FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[lumbercat]

Yes the Tufts broadcasts and productions are very good- the best in the league.

They do a good job at Wesleyan but the play by play guy puts me to sleep with the slow cadence monotone.

The Middlebury cast on Saturday was the worst I've seen in quite some time but they might have been substitutes..... the kid who was doing the play by play was doing his best be he had no idea what was going on with the game.

Bowdoin does a good job with 2 locals in the booth as well.

[Charlie]

After watching many NESCAC games this year it is clear and evident that in my opinion the real offensive MVP is not a player but the OC of Trinity College. I will grant you the entire Coaching staff at Trinity does an amazing job of recruiting and Coaching. I watched the Bowdoin game and was amazed how the OC has transformed this team. In past years you had Girard , Reid , Clapp and a slew of TE that could get down the field for the home run ball.

After week one debacle against Colby where they were trying to adopt the same down field philosophy the OC has changed his philosophy. I have never seen more kids touching the ball in the passing game as well as rushing the ball. I have never seen so much talent on Offense from a team that is not loosing a talent for graduation. They have many 5 th year studs coming back and have shown that they can play any type of football long ball , ball control and ground and pound.

This coupled with a Defense that is young and gets everyone back in front 7 plus reserves. They average giving up 13 points per game and I think that is skewed. Several turnovers and special teams mistakes have put them in bad situations.

I think the real tell tale sign is the number of young players gaining valuable experience as Freshman unheard of before but with new limits and injuries have given players valuable field time and experience. This is really a solid program and not easy for Coaches to change their philosophy.

[Trin9-0]

While I (happily) underestimated the Bants up in Brunswick I'm feeling pretty good about where they stand with two games to go. Trin is alone atop the standings and leads the league in scoring offense and defense.

Amherst heads to The Coop on Saturday having lost two straight and while Marek Hill has been a revelation for the Mammoths he's coming off an underwhelming day against Wes where he completed just 51% of his passes along with 3 ints and took a pair of sacks. Trinity has the #1 pass defense in the NESCAC through 7 games.

Trin can clinch at least a share of the NESCAC title with a win on Saturday. It would be the 19th time the Bantams finished with the NESCAC's best record and their 12th official title.

[Trin9-0]

Latest SP+ ratings and NESCAC projections:

30. Trinity 24.4
57. Wesleyan 14.2
78. Williams 8.5
89. Middlebury 5.9
117. Tufts 2.3
121. Amherst 1.5
152. Colby -6.0
171. Bates -11.4
189. Hamilton -17.1
195. Bowdoin -17.8

Bates 24.4 Bowdoin 20.5
Middlebury 32.4 Hamilton 11.8
Trinity 34.7 Amherst  9.4
Tufts 25.2 Colby 14.4
Wesleyan 25.1 Williams 21.8

[Hunglikeamule]

While I (happily) underestimated the Bants up in Brunswick I'm feeling pretty good about where they stand with two games to go. Trin is alone atop the standings and leads the league in scoring offense and defense.

Amherst heads to The Coop on Saturday having lost two straight and while Marek Hill has been a revelation for the Mammoths he's coming off an underwhelming day against Wes where he completed just 51% of his passes along with 3 ints and took a pair of sacks. Trinity has the #1 pass defense in the NESCAC through 7 games.

Trin can clinch at least a share of the NESCAC title with a win on Saturday. It would be the 19th time the Bantams finished with the NESCAC's best record and their 12th official title.

Trinity isn't winning the league bud. Couldn't even beat my Mules week 1.

[muleshoe]

With two weeks left in the season - it's time to talk about the real possibility of a 5 way tie for the league championship, and I don't think it's that wild of a scenario:

1. Colby or Tufts win out. They play each other this weekend then have Bowdoin/Midd, respectively to close the year
2. Amherst Wins Out. Upset in the Coop then host the Ephs
3. Williams Beats Wes this weekend in Williamstown
4. Wes beats Trinity back-to-back for the first time since 1997-1998

Please check my math here, but I think we would have 5 at 6-3 if this plays out.

