The first Division III football regional rankings were released by the NCAA on Nov. 2.
Remember that regional rankings primarily take Division III games into account. Teams are listed with their Division III record first, followed by their overall record. For more information about the playoff format and how participants are determined, check out our FAQ.
| East Region | SOS | Notes |
|
1. Alfred 8-0 8-0 |
.547 .521 .594 .520 .472 .571 .576 .563 .450 .505 |
Alfred has no results vs. ranked opponents yet, but faces St. John Fisher later. Stevenson does, but Alfred has the better SOS. ... St. Lawrence is likely holding Hobart back here but if Hobart wins head-to-head, Hobart could move ahead of Salisbury. ... Except if Salisbury wins Saturday, it would pick up a second win against a regionally ranked opponent and its SOS will climb regardless. ... Western New England or Salve Regina are basically equivalent in criteria at the moment so expect one to swap out for the other after Saturday's game if need be. |
| North Region | SOS | Notes |
|
1. Mount Union 8-0 8-0 |
.460 .513 .588 .466 .556 .467 .555 .537 .510 .414 |
Mount Union No. 1 likely based on the tiebreaker of last season's performance. However, MTU's SOS will climb when it plays John Carroll to close the season. ... Similarly, JCU's will climb when it plays Mount Union, but assuming a second loss, it might not matter much. ... Denison over Wittenberg on head to head. ... Rose-Hulman behind Franklin, apparently head to head not enough to overcome a second D-III loss? But the committee has to know it looks odd to people to see these two next to each other. ... Wabash SOS will climb. |
| South Region | SOS | Notes |
| 1. Mary Hardin-Baylor 8-0 8-0 2. Johns Hopkins 8-0 8-0 3. Hardin-Simmons 7-1 5-1 4. Case Western Reserve 8-0 8-0 5. Thomas More 8-1 8-1 6. Muhlenberg 7-1 7-1 7. Berry 7-1 7-1 8. Maryville 7-1 7-1 9. East Texas Baptist 7-1 5-1 10. Randolph-Macon 7-1 7-1 |
.590 .502 .538 .455 .534 .506 .561 .551 .507 .497 |
UMHB would be a lock for the one Pool B playoff bid if season ended today. ... Hardin-Simmons looking good for a Pool C/at-large bid if it wins out. ... Case is in the same spot Thomas More was at this point last year. Poor SOS hurts. ... Bubble starts below Case in this region. ... Lots of similar teams with similar resumes. |
| West Region | SOS | Notes |
|
1. UW-Whitewater 8-0 6-0 |
.594 .518 .632 .524 .558 .488 .516 .616 .500 .429 |
UW-Whitewater with two wins vs. regionally ranked opponents. Remember that Belhaven does not count as a D-III opponent until next season at earliest. ... Compare UW-Oshkosh, the top at-large in this region, vs. Wheaton, St. John Fisher and Hardin-Simmons. ... Coe in bold as the only team to clinch a bid so far. ... Platteville kind of far down all things considered. In other regions, the 128-point difference in SOS would make up for the extra loss. ... UMAC in the rankings? It's rare, indeed. |
How to use these regional rankings: If you are an at-large candidate, you want to be sure you are the top at-large candidate in your region. That will ensure you get discussed by the national committee and have a chance to be put in the field.
There are 25 automatic bids, one Pool B bid and six Pool C (true national at-large) bids. Selection Sunday is Nov. 13.
Being listed in these rankings is not a guarantee of selection to the playoffs. There is no guarantee an at-large team will be taken from each region.