Category Archives: Around the Nation

Our Around the Nation column takes on the world of podcasting.

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ATN Podcast 412: Early look at 1 vs. 2

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The wait is almost over, and the 2026 Division III football season is kicking off with an absolute bang. On this episode of the D3football.com Around the Nation podcast, we are breaking down our newly released Preseason Top 25 poll and looking ahead to a schedule that is already shaping up to be, well, we used the term “gobsmacking.”

This edition of the D3football.com Podcast is sponsored by GameStrat, the most reliable & fastest in-game video replay system on the market. Find out more at GameStrat.com.

For the very first time in the 23-year history of the poll, the season opens with a monumental clash between the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the country. It’s an unprecedented Week 1 blockbuster that breaks the mold of the usual Mount Union, Whitewater, or Mary Hardin-Baylor early-season math. We dive into what this historic matchup, between North Central and Bethel, means for the landscape of D-III football, how the poll numbers set up the early schedule, and highlight the games you absolutely cannot miss.

Plus, we are bringing you newsmakers directly from the sidelines to get you ready for the fall:

Coach Brad Spencer and senior safety Brayden Garrigan from North Central join us. Spencer chats about the mindset in Naperville heading into 2026, how the coaching staff is managing the continued sky-high expectations, and the benefits of playing Bethel once again. We also get Garrigan’s perspective on his busy offseason and what it actually feels like in the North Central locker room in terms of bringing new starters and freshmen into the mix.

Mary Hardin-Baylor head coach Larry Harmon drops in to discuss how the Cru are hoping to improve on offense in their second year since the return of offensive coordinator Steven Lee. While the quarterback situation is a little up in the air, we hear a little about the position, plus what UMHB needs to do to elevate the offense. We also talk about the Cru’s schedule, especially key games against Endicott and Rowan which are sure to help the NPI of the winner.

Plus we answer mailbag questions about the preseason Top 25, share our sleeper picks for the 2026 season, talk about how we go about making our preseason votes, and give a brief prediction for the game between No. 1 North Central and No. 2 Bethel. And … what of UW-River Falls? The Falcons lost key personnel to graduation, more to the transfer portal, and their head coach and offensive coordinator. We know, not everyone has heard. Patrick and Greg do not agree as to where UW-River Falls should be ranked in the preseason, but we’ll offer hope for where they might find success in 2026.

That and more in this edition of the D3football.com Around the Nation podcast. The D3football.com Around the Nation podcast is a weekly conversation during the season, twice monthly in the offseason, about NCAA Division III football, and has been running since 2007.

Hit play, or subscribe to get this podcast on your mobile device.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

You can subscribe to the Around the Nation Podcast in Apple Podcasts, and many other places. You can also get this and any of our future Around the Nation podcasts automatically by subscribing to this RSS feed: http://www.d3blogs.com/d3football/?feed=podcast

Here’s how to find us on some of the major podcasting apps:

Photos: Mathieu Starke, d3photography.com; Mary Hardin-Baylor athletics; Ryan Coleman, d3photography.com

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ATN Podcast 411: New-look SCAC, longtime Lion, brand-new Prairie Wolf

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The Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference has made a lot of waves since last we talked, what with Millsaps and then Southwestern electing to rejoin the SCAC starting in 2027. So, at the risk of there perhaps being a third member of the Southern Athletic Association returning to the SCAC before we could get the podcast out, we sat down with Dwayne Hanberry, commissioner of the SCAC, to discuss the changes, the status of Gallaudet in the conference, and more.

This edition of the D3football.com Podcast is sponsored by GameStrat, the most reliable & fastest in-game video replay system on the market. Find out more at GameStrat.com.

In addition to that breaking news, we also discuss the recent announcement that the Monon Bell game will be played at Ball State University, in Muncie, Indiana, at a price of $50 a ticket plus Ticketmaster fees. There will be words, for sure. We also talk too early about the preseason Top 25 poll, which should come out within the next week.

