FCS CONFERENCE · 2026 SEASON

NEC

#24 overall#13 in FCSRR50 +8.6Upper strength +10.38 teamsTop 25 teams 0

VERDICT BEGINS · 2026

One Bid, One Game

The Northeast Conference is the smallest automatic-qualifier in FCS — eight programs from New Jersey to Maine, competing in markets where football is not the dominant sport. Sacred Heart, Stonehill (which joined in 2022 from Division II), Merrimack, and Wagner have all won or contended for NEC titles in recent years. The conference sends one automatic bid to the FCS bracket, which means the title game is effectively a winner-take-all single elimination into the national field. That structure creates legitimate high-stakes football at the regional level.

FCS8 teamsRace: FCS PlayoffLeader: Central Connecticut

NEC · 2026 Season

Three Things to Watch

The StandardSacred Heart: Building Something Real in Fairfield

Sacred Heart is a private Catholic university in Fairfield, Connecticut that has made the FCS bracket two consecutive seasons — rare for a Northeast Conference program. Ed Swider's staff develops players who routinely outperform their high school rankings, and their offensive system has produced passing statistics that rank in the top 20 nationally in FCS. They enter 2026 as the NEC's most complete program by every measurable metric.

The NewcomerStonehill: DII Champion to FCS Contender

Stonehill won DII national championships and moved to FCS in 2022, joining the Northeast Conference. Their transition has been measured — losing some games they would have won at DII while building the roster depth that FCS requires. Entering their fourth FCS season in 2026, they have the foundation to contend for the automatic bid and the program culture to make it stick.

Wild Card

One Bid, One Game, Winner Take All

The NEC sends one program to the FCS bracket via an automatic bid. That means the conference title game — or even the regular-season standings — is effectively a single-elimination competition for national relevance. Every NEC game in November carries stakes that larger conferences distribute across four or five bracket spots. The NEC format makes every late-season game appointment viewing for fans of these programs.

Conference Standings · NEC · 2026

Standings

# Team Conf Overall Pwr Last 5
1Robert Morris1–02–1+10.0
2Stonehill1–01–3+8.1
3Mercyhurst0–01–3+7.2
4Central Connecticut0–00–3+10.0
5Duquesne0–00–3+8.8
6Long Island University0–00–4+8.1
7New Haven0–11–3+6.0
8Wagner0–11–3+5.6

Conference record determines standing. Power = neutral-field pts vs. all-level average. Last 5 = most recent game results.

Projected Standings · NEC · 2026

Win Projection

Odds of winning at least N conference games from current power ratings — full slate played out, not locked to results. AVG = expected wins; W–L = most-likely record.

# Team W–L PWR AVG ≥7≥6≥5≥4≥3≥2≥1
Favorites
1Central Connecticut4–3+2.03.921134638697✓
2Robert Morris4–3+2.03.921134638697✓
Challengers
3Duquesne4–3+0.83.71828578296✓
4Long Island University3–4+0.13.5162249779499
The Field
5Stonehill4–3+0.13.6172452799599
6Mercyhurst3–4-0.83.341844739299
Rebuilding
7New Haven3–4-2.03.131437678998
8Wagner3–4-2.43.031235648898

Conference Power · FCS

Where We Stand

# Conference Avg Power vs Focal Top Team
1MVFC
+11.9
0–5Illinois State
2Big Sky
+10.7
0–1Montana State
3UAC
+10.7
—Tarleton State
4Southland
+10.6
—Stephen F. Austin
5MEAC
+10.1
—South Carolina State
6SWAC
+9.9
—Jackson State
7OVC
+9.8
—Gardner-Webb
8Southern
+9.8
—Tennessee Tech
9Coastal Athletic
+9.7
0–3Rhode Island
10Patriot
+9.4
0–1Lehigh
11Pioneer
+8.8
1–0Butler
12NECYou are here
+8.6
—Central Connecticut
13Ivy
+8.4
0–1Harvard

Round-robin power = strength of schedule-adjusted conference average, points vs. all-level average team. Record = NEC's record vs. that conference across all games this season.

The Northeast Conference is the smallest automatic-qualifier in FCS — eight programs from New Jersey to Maine, competing in markets where football is not the dominant sport. Sacred Heart, Stonehill (which joined in 2022 from Division II), Merrimack, and Wagner have all won or contended for NEC titles in recent years. The conference sends one automatic bid to the FCS bracket, which means the title game is effectively a winner-take-all single elimination into the national field. That structure creates legitimate high-stakes football at the regional level.

Conference Snapshot

RR50+8.6
Upper Strength+10.3
Median Power+8.6
Resume Pulse26.9
Avg ATS33.3%
Wins vs Market-0.12
Top-to-Middle Gap1.9
Combined Record6-23

`RR50`, `Upper Strength`, and `Median Power` are shown on the same public power scale as the rest of the site: points on a neutral field versus the average all-level NCAA team. Very small affiliations are gently regressed toward their subdivision baseline so a one-team outlier does not hijack the entire conference board.

NEC Team Board

The league stack, sorted by predictive strength. Power is shown as neutral-field points versus the all-level average team, while resume is shown on a 0-100 season score.

Rank Team Record Power Resume ATS Wins vs Market Recent Form
#196 Central Connecticut 0-3 +10.0 38 1-2 -0.05 0-3 over the last 3 (L1 L2 L3)
#197 Robert Morris 2-1 +10.0 67 1-1 +0.66 2-1 over the last 3 (W1 W1 L2)
#220 Duquesne 0-3 +8.8 11 0-3 -0.04 0-3 over the last 3 (L1 L2 L3)
#232 Long Island University 0-4 +8.1 10 2-2 -0.50 0-4 over the last 4 (L1 L1 L2 L3)
#233 Stonehill 1-3 +8.1 33 3-1 +0.18 1-3 over the last 4 (L1 W1 L2 L3)
#249 Mercyhurst 1-3 +7.2 11 0-3 -0.02 1-3 over the last 4 (L1 L1 L2 W3)
#258 New Haven 1-3 +6.0 24 1-3 -0.49 1-3 over the last 4 (W1 L1 L2 L3)
#260 Wagner 1-3 +5.6 22 1-2 -0.67 1-3 over the last 4 (L1 W1 L2 L3)