FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[Nescacman]

Bantamsdad69, I know as well as anyone that it's hard to not fall into Nescacman's trap, but I've learned over the years that it's exactly what he's looking for. He knows as well as the rest of the board that there's no real case to be made for Wesleyan in the top spot after their narrow escape in Clinton. Best to just roll your eyes and realize that despite his very meaning full addition to the board he can't help himself when it comes to his complete lack of objectivity about Wesleyan.

Combined record of opponents of 1st Place NESCAC teams (through 3 games):

Amherst: 0-9

Hartford State: 2-7

Wesleyan: 4-5
 

[Trin9-0]

It's your ranking bud, do what's in your heart.

All I know is that Wes needed a miracle to beat a team who hasn't had a winning season since 1996. Meanwhile Trinity completely obliterated the team YOU had ranked as the third best in the NESCAC.

[Nescacman]

We stumbled across a site that literally blows the SP+ ratings away. Here you go:

https://hansenratings.com/projections/2026/matchup/

Had some fun with it. FWIW...The Hansen model has North Central beating Hartford State in the Coop by 17. HaHa

[Nescacman]

Knowing Hs7-2 like we do, we'll beat him to the punch:

North Central 42 Wes 16 (North Central -26) @Andrus..

Hansen has HS giving 30 this Saturday to the Continentals btw...

[Nescacman]

Nine Weeks: A NESCAC Football Podcast

Available Soon! Available wherever you get your podcasts!

9 Weeks: A NESCAC Football Podcast S.3 Ep.4 (Special Guests: Wesleyan University QB Matt Fitzsimons, Tufts University Head Coach Jay Civetti, and D3Football.com's Executive Editor Patrick Coleman).

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.

The podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts including YouTube, Facebook, Apple and Spotify. Search for "9 Weeks NESCAC"...the first and only podcast of its kind.
 
Thank you to our sponsors Sloane and Walsh, LLP, Gameday Sports, and Noank Village Boatyard.
 
If you have questions, feedback, ideas or are a player or a coach and would like to appear on our show, please email us at: 9weeksnescac@gmail.com

Follow us on X (aka Twitter): @nineweeksnescac
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Look for NESCACMAN's weekly predictions and point spreads at nescacfootballreport.com. The NESCAC Football report is a website dedicated to all things NESCAC football, including team previews, weekly game previews and power rankings and game recaps.  The site now provides its followers with NESCACMAN's weekly game lines and predicted scores.

[Nescacman]

Nine Weeks: A NESCAC Football Podcast

Available Now! Available wherever you get your podcasts!

9 Weeks: A NESCAC Football Podcast S.3 Ep.4 (Special Guests: Wesleyan University QB Matt Fitzsimons, Tufts University Head Coach Jay Civetti, and D3Football.com's Executive Editor Patrick Coleman).

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.

The podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts including YouTube, Facebook, Apple and Spotify. Search for "9 Weeks NESCAC"...the first and only podcast of its kind.

Thank you to our sponsors Sloane and Walsh, LLP, Gameday Sports, and Noank Village Boatyard.

If you have questions, feedback, ideas or are a player or a coach and would like to appear on our show, please email us at: 9weeksnescac@gmail.com

Follow us on X (aka Twitter): @nineweeksnescac
Follow us on Instagram: @nineweeksnescac
Facebook: Nine Weeks: A NESCAC Football Podcast (https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1EbgGxDZRd/)
YouTube: 9 Weeks Nescac (https://www.youtube.com/@nineweeksnescac)
Spotify Podcasts: 9 Weeks Nescac
Apple Podcasts: 9 Weeks Nescac

Look for NESCACMAN's weekly predictions and point spreads at nescacfootballreport.com. The NESCAC Football report is a website dedicated to all things NESCAC football, including team previews, weekly game previews and power rankings and game recaps.  The site now provides its followers with NESCACMAN's weekly game lines and predicted scores.

