The NCAA D3 football season has been drama filled from the beginning and as the teams head into the third week of the season, there is so much to talk about from the week before.
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From blowout wins, to tight knit games, the atmosphere in D3 football was electric in the second week of the season.
Week three kicks off on Friday, Sept. 18 and will conclude on Sept. 19. A plethora of games will be streaming live on FloCollege and fans won't want to miss any of the action in the upcoming week.
So, without further ado, here is everything we have learned from Week 2, to fully prepare ourselves for another fun week of football in Week 3.
1.) Just Because You're Ranked, Doesn't Mean You're Safe
Yeah, you read that right. Just because you have a shiny number next to your name, that doesn't mean you are safe from getting beat.
One of the most shocking examples of this is when Randolph-Macon took down No.4 Johns Hopkins, 28-21.
It was an upset for the ages in Ashland, VA and it was a storybook ending for Randolph Macon.
The D3 rankings haven't come out yet, but it wouldn't surprise this football writer if Randolph Macon sneaks it's way in to a Top-25 spot and Johns Hopkins takes a major slide.
When looking at teams who are both ranked in match-ups, No.14 Hardin-Simmons is not playing around as they defeated No.12 UW-La Crosse Football in the Week 2 clash.
Hardin Simmons should take a climb in this week's FloCollege Top-25 while fans should expect UW-La Crosse to take a small drop.
So as a friendly reminder to all of you football fans out there, enjoy where your team is ranked while you have it, because it can all change in a just one weekend.
2.) If The Playoffs Started Today, There Would Be Some For Sure Front Runners For The D3 Title
If the D3 Championship Bracket started today, there would be some obvious favorites to not only make it in, but to also potentially win.
Teams like Hardin Simmons, UW-Platteville, North Central and Mount Union would all be favored to secure a spot in the D3 Playoffs.
When looking at the end goal though, North Central (IL) is the team to beat. This is the D3 powerhouse that everyone chases. This team has appeared in the last five national championship games and has won two in 2022 and 2024. If the even number pattern continues, dare we say that this could be another title for North Central (IL).
When looking at a newcomer to enter the fight, Hardin Simmons could be a very reasonable candidate at this point. This Cowboys team is 2-0 and has beaten some worth competition in Chapman and Johns Hopkins.
Safe to say when the bracket is released in the later months, that there could be some new faces especially if the season continues like it did in Week 2.
3.) NEWMAC Football is Scary (In A Good Way) Right Now
You aren't reading that subhead wrong, the NEWMAC is a scary football conference right now, in the best way possible.
The NEWMAC consistently has had contenders in the D3 football landscape, but the opening two weeks of the 2026 season have brought the fire for these schools.
Four of the eight teams in the NEWMAC standings are 2-0 after the opening weeks of play. That's right, that is 50% of the schools in the NEWMAC that have not lost a game in 2026.
MIT, Salve Regina, Springfield and US Merchant Marine all are undefeated in 2026 and will hope to continue this trend in to Week 3.
Well, there you have it, the top three things to know about Week 2 before Week 3 kicks off.
Grab your popcorn and soda football fans, we have a feeling this D3 football season is only going to get wilder and you won't want to miss any of it.
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