Three of Maine’s six NCAA Division III college football teams will open their seasons on Saturday. The other three will begin their campaigns on the following Saturday.
Husson University’s Eagles from Bangor will play its opener on the road against Framingham State in Massachusetts. The Castine-based Mariners from Maine Maritime Academy will travel to New York to face Hartwick.
The Nor’easters from the University of New England will entertain the U.S. Coast Guard Academy at Blue Storm Stadium in Biddeford.
All games will kick off at noon.
Husson, UNE and MMA are all in the Conference of New England and all three games are non-conference contests.
New England Small College Athletic Conference schools Colby, Bates and Bowdoin play their openers on Sept. 13. All three of those contests will be home games. Colby entertains Trinity and Bates awaits Amherst for 1 p.m. kickoffs. Bowdoin faces Tufts at 3 p.m.
All are NESCAC games.
Husson, under seventh-year head coach Nat Clark, is coming off a 6-5 season and a second place finish in the CNE with a 3-2 conference record.
The Eagles earned a berth in the Fusion Bowl for the second-place teams from the CNE and New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference that failed to qualify for the NCAA Division III playoffs.
Husson lost to SUNY-Maritime 21-14 in that game last season.
Husson beat Framingham State 56-14 a year ago. Framingham State wound up 3-7.
MMA, under first-year head coach Nick Sheehan, is playing its first full schedule since 2019. The Mariners went 0-3 against varsity teams including a 62-6 loss to Hartwick which finished up at 2-8.
Sheehan has 59 players including 42 freshmen on his roster.
UNE was 4-6 last season including a 2-3 conference record. Tenth-year head coach Mike Lichten and his Nor’easters lost to Coast Guard 30-24 in overtime last season, when Coast Guard went 5-5.