[Trin9-0]

With two weeks left in the season - it's time to talk about the real possibility of a 5 way tie for the league championship, and I don't think it's that wild of a scenario:

1. Colby or Tufts win out. They play each other this weekend then have Bowdoin/Midd, respectively to close the year
2. Amherst Wins Out. Upset in the Coop then host the Ephs
3. Williams Beats Wes this weekend in Williamstown
4. Wes beats Trinity back-to-back for the first time since 1997-1998

Please check my math here, but I think we would have 5 at 6-3 if this plays out.

Your math is right, muleshoe and even though I'd be surprised if more than two of these (at least) 6 hypotheticals plays out I have to admit it'd be pretty cool to see it happen.

Imagine if the league goes 53 years without even a two-loss team winning a title and then we get a 5-way championship tie with half the league winning it all with three losses apiece! Madness.

[Nescacman]

2025 NESCACMAN Week 7 Power Rankings

Welcome to the Week7 Power Rankings for October 25, 2025.

NESCACMAN had a good week picking games going 4-1 in Week7. NESCAC returned to some sense of sanity in Week7. Going into the last 2 weeks of the season, we have 3 teams with a decent chance to at least get a share of the 2025 NESCAC title. 6 teams in all have a shot (some are long shots) to at least get a share in the NESCAC Championship this year. Hartford State and Wesleyan completely control their own destiny while Williams will need some help. Amherst, Tufts and Colby will need a lot of help to get a share of the NESCAC title (more on that later). We now stand at 25-10 on the year picking games. Our winners this week were Wesleyan, Colby, Middlebury, and Hartford State. 

Top-rated Hartford State maintains the top spot in the NESCACMAN Consortium rankings. Through 7 weeks, they stand alone at the top of the NESCAC standings at 6-1. Wesleyan and Williams are in second place at 5-2. 

We also 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 wherever you get your podcasts including YouTube, Spotify, and Apple. Please follow us and take a listen. Season 2, Episode 7  is available now featuring Bowdoin Polar Bear Head Coach BJ Hammer and Williams College WR Zach Falls. Season 2, Episode 8 will be available later this week and will feature two more amazing guests, Wesleyan Cardinal Head Coach Dan DiCennzo and Wesleyan Cardinal DB Dylan Connors. Should be another great watch/listen. We encourage you to check it out.

Here are our rankings as we head into Week #8:

1). Hartford State Bantams (Record: 6-1; Last Week Rank: 1; 10 first place votes): The Bantams won their 6th game in a row on the road in Brunswick. Their magic number to clinch at least a tie for the NESCAC title is now 1. Hartford State hosts Amherst this week and then travels to Middletown to face Wesleyan to end the season. What are they playing for? Hartford State completely controls their own destiny. They win out in their final two games against Amherst and Wesleyan, they are NESCAC Champions all by themselves. If they win at least win one of those games, they clinch at least a tie for the NESCAC Championship. If they lose their last two games, there is still a scenario where they could gain a share of the NESCAC title.

2). Wesleyan Cardinals (Record: 5-2; Last Week Rank: 3): Wesleyan bounces back with a big win in front of the largest NESCAC crowd of the season on homecoming in Middletown. Wesleyan is now guaranteed their 13th straight winning season (second longest current streak in the NESCAC). Wesleyan got the win by playing very good defense (4 turnovers, 2 sacks, 9 quarterback hurries, 33 yards rushing on 20 attempts), being opportunistic on offense, and playing solid special teams (punt block for a TD, fumble recovery on a punt, numerous punts inside the 20). Wes faces Williams on the road this Saturday. Wes has won 10 of the last 11 times these teams have played. What are they playing for? Wesleyan completely controls their own destiny. They win out in their final two games against Williams and Hartford State, they are NESCAC Champions and Little 3 Champs for the 4th straight year. If they beat Hartford State, they can still tie for the league title if they lose to the Ephs on Saturday, if Hartford State loses this week to Amherst and Amherst beats Willaims in Week9.
 
