Division II Football Notes and Thoughts on College Football Every Day

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November 7th:

  • Carson-Newman at Newberry is a big game both in the SAC and Region Two. Last year, Newberry went 3-7 and even lost to NAIA champion Keiser and this year, the Wolves are one of the best stories in DII, sitting at 8-1 with big wins over regionally ranked Wingate and Emory & Henry. A win over the Eagles will return the Wolves to the playoffs, while a C-N win will be a big step in getting themselves into the postseason.

  • Findlay is one of six remaining undefeated teams standing in DII. Standing in the Oilers' way of being 10-0 is Ashland, a team that is in the top 25 as well as being undefeated in the G-MAC. While it is unofficial, this is pretty much the G-MAC championship game. The problem for the Oilers is that they have only beaten Ashland twice in their last twelve tries. This is a different Findlay team though so expect a slugfest between two teams that have strong defenses.

  • No. 5 Augustana football team (8-0 overall, 7-0 NSIC) welcomes NSIC South foe Minnesota State (7-2, 6-2) to Kirkeby-Over Stadium. This will be the fifth time in just over 24 months that the Vikings and Mavericks will matchup, having met in the NCAA First Round for the last two postseasons. The Vikings are a single win away from clinching at least a share of the NSIC Championship where their three-peat would put Augustana in elite company, becoming the ninth team in the 93-year history of the NSIC to win three consecutive conference championships.

  • Coming off a tough loss to CSU-Pueblo, the Mountaineers of Western Colorado (8-1, 6-1) must go on the road to face a surprisingly tough Chadron State (7-2, 7-0) team. This game will pit the top two defenses in the league in yards allowed. The Eagles give up only 278 yards each game with Western next in the conference rankings at 299 yards per game allowed. Meanwhile, both offenses average over 30 points a game, so something has to give.

  • The Northeast 10 title is on the line when Assumption visits Bentley tomorrow. The Greyhounds last title was in 2022 and they might still make the playoffs with a loss, while Bentley's last appearance in the NCAA DII Championship was in 2021, and will need a win to advance to the postseason. Assumption beat Bentley last year, 16-13, and the two teams have split their last eight meetings.

November 6th:

  • Before there were marching bands shaking bleachers, before CIAA championships filled cities, before college football became a Saturday ritual in Black America, there was a snowy field, a borrowed rulebook and a belief that two Black colleges could play a game the world didn’t think belonged to them. What started as a borrowed ball game in the cold has become the longest running rivalry in HBCU football and one of the oldest in all of college sports. Across 133 years, Johnson C. Smith leads the all-time series 48–32–3, but every decade has reshaped the balance, from the years JCSU went undefeated for nearly four straight decades, to the Livingstone resurgence of the 1990s, to last year when the Blue Bears beat the Golden Bulls 15–10 and ended JCSU’s shot at a CIAA title. 

  • Johnson C. Smith is one win away from its first CIAA Football Championship appearance in 53 years. Can Livingstone end the Golden Bulls shot at a CIAA title for a second straight year?

  • They claim Virginia is for lovers, but there is no love lost between Virginia State and Virginia Union. This is the 116th matchup between the two, making it the third-most played rivalry in the history of DII football.. Virginia State was not in the latest regional rankings, but Virginia Union was No. 2 in Super Region One and should be advancing to the CIAA Championship game.

  • Virginia Union’s Curtis Allen has 1927 rushing yards with at least two games remaining. It is the second-most in all college football, trailing Division III’s Montie Quinn by one yard. Allen has run for no fewer than 185 yards in each of his last six games, eclipsing the 200-yard mark four times. His 25 touchdowns are the most at any level, and he has just one game this season where he hasn’t score more than once.

October 30th:

  • The first Regional rankings for the year came out earlier this week, but for this first go round the teams are just listed alphabetically. Luckily, I have been using Inkblot Sports to get a good read on the current rankings for the last couple of weeks.

  • If looking for additional Division II info on rankings, Wayne Cavadi has his “The DII Report” which provides his prediction as to where he thinks the rankings will end up at the end of the season.

  • A Top 10 showdown will probably be the most significant regular-season game in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) this year. Undefeated No. 5 Western Colorado (8-0), will host No. 8 CSU Pueblo. The ThunderWolves enter the matchup with a 7-1 overall record and a perfect 6-0 mark in conference play. The winner will not only retain a Top 10 national ranking but also take sole possession of first place in the RMAC standings and be well-positioned in the upcoming release of the regional rankings, which ultimately determine the playoff field.

  • The conference though to follow this weekend - the SAC. Newberry sits alone at the top of the standings with one loss, but three teams (Wingate, Catawba and Carson-Newman) are all tied with two losses apiece. That will change this week when Catawba visits Carson-Newman, and Wingate hosts a tough Lenoir-Rhyne team. Meanwhile, the leader takes on Anderson, a team that has struggled the last two weeks against Carson-Newman and Wingate.

  • Wingate and Newberry are currently ranked 5th and 7th respectively in Super Region 2, but can move upward if they keep winning as expected.

