The best game in Division III this week is the best game Division III can offer. No. 2 Wheaton goes to No. 1 North Central on Saturday night for the Little Brass Bell, a rivalry 106 games deep that North Central has won five straight times.
It is not the only top-ten team on the road. No. 5 UW-Whitewater, fresh off beating defending national champion UW-River Falls in front of 20,118, goes to No. 18 UW-La Crosse, which has won the last three meetings by three points each. And No. 3 Saint John’s, whose quarterback just threw six touchdowns against a ranked Bethel, visits Macalester.
Here are our picks for the six Division III games that matter most and the rest of the board. Voting is open on all of them: twenty points a pick, and every vote counts toward your school on the fan leaderboard.
1. No. 2 Wheaton at No. 1 North Central
Saturday, 7:00 PM ET · Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium, Naperville · Battle for the Little Brass Bell
Wheaton still leads the all-time series 55-48-3, but the recent run belongs to North Central: five straight wins, the last a 35-0 shutout in 2025 that was the series’ first since 1991. North Central also brought a 52-game CCIW winning streak into this season.
Both teams are unbeaten. North Central beat Augustana 35-7 last week, with Duke Guenther running for 145 yards and two scores, one of them from 97 yards out, and David Ballard III catching ten passes for two more. Wheaton is 5-0 after a 33-6 win over North Park, with Mark Forcucci running for two touchdowns, and it opened the year by beating Mount Union 24-23.
Our pick: North Central 27, Wheaton 21.
2. No. 5 UW-Whitewater at No. 18 UW-La Crosse
Saturday, 2:00 PM ET · Veterans Memorial Stadium, La Crosse
Whitewater beat then-No. 2 UW-River Falls 24-16 in front of 20,118. Freshman Tommy Novotny ran 23 times for 192 yards and three touchdowns, and Drew Kortz intercepted two passes.
La Crosse is 2-2, but both losses came to ranked teams by eight points or fewer, and it has beaten Whitewater three straight times, each by three points. Last year’s was 23-20 in double overtime. Whitewater leads the series 39-35.
Our pick: UW-Whitewater 24, UW-La Crosse 20.
3. No. 3 Saint John’s at Macalester
Saturday, 2:00 PM ET · Macalester Stadium, St. Paul
Trey Feeney went 38 of 43 for 355 yards and six touchdowns in a 42-16 win over then-No. 7 Bethel, and Saint John’s jumped to third with a first-place vote. The Johnnies lead this series 42-6-1, have won 16 straight, and won last year’s meeting 70-0. Macalester is 3-1.
Our pick: Saint John’s 49, Macalester 10.
4. UW-Oshkosh at No. 6 UW-River Falls
Saturday, 2:00 PM ET · David Smith Stadium (Homecoming)
The defending national champions lost for the first time this season at Whitewater, after road wins at Coe and Wartburg. Oshkosh comes in off a 32-31 home loss to La Crosse. A WIAC loss already on the books means River Falls has little room for a second.
Our pick: UW-River Falls 28, UW-Oshkosh 17.
5. Middlebury at Amherst
Saturday, 2:00 PM ET · Pratt Field
The NESCAC’s best rivalry of the moment. Amherst is 3-0 after beating Bowdoin 22-13. Middlebury is 2-1 after a 32-2 win over Colby. The last two meetings have split: Middlebury 29-21 in 2024, Amherst 27-17 at Middlebury in 2025.
Our pick: Amherst 24, Middlebury 20.
6. Augsburg at No. 16 Bethel
Saturday, 2:00 PM ET · Royal Stadium, Arden Hills
Bethel fell nine places after the loss at Saint John’s. A home MIAC game against Augsburg is the bounce-back spot.
Our pick: Bethel 35, Augsburg 14.
The rest of the board
| Game | When (ET) | Our pick |
| UW-Eau Claire at No. 4 UW-Platteville | Sat 2:00 | UW-Platteville |
| Rowan at Salisbury | Sat 1:00 | Salisbury |
| Christopher Newport at Kean | Sat 1:00 | Christopher Newport |
| Randolph-Macon at Washington and Lee | Sat 1:00 | Randolph-Macon |
| Marietta at Mount Union | Sat 1:30 | Mount Union |
| Hardin-Simmons at McMurry | Sat 2:00 | Hardin-Simmons |
| Trinity (TX) at Southwestern | Sat 2:00 | Trinity (TX) |
| Berry at Rhodes | Sat 2:00 | Berry |
| Howard Payne at Mary Hardin-Baylor | Sat 2:00 | Mary Hardin-Baylor |
| Buena Vista at Wartburg | Sat 2:30 | Wartburg |
| Bowdoin at Tufts | Sat 3:00 | Tufts |
| Linfield at Pacific (OR) | Sat 4:00 | Linfield |
| Chapman at Redlands | Sat 10:05 | Chapman |
Also on the board: Framingham State at Bridgewater State opens the week Friday at 6:00 PM. Saturday also brings Johns Hopkins at Carnegie Mellon, Susquehanna at Catholic, Dickinson at Gettysburg, Union at Hobart, Bates at Williams, Hamilton at Trinity (CT), Ohio Northern at Baldwin Wallace, Central at Coe, St. Olaf at Gustavus Adolphus, Whitworth at George Fox, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps at La Verne, and more than 80 Division III games in all.
Cast your votes
Every game above is live on the Football Predictions board. Twenty points per vote, free to play, closing at kickoff. Division III athletes play without scholarships, which makes them the athletes fan support reaches furthest.
The Week 6 series also covers FBS, FCS and Division II.