Our coach interviews in this edition of the podcast each represent opposite ends of the experience spectrum. That includes Tyler Hopperton, who has been the head coach at Mount St. Joseph going on a decade and has been at MSJ as either a coach or player for half the lifetime of the program. Hopperton talks about his team going to a bowl game last year after a string of three consecutive NCAA playoff trips, the high points in Cincinnati’s Division III program and the benefits of Skyline Chili.

We also have Jacob Donohoe, the new head coach at Nebraska Wesleyan, coming over after spending time as an offensive coordinator at Coe. He takes over a program which was coached by Brian Keller for the past 30 years, was a longtime member of the NAIA and in a whole different conference.  Donohoe talks about reconnecting with alumni, changing the terminology within the program, what he learned at Coe and more, including the famous Runza sandwich.

Plus we answer mailbag questions about the future of Trinity (Texas), and about the best quarterback performances we’ve seen in covering Division III.

That and more in this edition of the D3football.com Around the Nation podcast. The D3football.com Around the Nation podcast is a weekly conversation during the season, twice monthly in the offseason, about NCAA Division III football, and has been running since 2007.

Hit play, or subscribe to get this podcast on your mobile device.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

You can subscribe to the Around the Nation Podcast in Apple Podcasts, and many other places. You can also get this and any of our future Around the Nation podcasts automatically by subscribing to this RSS feed: http://www.d3blogs.com/d3football/?feed=podcast

Here’s how to find us on some of the major podcasting apps:

Photos: Nebraska Wesleyan athletics; Eduardo Moll, Southwestern Athletics; Millsaps athletics; Mount St. Joseph athletics

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ATN Podcast 410: Polar Bears in Ireland, new coach in DC, preseason thoughts

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We’re just 72 days away from the start of the Division III football season, and in that time, there’s a bunch of work to get done, including getting ready for the D3football.com preseason Top 25. We’re hungry for football to get started! And we’re getting you there with a couple of great conversations with coaches and Division III schools putting in that offseason work.

That includes at Ohio Northern, which was stung at the last second in the NPI calculation and just missed the NCAA playoffs. Then the Polar Bears were stung at the last second in their bowl game, as Wabash scored at the end of the game, plus connected on a two-point conversion to get the win.

That’s a lot of stinging, but the Polar Bears have worked away from that, including going as far as Ireland to find a summer opponent and get themselves ready for the 2026 Division III football season. ONU coach Andy Fries talks with us about that trip, the beautiful Cliffs of Moher which you see on the podcast thumbnail image, breaking in a new quarterback and so much more in our conversation in Podcast 410.

Patrick Coleman also dropped by his alma mater, Catholic U., to chat with the Cardinals’ new coach, Kory David. Of course, things look a little different around CUA these days, and the new coach is a longtime defensive coach who played and coached at Cortland, while also driving defenses at Hobart, Muhlenberg and Eastern. In addition to answering the long-debated question of Wawa vs. Sheetz, David also talks about his two young coordinators, who he hired away from Mike Sirianni at Washington & Jefferson, as well as recruiting the northeast corridor, bringing a startup mentality to a CUA program which was 3-7 last year, and much more.

Plus we answer mailbag questions about Rowan and Hardin-Simmons, and discuss the latest coaching change at Hilbert.

That and more in this edition of the D3football.com Around the Nation podcast. The D3football.com Around the Nation podcast is a weekly conversation during the season, twice monthly in the offseason, about NCAA Division III football, and has been running since 2007.

Hit play, or subscribe to get this podcast on your mobile device.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

You can subscribe to the Around the Nation Podcast in Apple Podcasts, and many other places. You can also get this and any of our future Around the Nation podcasts automatically by subscribing to this RSS feed: http://www.d3blogs.com/d3football/?feed=podcast

Here’s how to find us on some of the major podcasting apps:

Photos: Mike Atherton, d3photography.com; Ohio Northern Athletics; Rowan athletics; Patrick Coleman, D3sports.com