst offensive line.   This program couldn't block to save its life for the past 5-6 years, but this group is giving the QB some time.  Fun to see my Lord Jeff program alive again.

The last 3 games will be a good test for the LMs with 2 of those 3 games on the road. Defense hasn't been the issue the last several years. We'll see if the offense can continue to play well.

[muleshoe]

Week 5 lines are out from the computers

Amherst 24.6, Bowdoin 14.9
Trinity (Conn.) 39.5, Hamilton 4.0
Tufts 29.4, Bates 11.0
Wesleyan 28.1, Colby 9.0
Williams 27.5, Middlebury 19.4

Only one that stands out to me is the Tufts-Bates projection. Feels like Bates will find a way to muck it up and keep Tufts in the teens. I could also see Williams running away with it (literally) against Midd. I'm just hoping Colby can go 1 game without an offensive turnover...

[nescac1]

I think Hamilton will manage to score a few TD's on Trinity's defense.  Hamilton can throw the ball and Trinity hasn't played close to an elite passing team; Williams does not qualify as such and receivers were often wide open against the Bants (granted, Trinity was stacking the line to stop the run).  But Trinity will score with ease on Hamilton so 39.5 on the other side of the ledger sounds about right there.  I LOVE Amherst -10 against Bowdoin. Amherst QB and TBs will break a lot of big runs in that game.

I think Midd's strength passing the ball could give trouble to a banged-up Eph secondary, although the strong Eph pass rush will help compensate.  I think Williams should be favored in that game but eight feels a bit high as well. Agree that Tufts' offense putting up 29 on anyone right now feels like a stretch. 

 

[Nescacman]

2025 NESCACMAN Week 4 Power Rankings

Welcome to the Week4 Power Rankings for October 4, 2025.

NESCACMAN picks resulted in a 3-2 record in Week4, and we now stand at 14-6 on the year. Our losses this week: the Lord Mammoths "upsetting" a team for the second week in a row beating Middlebury in Vermont and Colby coming back to beat UBates in OT. In that game Colby snatched victory from the jaws of defeat (more on that later). 

Top-rated Hartford State maintains the top spot in the NESCACMAN Consortium rankings based on their win over Tufts in the Coop. In other action, Wesleyan thumped Hamilton at home and the Ephs held serve with a convincing win on the road in Brunswick over the Polars. There are now 4 teams at the top of the NESCAC standings tied at 3-1.

I want to personally thank my good friend, former college teammate, and fraternity brother Wesleyan Athletic Director Coach Mike Whalen for giving me the opportunity to do the color commentary for the Wesleyan/Hamilton game this past Saturday. Coach came in on the red-eye Saturday AM from a business trip to the West Coast and asked me to sub for him. It was an honor to call the game with my podcast partner, the voice of the Wesleyan Cardinals, Chris Grace. I look forward to returning to the booth sometime again in the future. Thanks Whales and Chris!

Some details on "NESCACMAN"...we share a love for all things NESCAC, but especially football. We love everything about NESCAC...the history, traditions, rivalries, quirky rituals, passion, student-athletes, coaches, students, parents, alumni, tailgates, fields of play, breakfast spots, post-game meetups et cetera. Each week, we will present our power rankings and then later in the week an overview, prediction and spread on every NESCAC game. There will also be some special reports along the way. And of course, we publish our weekly "9 Weeks: A NESCAC Football Podcast" where we speak with the coaches, interview key student-athlete playmakers in the league, give our weekly power rankings, and of course, pick each game.

Speaking about the podcast, we co-host "Nine Weeks: A NESCAC Football Podcast" along with Chris Grace, the longtime play-by-play voice of the Wesleyan Football Cardinals. Available weekly, the podcast is available on YouTube and Spotify. Please follow us and take a listen. Season 2, Episode 4  is available now (featuring Amherst Head Coach EJ Mills and Hamilton QB Luke Kurzum). Season 2, Episode 5 will be available later this week and will feature two more amazing guests, Bantam Head Coach Jeff Devanney and Amherst QB Marek Hill. Should be another great watch/listen. We encourage you to check it out.

Here are our rankings for Week #4:

1). Hartford State Bantams (Record: 3-1; Last Week Rank: 1; 7 first place votes): The Bantams played solid in week4, led Tufts wire-to-wire and won their 3rd straight game. Hartford State jumped out to a 14-point lead and then rattled off 4 straight TDs after Tufts has narrowed the gap to 14-7. Hartford State outgained the Jumbo's 447 to 246. Nolan O'Brien was the star offensively for the Bants with 2 TDs and went over 100 yards again receiving. The Hartford State defense was strong all day and in the first half when they had numerous 3 and outs. The Bants travel to Clinton this week to play Hamilton.

