Wheaton College football landed at No. 5 in the 2026 D3football.com Preseason Top-25 Poll, released Monday, July 20. It's the program's highest preseason ranking since 2021.
The ranking follows an 11-3 campaign in 2025, the second-highest win total in program history. Head coach Jesse Scott's squad advanced to the NCAA Division III quarterfinals before falling to eventual national champion UW-River Falls in frigid conditions in Wisconsin. Wheaton finished seventh in D3football.com's final 2025 poll.
The Thunder have now appeared in the D3football.com preseason top-25 for 19 consecutive years, a streak dating to the 2007 poll. There was no preseason poll in 2020. Monday's selection marks the 21st time overall Wheaton has cracked the preseason list since the poll began in 2004.
Scott's coaching staff enters the season with fresh promotions. Wyatt Lee moves up to offensive coordinator, while Chase Smith takes over as full-time defensive backs coach and Trevor Gabriele steps into the full-time offensive line coach role. Both Smith and Gabriele were elevated from part-time positions, as Scott announced June 1.
"Chase was an outstanding addition to our staff a year ago. He loves Wheaton Football and is fully invested in our mission," Scott said on June 1, when announcing Smith's promotion. Smith played every game as a senior in 2024, recording 49 tackles, a forced fumble, and an interception. Gabriele earned D3football.com All-American honors in both 2022 and 2023 as a Thunder offensive lineman.
The schedule gives Wheaton an immediate measuring stick. The Thunder open at home Saturday, September 5, hosting No. 3 Mount Union at McCully Stadium for a 1 p.m. kickoff. It will be Mount Union's first-ever visit to McCully Stadium. After a September 12 road game at Albion, Wheaton hosts Millikin for the CCIW conference opener at 6 p.m.
The biggest conference test comes Saturday, October 10, when Wheaton travels to No. 1 North Central College for the annual "Battle for the Little Brass Bell." The Cardinals earned the top preseason ranking after finishing as the 2025 national runner-up.