[JEFFFAN]

Very sad story - Williams College recruit.

https://www.boston.com/community/local-news/2026/10/07/marblehead-football-captain-owen-coyne-remembered-as-a-quiet-leader-who-made-others-feel-seen/

[Nescacman]

Very sad story - Williams College recruit.

https://www.boston.com/community/local-news/2026/10/07/marblehead-football-captain-owen-coyne-remembered-as-a-quiet-leader-who-made-others-feel-seen/

Yes, it is. Nescac1 previously shared this with us last week. Obviously, our condolences and thoughts go out to his family and friends.

[Nescacman]

2026 Week 4 NESCACMAN Picks

Welcome NESCAC 2026 Week #4 "in the league where they pay to play".

Our NESCAC game of the week is in Amherst, Mass where the Amherst Lord Mammoths host the Middlebury Panthers. This is the only battle in Week #4 that pits two winning teams against one another.

We went 5-0 picking winners last week and stand at 9-1 on the year.

Let's get to this week's games...

University of Bates (Lewiston Campus) at Williams College: The Kitties travel to Williamstown to face the Ephs. Both teams are coming off disappointing losses. UBates has not done well in recent years against Williams losing the last 8 contests. Playing without their stars and emotional leaders, Ryan Lynskey and Ryan Rosich, the Kitties have been playing gritty football, despite coming into this game 0-3. There is a scenario where UBates could be 2-1 even with tons of injuries to key starters, losing close games to both Amherst and Tufts. Williams will look to regroup after getting absolutely crushed at Hartford State last week. As near as we can tell, it was the largest loss ever for Williams against Hartford State. Williams has struggled throwing the ball 9last in the NESCAC in passing offense, 6 interceptions and only 1 passing TD). Prior to last week, they were running the ball well, however. Meanwhile, UBates has offense seemed to figure some things out against Tufts last week. We'll see if that continues. UBates wins if: They stop the Ephs ground game and force them to throw. Williams wins if: The offense is a bit more balanced and they get star receiver Zach Falls more involved. We think this game will be a close, low scoring affair. The Ephs pull away in the 4th quarter at home for their 3rd win. Would not be surprised in UBates covers the spread

Williams 20 UBates 10
Point Spread: Williams -10
Weather: Partly cloudy skies. High 61F. Winds light and variable.

Colby College at Wesleyan University: Mules continue to struggle. The Colby offense has scored exactly 3 touchdowns in 3 games and is yet to demonstrate the ability to run the ball consistently. Colby is last in the NESCAC in total offense and 8th in total defense. Meanwhile, Wesleyan is coming off an emotional last second win against the plucky Conts. They are a close second in the NESCAC in scoring and total offense. They have scored at least 35 points in every game and 40+ points the last two games. Wesleyan has won 14 of their last 15 meetings with Colby and has won the last 7 times these teams have played in Middletown. Colby played a freshman QB last week instead of the transfer Stephen Gil. We're not sure if that was injury related or coaches' decision. Colby wins if: They get the running game going, control the clock and force Wes to turn the ball over. They will need hold Wesleyan to under 20 points, which is a tall task. Wesleyan wins if: They keep the petal to the metal and play better defense against the Mules. We think Wes has too much offense and we think the defense bounces back against the Mules offense. The Cards get win #4 at home on the new Andrus turf.

Wesleyan 35 Colby 13
Point Spread: Wesleyan -17
Weather: Intervals of clouds and sunshine. High 66F. Winds light and variable.

Hamilton College at Hartford State: Two tough games in a row for the Continentals. Hamilton is coming off a 38-point performance against Wesleyan. As unbelievable as it sounds, and as well as their offense played against Wes, they will have to play even better against Hartford State to have a shot at a win (or to even make this game competitive). QB Luke Kurzum could make this game interesting. Hamilton is last in the NESCAC in defense (226th in country out of 243 D3 teams, as well) and their offense is facing the top defense in the country in D3. We expect the Conts to throw early and often. Hartford State wins if: Their defense continues to play at a high-level, they run the ball effectively chewing up the clock and the keep the ball away from the Hamilton offense. Hamilton wins if: They will need to play one of the greatest games in Hamilton College history to shock the world and come away with the upset in the Coop. The Bants haven't lost to HAM since 1994 (that's 30 straight games) and it's not going to happen this year.

Hartford State 49 Hamilton 21
Point Spread: Hartford State -28
Weather: Intervals of clouds and sunshine. High 66F. Winds light and variable.