October 28th:

  • In 2027, Texas A&M-Texarkana will add football to their list of sports. The school, located on the tri-border of Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana, will join the Lone Star conference. The Eagles will be the 43rd college football program in Texas.

October 24th:

  • The 16th edition of the Coal Bowl brings together IUP and California (Pa.), two teams looking to return to the PSAC championship game and California (PA) looks to capture the Coal Bowl for the fourth time in five years. As for the playoffs, this is a must win for both teams. There is not much wiggle room in Super Region One, and both of these teams already have two losses.

  • Ashland University’s 20th ranked football team (6-1 overall, 5-0 Great Midwest Athletic Conference) will take a five-game winning streak into its final regular-season road game of 2025, at Tiffin (5-2, 4-1) in a pivotal conference showdown. This one is pretty simple for the home team Dragons. A win keeps them in the hunt for the G-MAC and more importantly, keeps them alive in the Super Region Three mix. A loss, and Ashland is another step closer to a home seed, while Tiffin may very well be eliminated from the conversation.

  • Essentially, for Delta State and West Alabama the postseason has already begun, because every win matters from here on out. West Alabama dropped a big game to West Florida last weekend, so this is a must-win if the Tigers want to try and stay alive in the quest for the GSC automatic bid - while Delta State has been cruising since its loss to UNC-Pembroke.

  • I have to mention the in-state matchup this weekend in Kansas, Fort Hays State at Washburn. I love Washburn’s nickname (Ichabods), and they lead the all-time series, with the Tigers, 46-29-3 in 78 all-time meetings. Three of the last five meetings between these teams in Topeka have gone to overtime, with the Ichabods winning two of those three.

October 23rd:

  • Four coaches in Division II are still looking for their first-ever win as head coaches: Lee Hays (Sul Ross State - TX), Chad Walker (Pace - NY), Levi Gallas (Adams State - CO) and Stanley Conner (Lane - TN)

  • Benedict (SC) remains the only unbeaten HBCU team in the country after their last-minute win over Edward Waters last week. Now it appears as though the only team between them and their 3rd SIAC title in four years is Albany State (6-1, 5-0). The Golden Rams, whose only loss this year was to Florida A&M, lead the all-time series 17-5, but the Tigers have won the last two meetings.

  • In what should be a great game, Top-10 matchups the last two years, Colorado School of Mines (5-2, 3-2) will visit Western Colorado (7-0, 5-0). This will be the 100th meeting between these two teams. The home team Mountaineers lead the all-time series 53-44-2, but the Orediggers have won 14 of the last 17 games going back to 2007. This matchup is Colorado's longest unbroken football series.

October 22nd:

  • This Saturday, top-ranked Ferris State (7-0) will host rival Grand Valley State (4-2) in the annual Anchor-Bone Classic, aiming to extend their program-record winning streak to 22 games. The Bulldogs have been dominant all season, leading the nation in scoring offense (53.9 PPG) and ranking third in scoring defense (8.71 PPG). Grand Valley State enters the matchup looking to rebound from a surprising home loss to Saginaw Valley State, their first GLIAC defeat to a team other than Ferris State since 2019. The Lakers will need a strong performance to disrupt Ferris State’s dominance and reclaim momentum in this storied rivalry. A victory by the Lakers is essential to keeping their playoff hopes alive in a very competitive super region.

  • In the same conference, for the 98th time in over 100 years, Michigan Tech will meet Northern Michigan for the 23rd installment of the Miner's Cup. Michigan Tech holds the series lead, 51-41-5, with the Huskies currently holding the second-longest win streak in series history, at 14 consecutive wins. The Wildcats' last win came in 2009. In fact, Northern Michigan enjoyed its first win since Nov. 12, 2022, last weekend with a 42-21 pummeling of second-year GLIAC affiliate Roosevelt!

  • The oldest Division II series being played this weekend: Emporia State at Central Missouri. The home team Mules are coming off a 37-17 loss to Washburn - a game where they outgained their opponent 465-370, but UCM turned the ball over eight times! Saturday's game against the Hornets will mark the 70th meeting in the all-time series dating all the way back to 1901. UCM leads the series, 44-21-4, but the series has been close the last fifteen meetings (8-7 in favor of the Mules).

  • It has been 22 years since Southern Arkansas and Ouachita Baptist have met where the Muleriders are ranked and the Tigers are not. SAU comes into the week ranked number 25 in the latest AFCA Coaches Poll while the Tigers are unranked. A big game for Southern Arkansas to win on the road, especially since they have lost 9 out of the last ten to the Tigers.

September 4th:

  • Just discovered today that Western Oregon is resuming their old in-state rivalry with Southern Oregon (NAIA) for at least one season. These former rivals, who first met in 1927 (Southern Oregon’s first year as a program), are meeting for the first time since 2010. Western Oregon has won nine straight against the Raiders and lead the all-time series, 47-26-1.

  • Bob Stitt will be making his return to the sidelines for the first time since 2017 when he leads Colorado School of Mines for the second time when they take on West Texas A&M. Stitt coached the Orediggers from 2000 through 2014 before leaving to take the head coaching job at Montana.