AUGUST 19, 2025 | composed by STEVE ULRICH

No publication covers NCAA Division III better. #whyD3
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⚽️  Fall Sports Are Back. ICYMI: We’re back to our every weekday publication schedule. Enjoy our free coverage through August 29.

🏈 Football. If you missed yesterday’s data on expenditures for the Top 25 teams in Division III football, you can find the data here.

🗞️ In Today’s Edition. SCAC Unveils Short-Form Video Partnership. Preseason All-America Football Teams. DIII Student Immersion Program Deadline Approaches. Emory Athlete Wins World Decathlon Crown. What the Skibidi Are You Doing?

📆 What’s Happening Today. The DIII Championships Committee holds a virtual meeting, while the Executive Committees of the DIII Commissioners Association and NADIIIAA meet in Indianapolis.

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TOP STORY
1. SCAC, WePlayed Sports Partner to Power Conference-Wide Short-Form Video

“The Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) is proud to announce a groundbreaking partnership with WePlayed Sports, the leader in automated short-form video for college athletics. The SCAC becomes the first NCAA Division III conference to implement WePlayed’s full suite of content automation across all 12 member institutions, spanning football, men’s and women’s soccer, women’s volleyball, men’s and women’s basketball, and baseball/softball.

Through this conference-wide adoption, every SCAC school will be able to automatically generate and distribute high-quality video moments from every game - dramatically increasing content output, reducing production workload, and transforming how fans, families, alumni, and recruits engage with their teams.”

» Why It Matters. The partnership includes automated highlight generation; full conference implementation; streamlined publishing; and time-saving distribution workflows.

» What They’re Saying. ““The SCAC is unlocking hundreds of games’ worth of moments that would’ve otherwise gone unseen,” said Spencer Rubin, EVP of Sales & Marketing at WePlayed Sports. “By eliminating hours of manual work, we’re enabling schools to meet today’s real-time expectations for sports content - while giving fans a richer, more connected experience.””

» Learn More

FOOTBALL
2. Preseason All-America Team

“It's a whole new season in NCAA Division III football, with two senior classes graduating, taking away nearly everyone from our 2024 All-American team. Who are the new names who will step up and star in 2025? Check out the top returning players in D-III on the 2025 D3football.com Preseason All-America team.”

First Team Offense. QB-Kaleb Blaha (UW-River Falls); RB-Montie Quinn (Curry);
RB-Rahshan La Mons (Susquehanna); WR-Tyren Montgomery (John Carroll);
WR-Dylan Wheeler (Saint John’s); TE-Joey Gendreau (Saint John’s); OT-Craig Connell (Springfield); OG-Isaiah Ward (Bethel); OC-Hayden Philpot (Hardin-Simmons);
OG-Giovanni Kennedy (Mount Union); OT-Michael Nwosu (Johns Hopkins).

First Team Defense. DE-Peter Johanik (Wheaton); DT-John Sullivan (North Central); DT-Zach Frank (Saint John’s); DE-Kaleb Brown (Mount Union); LB-Harley Hopkins (Marietta); LB-Ben Bladel (Grove City); LB-Luca Torti (Wheaton); CB-Jordy Tawa (Rochester); S-Brayden Garrigan (North Central); S-Carson Bourdo (Johns Hopkins);
CB-Grant Henderson (Maryville).

First Team Specialists. K-Justin Caputo (Carnegie Mellon); P-Benjamin Younker (UW-Platteville); RET-Tyler Vasey (UW-Whitewater).

» Complete Team

NCAA
3. Student Immersion Program

“For the 11th year, Division III will hold the Division III Student Immersion Program. This year’s program will be Jan. 13-16, in conjunction with the NCAA Convention in Washington, D.C.

The application process is available on Program Hub, titled “2026 Division III Student Immersion Program,” and closes at 5 p.m. ET Sept. 9. Students, preferably juniors and seniors with a strong interest in a career in Division III athletics (coaching and/or administration), are encouraged to apply. Final selections will be announced in early October.

In addition to the scheduled Convention programming for Division III, participants will attend welcome and debriefing meetings, participate in a DISC assessment, and be assigned a mentor. Students accepted into the program also will be invited to submit an application to attend the NCAA Career in Sports Forum hosted in late spring. The program’s goal is to build a pipeline of candidates who have an interest in Division III coaching and/or administration.

NEWS YOU CAN USE
4. Lightning Round ⚡️ 

» World Champion. Emory graduate student Nikki Boon won the 2025 Women’s Decathlon World Championship with 7,451 points. The 2025 NCAA DIII national champion in the heptathlon, Boon’s total was a national record for the Netherlands and places her No. 10 on the all-time world list.

» Fundraising. Saint Mary’s (Minn.) raised a record-breaking $3,258,572.42 from 1,022 generous gifts, making it the most successful fundraising year in history. Coe raised $253,133.80 during its inaugural Kohawk Day of Giving,

TRANSACTIONS
5. Comings and Goings 

• ALBRIGHT - Heidi Mau named faculty athletics representative

• DUBUQUE - Kasey Burst resigned as head men’s lacrosse coach

• GUILFORD - Jean Parvin Bordewich named president

• KEAN - Tasha Pointer named head women’s basketball coach

• LUTHER - Haakon Rustad named interim head women’s golf coach

• MAINE PRESQUE ISLE - Ben Power named head track and field coach

• NYU - Nicole Bellini named head softball coach

• OZARKS - Tony Skiles resigned as head cross country/track and field coach to become head cross country coach at VMI

• PACIFIC LUTHERAN - Francis Reynolds named interim head cross country coach

• PIEDMONT - Gary Halverson named head cross country coach

• PLATTSBURGH STATE - Amy Ryan named faculty athletics representative

• PLYMOUTH STATE - Kevin Briggs named director of strength and conditioning

• PRINCIPIA - Meggan Madden named interim president

• ST. MARY’S (Md.) - Madison Heck named head women’s lacrosse coach

• UNIVERSITY ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION - Natalia Herrera named assistant commissioner

• WESTMINSTER (Mo.) - Ryun Anderson named head cross country coach

1 THING
6. How to Use "Skibidi" and Other New Slang Added to Cambridge Dictionary

by Josephine Walker, Axios

“Social media slang terms "skibidi," "delulu" and "tradwife" have gone from TikTok straight into the Cambridge Dictionary, reflecting digital culture's power to influence language.

"Skibidi" is an all-purpose word from a viral video. "Delulu" is short for "delusional." And "tradwife" is a portmanteau of "traditional wife," tied to a controversial trend built around traditional gender roles.

"We only add words where we think they'll have staying power," Colin McIntosh, a Cambridge lexical program manager, said in a statement.

» Keep Reading

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