Bowdoin College at Tufts University: Tufts returns home after a thrilling win against the Kitties last week in Lewiston. Kudos to the Polars who have played valiantly while dealing with off-the field, non-football related issues. Kudos to the student-athletes and coaches for staying focused. Bowdoin has played solid defense while their offense has struggled to get the ball into the end zone. Bowdoin needs to do a better job protecting the ball (7 turnovers-6 interceptions, 1 fumble lost), converting on third down (26%), running the ball (1.6 yards per carry and no rushing TDs), and scoring in the red zone (2 of 5). Christian Shapiro has been a bright spot for Tufts running the ball (2nd in the league in rushing). The Tufts defense has struggled at times and will have to pick up against BOW. Bowdoin wins if: The defense continues to play well and shuts down the Tufts offense. They get some production out of their offense. Tufts wins if: They score 17 points.  We think Tufts's scores just enough to come away with the win.

Tufts 27 Bowdoin 13
Point Spread:  Tufts -10
Weather (courtesy of The Weather Channel): Partly cloudy. Low near 45F. Winds light and variable.

NESCAC Game of the Week

Middlebury College at Amherst College: Intriguing battle in our NESCAC game of the week. MID's only loss was to unbeaten Wesleyan and Amherst comes in at 3-0. Amherst is yet to beat a team with a win. This series has been very even over the years. However, MID has won the last 3 games overall and the last 4 at Amherst. Big question is what is the status of Amherst QB Marek Hill? He did not play last week, despite being the NESCAC OPOTW the week before. MID wins if: They can run the ball against the stout Lord Mammoth run defense. Getting Connor McClelland going is key. AMH wins if: If their pass defense keeps up with their run defense. Tough not to make Amherst the favorite at home in this one but we have a feeling that MID is poised for the mild upset to give the Lord Mammoths their first loss of 2026. It's Fall break at Amherst...over/under on crowd size if 500. We'll take the under.

Middlebury 17 Amherst 13
Point Spread: Amherst -1
Weather: Partly cloudy. High 64F. Winds light and variable.

Good luck to all the student-athletes and coaches this Saturday!

NESCACMAN's Career Picks:
2026 Season: 14-1 (.933 winning percentage)
2025 Season: 32-13
2024 Season: 38-7
2023 Season: 31-14
2022 Season: 31-14
2021 Season: 33-12
2020 Season: 0-0 (COVID)
2019 Season: 33-12
2018 Season: 36-9
2017 Season: 35-10
2016 Season: 32-8
2015 Season: 30-10
2014 Season: 30-10
2013 Season: 32-8
Career: 407-128 (.761 winning percentage, 13 seasons)

**********
Follow NESCACMAN on X: @realnescacman

**********
Nine Weeks: A NESCAC Football Podcast

Available Now! Available wherever you get your podcasts!

9 Weeks: A NESCAC Football Podcast S.3 Ep.4 (Special Guests: Wesleyan University QB Matt Fitzsimons, Tufts University Head Coach Jay Civetti, and D3Football.com's Executive Editor Patrick Coleman).

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.

The podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts including YouTube, Facebook, Apple and Spotify. Search for "9 Weeks NESCAC"...the first and only podcast of its kind.
 
Thank you to our sponsors Sloane and Walsh, LLP, Gameday Sports, and Noank Village Boatyard.
 
If you have questions, feedback, ideas or are a player or a coach and would like to appear on our show, please email us at: 9weeksnescac@gmail.com

Follow us on X (aka Twitter): @nineweeksnescac
Follow us on Instagram: @nineweeksnescac
Facebook: Nine Weeks: A NESCAC Football Podcast (https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1EbgGxDZRd/)
YouTube: 9 Weeks Nescac (https://www.youtube.com/@nineweeksnescac)
Spotify Podcasts: 9 Weeks Nescac
Apple Podcasts: 9 Weeks Nescac

Look for NESCACMAN's weekly predictions and point spreads at nescacfootballreport.com. The NESCAC Football report is a website dedicated to all things NESCAC football, including team previews, weekly game previews and power rankings and game recaps.  The site now provides its followers with NESCACMAN's weekly game lines and predicted scores.

