How to pick your NESCAC football team with new auto-bid to DIII playoffs

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One of the biggest signs that college football is around the corner?

An increased workload from Bill Connelly at ESPN, one of the best college football voices — or sports voices, generally — in the business.

Connelly wrote a fascinating piece recently for ESPNtitled “Your guide to getting the most fun out of college football season,” which I read with great interest, particularly the sections on smaller-school football. As a former Division III player, Connelly’s advocacy for small-school football over the years has certainly warmed my heart.

That also got me thinking it was time for a piece like this, and time for you, dear reader, to pick a NESCAC team.

For the uninitiated, NESCAC stands for New England Small College Athletic Conference, a group of New England schools that have been playing collegiate sports, including football, since the late 1800s. The conference did not truly begin to take shape until the 1950s when four of those schools — Amherst, Bowdoin, Williams, and Wesleyan — joined together via an agreement to compete in athletics.

But some of the schools have rivalries dating back more than a century, such as the “Little Three” which consists of Amherst, Williams, and Wesleyan. Those three schools first began playing each other in 1899 as the “Triangular League.” As for Amherst and Williams, those two teams started playing each other in 1884, making it one of the most-played rivalry games in all of college football.

This is a rivalry known as the “Biggest Little Game in America,” and one that was even visited by “College GameDay” back 2007:

Then there is the rivalry between the schools in Maine: Bates, Bowdoin, and Colby. Bates and Bowdoin began playing football against each other in the 1870s, with Colby joining the fray shortly thereafter.

To put it bluntly, these are teams that simply do not like each other, with angst that has been simmering not just for decades, but generations. Take the Little Three, as those teams have been playing each other since the 1890s. I played in eight Little Three games during my time in the NESCAC, with each one circled on the calendar the moment the schedule is announced.

Those are Homecoming games, with the stands, parking lots, and tailgates filled with alums making the trip back to campus for the weekend. For example, the walk from the visitor’s locker room to the field at Williams wound its way through those same tailgates, and the most-recent alumni groups always had their tents set up closest to that pathway.

You know, the fans most likely to be … sufficiently lubricated well ahead of a 1:00 p.m. kickoff. As this is a family website I won’t share some of the things I was called while making that walk, but it is safe to say that given the fact I remember them more than 25 years later … they hit home.

Now, the focus here is why you should pick a NESCAC team to follow in 2026.

I’m not going to wax poetically about watching teams filled with future doctors, lawyers, finance wizards and yes, sportswriters. Players simply playing for the love of the game as long as they can before time runs out, and the sport they have loved since they first pulled on pads ends for them. Yes, there is that aspect to football in the NESCAC. Every player that goes down that path known that a future in the NFL is rather unlikely, but is willing to still give every last drop of blood and sweat to a game they have lived for years, and for a team you will not be seeing on ABC anytime soon.

But that could change, and that is the reason this is the perfect year to start watching the NESCAC and, if possible getting to see a game in person.

Because after decades and decades of NESCAC teams being ineligible for the Division III playoffs, 2026 marks the first year that the winner of the conference will earn an automatic spot in the Division III bracket.

The NESCAC made that move official last spring, ending a lengthy history that saw the conference shut out when the playoffs rolled around. While other sports were eligible for the playoffs, when the NESCAC football season ended, the year ended for its teams, including the squad at the top of the standings.

“I am pleased to share this information with our football student-athletes, coaches, and administrators,” said NESCAC Executive Director Andrea Savage back in April. “The conference has had positive experiences participating in postseason play, and we are pleased that football teams will have the opportunity to participate in the NCAA Championships and share in this experience as well.”

So starting this year, the players in the NESCAC will have something more to play for than just the love of the game, and the history against their bitter rivals.

At least one team will have a shot at the Division III national title.

NESCAC, it finally matters more.

Now, I’m not going to sit here and tell you which NESCAC team you should follow. That is a decision you need to make with your head, and heart. Maybe there is a team close to you, maybe someone in your family went to one of the NESCAC schools. Maybe you just like the idea of a purple cow, in which case Williams is the school for you.

But if you are open to persuasion …

I spent four years at Wesleyan, nestled in the heart of Connecticut just thirty minutes south of Hartford, a short ride from New Haven and a quick train ride from New York City. I went there because, let’s face it, there is not a lot of room in the Division I world for a 5’9 quarterback with small hands. But I did not want my playing days to end, and a spot in the NESCAC was perfect for someone like me.

(Yes, that is me, middle row on the left, with my fellow seniors before the 1998 season).

I’ve joked in the past that, statistically speaking, I was the worst quarterback in all of college football during my time in the NSECAC. I did not know, for example, that a statistic like Adjusted Net Yards per Attempt could be negative until I calculated my own.

But if I could go back, I would not change a thing.

And hey, the Cardinals could be good against this year. They went 8-1 back in 2024 to win the conference, and finished tied atop the NESCAC last year alongside Trinity with a 7-2 record. Wesleyan returns starting quarterback Matt Fitzsimmons, who threw for 2,462 yards and 20 touchdowns a season ago, including five in a comeback win in overtime against Williams. He was also named NESCAC Offensive Player of the Year.

Wide receivers Donte Kelly and Blake Newcome return as well, as both caught six touchdown passes a year ago. Kelly was also named the NESCAC Rookie of the Year and hopes to build on last year’s success in his sophomore season.

So get in on the ground floor with the Cardinals.

This might be the year they finally win a title.

A national title.

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