2). Wesleyan Cardinals (Record: 3-1; Last Week Rank: 2; 3 first place votes): Wesleyan thumps Hamilton at home for their 3rd win of the season. Wesleyan leads the NESCAC in scoring offense, scoring defense, total defense, and run defense.  After a sluggish start in the 1st quarter, Wesleyan had a second quarter to remember rattling off 35 unanswered points. Hamilton had their chances early with one drive ending in an interception and their second drive ending in a missed FG after a first and 10 from the Wes 18 pushed back by two holding penalties. Card offense generated 561 yards of total offense and 28 first downs. The Wes passing game was especially potent with 365 yards passing and 5 TD passes on 20-23 (no interceptions) led by this week's Gold Helmet winner, Matt Fitzsimons. Fitzsimons now leads the NESCAC in passing TDs and passing efficiency. FY WR Donte Kelly, who leads the NESCAC in receiving yards, had 2 TD receptions in this one. The defense played well holding Hamilton to 14 points and forcing 3 turnovers. Although they didn't record a sack, they did have 7 QB hurries and were pressuring Hamilton signal caller, Luke Kurzum, all day. The Wes offense was 5 of 8 on 3rd down and 6 for 6 in the red zone. Wes heads to Waterville to face Colby this Saturday as they try to keep pace in the NESCAC title chase. 

3). Williams Purple Cows (Record: 3-1; Last Week Rank: 3): Williams gets back in the win column with a resounding victory over Bowdoin on the road. Williams had a 35-3 lead heading into the 4th quarter before allowing 2 late Polar TDs. Williams once again pounded the rock well running for over 200 yards and scoring 3 rushing TDs. Senior RB Jon Oris ran for 144 yards, and a TD and QB Owen Johansen ran for 69 yards and 2 TDs. Williams OL once again did not allow a sack and has only allowed 1 sack all year. DB George Papadopo (4 tackles, 2 interceptions and a fumble recovery) and Luke Mangini (15 tackles, 4 for loss) were standout on D for the Ephs. Williams forced 4 Bowdoin turnovers. The Ephs host Middlebury this week in an important NESCAC game.

4). Amherst Lord Mammoths (Record: 3-1; Last Week Rank: 6): The Lord Mammoths get their 3rd win in a row after jumping out to a big 3rd quarter lead at Middlebury. This is the best start for the Lord Mammoths since 2021. After going up 27-3, MID scored two 4th quarter TDs to close the gap to 27-17. Amherst outgained the Panthers 372-340 and dominated time of possession (36 min to 24 min). The LMs passed more than they ran (38 passes to 35 runs). QB Marek Hill again led the Amherst offense accounting for 2 of their 3 TDs. The run defense was stout for the LMs only allowing MID 54 yards on 22 carries. DB/LB Luke Harmon again led the Lord Mammoths in tackles with 10, 2.5 for loss, forced a fumble and broke up a pass. The improvement this year for the Lord Mammoths is due to more consistent play out of the offense, particularly at the QB position. Unlike recent years, Amherst has been very good in the red zone (they lead the NESCAC in that category) and they have cut down on net turnovers (equal number of turnovers and recoveries through 4 games). They do need to cut down on the penalties (lead the NESCAC in that category). The Lord Mammoths travel to Bowdoin this week to face the Polars. Important game for Amherst to keep pace with the league leaders. Coach Mills will have to keep the team focused on this game and not look past Bowdoin. This is a classic trap game. More on that later in the week.

5). Tufts Jumbo's (Record: 2-2; Last Week Rank: 4): Another loss for the Jumbo's on the road at Hartford State. After starting 2-0,  Tufts has lost their last 2 games, the first time they have lost two in a row since 2022. The Jumbo offense continues to struggle (7th in the NESCAC in total offense) generating only 246 yards of offense and 11 offensive first downs. Although Justin Keller saw most of the time at QB, FY Nate Johnson, saw his first time as a Jumbo. The Jumbo's will try to right the ship this weekend when they host UBates who is looking for their first win since week1.

6). Middlebury (Record: 2-2; Last Week Rank: 5): MID loses at home to the Lord Mammoths. Story of this game was the previously mentioned Middlebury ground game which could not getting anything going against the Amherst defense. QB Brian Moran had a strong game throwing for 286 yards and 2 scores. This version of the Middlebury Panthers seems to have enough to beat the teams they should beat but they have struggled thus far against the league's better teams. This week the Panthers head to Williamstown to face one of the league's better teams, the Williams College Ephs.

7). Colby Mules (Record: 2-2; Last Week Rank: 7): The Mules even their record with a C-B-B win on the road against UBates. Trailing 6-3 with 38 seconds left, Colby lined up for a game tying FG. The short 32-yard kick sailed wide-left. The only problem was the Kitties lined up offsides. The Mules converted on the second chance from 5 yards closer making the 27-yard FG with 29 seconds remaining. In the 1st OT, Colby lost the toss, got the ball first and got the TD on Miles Drake's first TD pass of the season. The Mules defense held tough in the OT period, and the Kitties were denied the win. Colby's offense struggled again with 196 yards on 66 plays. They threw 2 more interceptions and lead the NESCAC with 9. During this game, Colby went 7 consecutive series with no more than 4 plays (5 punts and 2 interceptions). The Mule defense played well limiting the Kitties to 232 yards of total offense and 3 of 13 on 3rd downs. It was the second time this year the defense has limited an opponent to 6 or fewer points. This week they return home for a tough game against Wesleyan.

