QB Matt Rush (17) and the Washington University Bears are 5-0 in 2022, and made their first appearance in the national rankings in this week’s D3 Top 25. (Photo: Cedric Williams)
Steve Millbrook
Staff Writer
The amazing first half of the NCAA Division III football season got even more interesting for the Washington University Bears on Tuesday, when the newest version of the D3 Top 25 was released by D3Football.com.
That’s because the most recent poll had Wash. U. ranked No. 24 in the country, marking the first time in their history that the Bears had been ranked in the national Top 25.
Wash. U. has a 5-0 record, the first time the team began a season with five straight wins since 1995. The Bears are also 4-0 in CCIW play, which has them tied with No. 1-ranked North Central for first place in the conference standings.
The Bears will host North Central at Francis Olympic Field in their annual Parent and Family Weekend Game on Saturday, October 22.
Wash. U. is led by senior quarterback Matt Rush. The Hinsdale, Ill., native leads the CCIW in passing yards (1,341), passing efficiency (196.6), and touchdowns (19), and is a key reason why the Bears rank third in the nation in scoring offense (53.2 ppg) and ninth in total offense (526.0 ypg).
The Bears also rank as one of the nation’s top defenses, where it has given up just 247.2 ypg and allowed a mere 13.0 ppg. Wash. U. also leads the CCIW with 16 quarterback sacks this season, while also forcing 12 turnovers.
This week, the Bears will be on the road, with a CCIW conference game against Augustana College, in what should serve as their final tune-up for the Week 8 showdown with North Central.
D3football.com Top 25, 2022 Week 6
Through games of Oct. 8, 2022:
| Rank | School (No. 1 votes) | W-L | Points | Prev. |
| 1 | North Central (Ill.) (19) | 5-0 | 615 | 1 |
| 2 | Mount Union (5) | 5-0 | 598 | 2 |
| 3 | UW-Whitewater (1) | 4-1 | 574 | 3 |
| 4 | Mary Hardin-Baylor | 5-1 | 553 | 4 |
| 5 | St. John’s | 4-1 | 487 | 6 |
| 6 | Trinity (Texas) | 5-0 | 465 | 5 |
| 7 | Linfield | 4-0 | 462 | 7 |
| 8 | Johns Hopkins | 5-0 | 433 | 8 |
| 9 | UW-La Crosse | 4-1 | 403 | 9 |
| 10 | Hardin-Simmons | 4-1 | 398 | 10 |
| 11 | Bethel | 4-1 | 366 | 11 |
| 12 | Ithaca | 5-0 | 345 | 12 |
| 13 | Cortland | 5-0 | 342 | 13 |
| 14 | UW-River Falls | 4-1 | 307 | 17 |
| 15 | Wheaton (Ill.) | 3-2 | 286 | 14 |
| 16 | Delaware Valley | 6-0 | 244 | 15 |
| 17 | Wartburg | 6-0 | 202 | 20 |
| 18 | Randolph-Macon | 5-0 | 196 | 19 |
| 19 | UW-Oshkosh | 3-2 | 170 | 16 |
| 20 | Carnegie Mellon | 6-0 | 166 | 18 |
| 21 | Susquehanna | 5-0 | 160 | 21 |
| 22 | Albion | 6-0 | 111 | 22 |
| 23 | Huntingdon | 4-1 | 69 | 23 |
| 24 | Wash. U. | 5-0 | 45 | — |
| 25 | John Carroll | 4-1 | 29 | — |
Dropped out: No. 24 Central; No. 25 DePauw.
Others receiving votes: Lake Forest 27; Utica 18; Washington & Jefferson 11; Central 8; Endicott 8; Birmingham-Southern 7; UW-Stout 7; Grove City 4; DePauw 3; Muhlenberg 2; Heidelberg 2; Middlebury 1; Mount St. Joseph 1.
The D3football.com Top 25 is voted on by a panel of 25 coaches, Sports Information Directors and media members from across the country, and is published weekly. Points are awarded on a 25-24-23-22-etc. basis.