🦃 Welcome to November. Top-Ranked Wartburg Men, NYU Women Capture Respective XC Conference Championships. Thunder, Pioneers Share Top of Football Polls. Johns Hopkins Wins On An Obscure Play That Was Out of College Football For 76 Years. Plays of the Week.

📆 What’s Happening Today. The Division III Analysis Working Group meets virtually this afternoon.

🎶 Your Morning Pick Me Up. Manic Monday. The Bangles

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The top-ranked teams in the country showed why as the Wartburg men and NYU women won the team titles in the American Rivers Conference and the University Athletic Association, respectively, to highlight conference championship weekend.

» Conference Championship Central

» D3football Top 10. 1-Wheaton IL (8-0), 2-UW-Platteville (8-0), 3-Saint John’s (8-0), 4-UW-Whitewater (8-0), 5-North Central IL (7-1), 6-Hardin-Simmons (7-0), 7-Endicott (8-0), 8-Washington U. (8-0), 9-Hope (8-0), 10-Cortland (8-0).

» D3FBHuddle Top 10. 1-UW-Platteville (8-0), 2-Wheaton IL (8-0), 3-UW-Whitewater (8-0), 4-Saint John’s (8-0), 5-North Central IL (7-1), 6-Hardin-Simmons (7-0), 7-Endicott (8-0), 8-Washington U. (8-0), 9-Cortland (8-0), 10-Hope (8-0).

» NPI Top 10. 1-UW-Platteville (8-0), 2-Wheaton IL (8-0), 3-Cortland (8-0), 4-Endicott (8-0), 5-Christopher Newport (8-0), 6-Washington U. (8-0), 7-UW-Whitewater (8-0), 8-Saint John’s (8-0), 9-Hardin-Simmons (7-0), 10-Baldwin Wallace (8-0).

“College football brought a rule back from the dead this season, and Johns Hopkins used it to bury Muhlenberg on Halloween.

Kaleb Wayt’s 39-yard fair catch free kick with two seconds remaining Saturday helped the Division III Blue Jays escape with a 31-28 victory over the Mules at Homewood Field in Baltimore.

If you’re wondering why nobody tried to block Wayt’s game-winning kick, it’s because of a rule college football brought back this season after a 76-year absence.”

» DYK? The NCAA added the fair-catch kick rule back into the rule book ahead of the 2026 season. After a completed or awarded fair catch, a team can attempt a field goal directly from that spot. No snap. No rush. The defense must line up 10 yards away, and the kicker can use a holder without a tee or attempt a dropkick. A make is worth 3 points, and the opponent can return a miss. Even a fair catch as time expires in a half can produce an untimed kick.

» Of Noter. “Wayt’s kick appears to be the first game-winning fair catch free kick in college football this season, but it wasn’t the first attempt. Montclair State’s Brendan McGonigle missed a 40-yarder at Lycoming on Sept. 12, following a fair catch with one second remaining before halftime.”

» Wrestling (M). Defending national champion Wartburg is ranked No. 1 in the NWCA DIII preseason coaches poll. UW-La Crosse, Roanoke, Augsburg and Coe round out the top five.

» Volleyball (M). The Continential Volleyball Conference is adding three new members for the 2027 season - Regent, Warren Wilson, and William Peace.

» Tuition. “The new Whittier College Promise covers tuition for qualifying California students and guarantees on-time graduation for students who opt in. It offers three guarantees to incoming Fall 2027 students who meet the qualifications, opt into the program, and follow their approved academic plan, including four-year, full tuition coverage for eligible California students.”

» Alumni. Washington U. alum Caleb Durbin is the recipient of Gold Glove that honors the best defender at each position in each league. Durbin won his first gold glove with the Boston Red Sox at third base.

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