8). University of Bates Bobcats (Record: 1-3; Last Week Rank: 8): The Kitties lose a heart breaker at home in Lewiston. Inopportune penalties and third down conversions (last in the NESCAC in 3rd down conversion percentage). continue to plague UBates. With QB Sergio Beltran out due to injury, the Kitties leaned heavily on RB Ryan Lynskey (89 yards on 29 carries. K Marcus Ruiz was a bright spot for the Kitties converting on both his FG attempts including a career long 41 yarder. LB Ryan Rozich led the UBates defense with 14 tackles, including two for loss, and a sack. The Kitties played well defensively limiting Colby to under 200 yards of total offense. The Kitties travel to Medford to face Tufts under the lights this Saturday.

9). Hamilton Continentals (Record: 1-3; Last Week Rank: 9): Hamilton had a tough day in Middletown against the Cardinals. Despite a promising start, the Conts could not convert on their 2 opening drives which came back to haunt them. QB Luke Kurzum gave it all he had but even he couldn't carry them to victory. Hamilton recorded their first turnovers (3) of the year. Those turnovers and inopportune penalties against a very good Wesleyan squad prevented Hamilton from competing in this one. In addition, the Hamilton defense could not stop the multi-faceted Wesleyan offensive attack. The Conts host Hartford State this weekend.

10). Bowdoin Polar Bears (Record: 0-4; Last Week Rank: 10): Polars lose their fourth game of the season on homecoming in Brunswick. Bowdoin is last in total offense and 9th in total defense in the NESCAC. They have only scored 4 TDs all year. The Polars tried their third starting QB of the year shifting to Peter Macaulay. Macaulay ran the ball effectively for Bowdoin.  The Polar offense turned the ball over 4 times against Williams. The Polars are playing a lot of younger players who are getting a ton of game day experience. This week they host Williams in Brunswick.

2025 Week3 NESCACMAN Offensive Player of the Week: QB Matt Fitzsimons, Wesleyan

2025 Week3 NESCACMAN Defensive Players of the Week: DB George Papadopo, Williams; LB Ryan Rozich, UBates

2025 Week1 NESCACMAN Special Teams Player of the Week: K Marcus Ruiz, UBates

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[Trin9-0]

Am I the only one who thinks we need to pump the brakes on the Mammoths?

This didn't age well as the crazy NESCAC year continues. The little three could be epic this year.

Well, I said I'd starting taking Amherst seriously if they beat Midd on the road and boy did they ever! The Mammoths led 27-3 heading into the final frame. Agree with Nescacman that the league is better when the Little Three teams are relevant.

Trin certainly looked the part on Saturday and appear to be rounding into form. The Bants' next three games are @ Hamilton, Midd in the Coop and @ Bowdoin. I would expect them to be 6-1 when Amherst comes to Hartford for Senior Day on November 1. A fun year in the 'CAC!

[Trin9-0]

Also, I saw this incredible photo from Saturday and couldn't resist poking some fun at my takes this season:

[Nescacman]

Also, I saw this incredible photo from Saturday and couldn't resist poking some fun at my takes this season:

Is that Tyler's best imitation of Saquon?!? Great pic, btw.

[lumbercat]

As good a defensive effort as I have seen a Bates team play on Garcelon Field in many years.
Almost a perfect game on Defense. Bates secondary shutdown everybody's all world WR Nye and the Colby passing game.

When the Bates lost Beltran they lost their QB and their best receiver and it's been a big blow to the Offense.

Kind of a shock to see the ref throw a flag on a player player in the neutral zone on the missed 42 yard field goal as the clock expired. That's a call the zebras could make on almost any play, don't recall ever seeing a call like that in that situation.

Terrible luck, no excuses from Coyne and the Bobcats this is a guy venting. A tip of the hat to Mules who found a way to steal one on the road.

A devastating loss but the Bates rebuild remains firmly intact. It was very clear that the tougher, more physical team was the Bobcats despite a big Mule size advantage. Coyne has said from day one that they would build a culture based on toughness and physicality. He has done that, it was clear on Saturday night.

[Nescacman]

Nine Weeks: A NESCAC Football Podcast

Nine Weeks: A NESCAC Football Podcast is the first podcast of its kind in NESCAC history. Hosted by Chris Grace (play-by-play announcer for Wesleyan) and Dave Bagatelle (Wesleyan Alum and former player), our weekly show features coach and player interviews, game analysis, rankings, previews, and predictions.

Coming soon...Season 2 Episode 5 featuring Trinity College Head Coach Jeff Devanney and Amherst College Quarterback Marek Hill.

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