[Nescacman]

Very quiet week on the D3Boards with a third of the NESCAC season in the books...looking forward to another exciting day of NESCAC action as we head into week #4...nice to see the weather cooperating here in the Northeast, unlike in other parts of the country...enjoyed the day!

[jmh21]

Given it's against Bates and not one of the better teams in the league...but Williams seems to have found something in the passing game with freshman QB Drew Weiler

[nescac1]

Wow, yeah, FY or no, I'm surprised we have not seen Weiler before this point of the season.  Regardless of the strength of opponent, he is certainly the biggest arm talent Williams has had on the roster since at least 2010 (not saying a LOT, as the Ephs have generally gone with run-first QBs, but it ain't nothing, either).  Weiler was 9-18 for 189 in the half despite three drops by receivers and a pretty blatant uncalled PI.  He also was very impressive running the ball, very nimble for a big QB, ran for 8-53 (net is only 30 because of a huge loss on a bad snap that was in no way his fault).  The entire offensive approach is dramatically different (and a lot more fun to watch) as the Ephs have been spreading the field and abandoned the sluggish, conservative approach from the first three weeks.  They even scored on a clever reverse to Stahelski who's brought some badly needed speed to the offense. Weiler had 3-4 eye-popping plays, none more so than a 55 yard bomb on, I think, 3rd and 29 that he put right on the money to Stahelski; there is a zip on the ball when it leaves his hands that Eph fans haven't seen for quite some time. 

Overall a very impressive day for Eph FYs despite Jack Fabiano not playing (hopefully he is OK). FY tailback Aiden Clark looks good, he's like a bowling ball out there and feels like he's close to breaking a big one soon. Danny Montesano has done a nice job helping fill in for Ben Yedid, another key player who seems to be out, on the DL. Finn Ryan pops whenever he is on the field and is another guy who always seems close to making a game-changing play on defense, he's going to be heard from in a big moment this year.  And Will Machnik continues to do a nice job at CB. 

But the key guy in the class is obviously Weiler and his career could not have gotten off to a more impressive start. Please, please keep him upright, Ephs! 

Bates, I know they've been depleted by injuries this year, and they have definitely gone the wrong direction from last season. 

[nescac1]

A few more Williams-Bates thoughts:

First, I'm guessing a 79 point turnaround in a single week has to be a NESCAC record.  Kudos to the Ephs for bouncing back from a miserable performance at Trinity.  Nothing I'm seeing is changing my opinion that Trinity is going to be unbeaten this season, Wesleyan is the only team with a chance but Trinity's D is clearly much stronger than Wesleyan's.  The Maine teams seem really down this year.  Williams' upside is certainly a lot higher that I would have projected after last week! 

Second, Drew Weiler faced a bit more adversity in the second half as Bates did a much better job in coverage, but overall, looked fantastic both throwing and running the ball, what a first game.  The one area he can work on, unsurprising for a young QB, is getting rid of the ball faster especially when no one is open down the field, he's gonna take some hard hits against better front sevens if he keeps waiting for the big downfield plays (plays his arm can absolutely cash in on). He seems most comfortable throwing over the middle to Jimmy Montesano, who had a big day with 5-84 plus another TD catch that was nullified by penalty, Weiler unlocked Montesano after a quiet start to the season, and he is a unique athlete at TE in NESCAC.  Now that the team is featuring much more of a downfield passing attack, the Ephs will need a bit more from their wide receivers especially Falls who continues to be very quiet.  Owen McHugh looked promising in his first game as a WR and should grow into that role. 

The Ephs' defense certainly had its best game of the season, the secondary which has had some issues was really stellar today, completely shut Bates down.  Again, the upcoming games feature tougher opponents, but that should build some confidence for that unit. Will Baker and Will Gale utterly dominated the line of scrimmage today and have been stellar all year - both should be on the mid-season long list of candidates for DPOY in NESCAC. Gale is a presence like Kermit Fisher was for Amherst at NT last year.   

It looks like a long year ahead to Bates seeing what Williams did to them, after what Trinity did to Williams ...