3). Williams Ephs (Record: 5-2; Last Week Rank: 2): Williams stubs their toe against a resurgent Tufts Jumbo squad on the road. WR Zach Falls had another great day leading the Ephs offense with 143 yards receiving on 8 catches and 1 TD. QB Owen Johansen did not have his usual productive game running the ball coming back from injury. The Ephs host Wesleyan this week in a big Little 3 game that will have NESCAC Championship ramifications as well.  What are they playing for? Williams best chance for a share of the NESCAC title is to win out  and hope that Hartford State loses one of their last two games. If the Ephs win out, they also win the Little 3 title. They can still get share of the NESCAC title if they beat Wesleyan, lose to Amherst and Hartford State loses their last two games.

4). Amherst Lord Mammoths (Record: 4-3; Last Week Rank: 4): The Amherst Lord Mammoths lost their second game in a row this season and fourth in four years to Wesleyan. They will need to win 1 of their last 2 games to finish above .500. This is the second straight week that they have had a punt blocked for a TD. Amherst's defense did a very good job containing FY Donte Kelly (1 catch on the day) and holding down the Wes running game. Amherst travels to Hartford State to face the Bantams this Saturday. What are they playing for? Amherst's slim chance for a share of the NESCAC title is to win out, hope that Hartford State loses their last two games, and Williams beats Wesleyan. The best the Lord Mammoths can do is tie for the Little 3 title after losing to Wesleyan last Saturday.

5). Tufts Jumbos (Record: 4-3; Last Week Rank: 8): Tufts wins their second game in a row. This win was over the Ephs in Medford. The Jumbo's put up almost 500 yards of offense for the second straight week. The Jumbo offense was led by QB Hudson Weidman (335 yards passing for 3 TDS; 1 rushing TD). This week the Jumbo's host Colby in their final home game of the year. What are they playing for? Tufts's has a very slim chance for a share of the NESCAC title. They will need to win out against Colby and Middlebury and get a lot of help. Win 1 of their last two games and they finish over .500.

6). Middlebury Panthers (Record: 3-4; Last Week Rank: 5): This week, Middlebury beat a Lynskey-less UBates squad. RB Connor McClellan led the Panthers offense with 121 yards rushing and 3 TDs. This week the Panthers travel to Clinton to face the Continentals in the "Old Rocking Chair" Game. What are they playing for? Middlebury is mathematically eliminated from NESCAC title contention. They need to win their last two games (Hamilton and Tufts) to finish over .500.

7). Colby Mules (Record: 4-3; Last Week Rank: 6): Colby wins on homecoming against the Continentals. Despite continued offensive struggles by the Mules, their defense again carries them to the win. This week Colby travels to Tufts. What are they playing for? Like Tufts's, Colby has a very slim chance for a share of the NESCAC title. They will need to win out against Tufts and Bowdoin and get a lot of help.  Win 1 of their last two games and they finish over .500. for the first time since 2005. If they beat Bowdoin, they win the C-B-B title.

8). University of Bates Bobcats (Record: 2-5; Last Week Rank: 7): This week, the Kitties lost on the road against Middlebury. UBates was without star RB Ryan Lynskey and it showed as they only tallied 48 yards on the ground on 24 carries. The Kitties travel to Brunswick this week to face Bowdoin. What are they playing for? Pride. Win out against Bowdoin and Hamilton and they have their best record since 2014 at 4-5.

9). Hamilton Continentals (Record: 1-6; Last Week Rank: 9): Hamilton loses their 4th straight game in a defensive battle against Colby. Hamilton hosts Middlebury in their last home game of the year. What are they playing for? Pride. Win out against Middlebury and UBates and they improve their record from last year.

10). Bowdoin Polar Bears (Record: 1-6; Last Week Rank: 10): Bowdoin loses at home to Hartford State. This week the Polars host the UBates Kitties. What are they playing for? Pride. If they win out against UBates and Colby, they win the C-B-B title and equal their win total from 2024.

2025 Week7 NESCACMAN Offensive Player of the Week: QB Hudson Weidman, Tufts

2025 Week7 NESCACMAN Defensive Player of the Week: LB Lincoln Merrill, Colby

2025 Week7 NESCACMAN Special Teams Player of the Week: DB Dylan Connors, Wesleyan

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