UW-River Falls
14-1 2025 final D3 TOP 25 #1The sleeping giant that woke up in 2025: first playoff run since 1996 became a national championship — River Falls is proof that the standard is attainable.
The Falcons bide their time.
The sleeping giant that woke up in 2025: first playoff run since 1996 became a national championship — River Falls is proof that the standard is attainable.
UW-River Falls went 14-1 in 2025 and won the NCAA Division III national championship, defeating North Central 24-14 in the Stagg Bowl on January 4, 2026. The Falcons were 6-1 in the WIAC and earned their first playoff appearance s…
Offseason
69 days
until kickoff · Sun Aug 30 · 17:00 UTC
The 2026 Outlook
UW-River Falls sits 1st in the Wisconsin Conference and 1st of 240 in the CFB Zeitgeist — in the projected field with a seedable rating.
| Team | Conf | Overall | Index | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wisconsin-River Falls | 6-1 | 14-1 | 77.1 |
| 2 | Wisconsin-Lacrosse | 5-2 | 8-3 | 67.2 |
| 3 | Wisconsin-Platteville | 5-2 | 9-3 | 67.0 |
| 4 | Wisconsin-Whitewater | 5-2 | 8-3 | 64.5 |
| 5 | Wisconsin-Stout | 3-4 | 6-5 | 57.6 |
| 6 | Wisconsin-Oshkosh | 3-4 | 5-5 | 56.8 |
| 7 | Wisconsin-Stevens Pt | 1-6 | 4-6 | 49.6 |
| 8 | Wisconsin-Eau Claire | 0-7 | 3-7 | 46.0 |
Win the Wisconsin Conference for the automatic berth into the 40-team NCAA Division III bracket. Miss it and the path is an at-large bid, selected by NPI — the metric the CFB Index mirrors. Six wins survive the bracket to the Stagg Bowl.
Signature win 65-0 over Belhaven; toughest day 17-21 against Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
The Pulse on UW-River Falls
What moved it — offseason · last 30 days
Aspiration Ladder
Brief Part III §33.4 · UW-River Falls
The baseline for a successful season.
The primary goal and national bracket path.
One of 32 national tournament entries.
The Division III national championship game.
UW-River Falls · Next-Season Outcome Band
Floor / Base / Ceiling
Variance assumed at ±2 wins from last-season record. Replace with the season-path projection once preview data is built.
Who We Are
Home-Field Advantage · UW-River Falls · 2018-present
Strong
86% home win rate vs 61% on the road. margin runs -0.3 weaker at home.
Act IIILast Season Reviewed
2025 season · tap to expand
Recent Form · last 10 games
Hot
Five straight. The momentum tier on every blog right now.
Schedule Strength · UW-River Falls · 2025
Brutal
Average opponent win rate 67% across 15 finalized games. Strong conference slate — wins here carry full weight in Super Region selection.
Moment of the Year · UW-River Falls · 2025
Postseason · Won 48-41 vs Johns Hopkins University
Week 17 of 2025. Postseason win — the season-defining moment.
Postseason History
Recent postseason (2025): 2-0
Most recent: 2025 — win 14-24 (away). Last 5 postseason: 2-0.
From the Archive — UW-River Falls
2022: Won 63-6 vs Wisconsin-Eau Claire
In 2022, the program won 63-6 vs Wisconsin-Eau Claire — a blowout home result that left the 57-point margin on the books.
Go Falcons.