[lumbercat]

Wow, yeah, FY or no, I'm surprised we have not seen Weiler before this point of the season.  Regardless of the strength of opponent, he is certainly the biggest arm talent Williams has had on the roster since at least 2010 (not saying a LOT, as the Ephs have generally gone with run-first QBs, but it ain't nothing, either).  Weiler was 9-18 for 189 in the half despite three drops by receivers and a pretty blatant uncalled PI.  He also was very impressive running the ball, very nimble for a big QB, ran for 8-53 (net is only 30 because of a huge loss on a bad snap that was in no way his fault).  The entire offensive approach is dramatically different (and a lot more fun to watch) as the Ephs have been spreading the field and abandoned the sluggish, conservative approach from the first three weeks.  They even scored on a clever reverse to Stahelski who's brought some badly needed speed to the offense. Weiler had 3-4 eye-popping plays, none more so than a 55 yard bomb on, I think, 3rd and 29 that he put right on the money to Stahelski; there is a zip on the ball when it leaves his hands that Eph fans haven't seen for quite some time. 

Overall a very impressive day for Eph FYs despite Jack Fabiano not playing (hopefully he is OK). FY tailback Aiden Clark looks good, he's like a bowling ball out there and feels like he's close to breaking a big one soon. Danny Montesano has done a nice job helping fill in for Ben Yedid, another key player who seems to be out, on the DL. Finn Ryan pops whenever he is on the field and is another guy who always seems close to making a game-changing play on defense, he's going to be heard from in a big moment this year.  And Will Machnik continues to do a nice job at CB. 

But the key guy in the class is obviously Weiler and his career could not have gotten off to a more impressive start. Please, please keep him upright, Ephs! 

Bates, I know they've been depleted by injuries this year, and they have definitely gone the wrong direction from last season. 

All good points N1, totally correct. Bates played very inspired Football on fumes last week with injuries to 5 or 6 of their best players in losing that heartbreaker to Tufts on homecoming last weekend. It was a loss, no excuses from Coynes desk. He's a stand up guy who is as mentally tough as any HCOF I've seen.....his day will come.

I arrived at the game today fearing Bates might be flat after an overachieving, empty the bucket effort last week....and they were..... I walked around the field, watched warmups closely, both sides. As the game started I saw a flat, emotionless group of Williams players and a sleepy crowd on the Eph home side to match the lethargic Bates brigade. For the Purple maybe it was mid term break or just not taking their opponent seriously but the Williams faithful seemed listless. For most of the first quarter it was the quietest football atmosphere I can remember. There was more excitement over at venerable Taconic when a guy made a 10 foot putt on the 18th to win a $5 Nassau.


But the Ephs came out and played well.
Kudos to the Purple for a fine effort today and wish them the best going forward. They are a better club than Amherst in all phases. Eph's kicker looks to have a D1 leg, really drives the ball.

Disagree with N1 a bit on the FY QB Weiler (only one game). I think you are overestimating his arm talent- he throws a nice ball and will have no aerial problems in the NESCAC but there's not a super big time arm there. However, his asset is great feet in the pocket. He will be unstoppable as a runner. His speed and anticipation is outstanding to go along with a good arm. He's going to be very good. His biggest asset will be his legs.

What amazes me is the embarrassment of riches The Ephs have with recruited Quarterbacks.- These guys were all recruited as QBS !!!!!

Owen Johansen- one of the best athletes in the league who hopefully get on the field again.
Brady Carroll- probably going to be an all NESCAC DB
Will Baker- probably going to be an all NESCAC DEFENSIVE LINEMAN !!!! added some weight and playing like a force.
Owen McHugh- after a phenomenal Freshman year is now a slot receiver and hopefully will get some looks as the season progresses.
Drew Renzella- Would have been a starter in multiple NESCAC programs- probably gonna hold a clipboard and maybe get some backup reps this year depending on injuries.
Drew Weiler- Maybe the heir apparent. Could Johansen go back to TE/HBack if Weiler continues to perform at today's level. Time will tell.

EMBARRASSMENT OF RICHES IN WILLYTOWN

On another note N1.....Wish there were some restaurants in town.

[jmh21]

McHugh is an incredible athlete. NESCAC pitcher of the year in 2025. Will no doubt make a big impact at receiver in the near future as long as he stays healthy