Preseason Division 3 Team Tier List

Another unique preseason piece, departing from my usual prospect evaluation. With just a handful of hours until kickoff, let's take a quick look at some of the best Division 3 programs, and rank them on a tier list.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">S Tier - State Championship Favorites</h2>   De La Salle   It was a bit surprising to see De La Salle moving down to D3. Now, they become the state championship favorite in a year with many contenders. Overall De La Salle underperformed last season. Really, anything but a state championship was going to be a disappointment in 2024. Unlucky for them, they ran into a red-hot Groves team in the Regional finals. New QB, a young O-Line, and a great year in 2025 to develop their young talent while still being a State Championship favorite.   Detroit MLK   King is expected to take a major leap this season. Quarterback Andrew Knight allows for even more offensive flexibility. A ton of skill position talent, especially at WR/DB. Their young O-Line will only be better this season. Need I say more? King fell short in the state championship last season, but I think there's a great chance they'll come back with a vengeance. They'll likely have to defeat De La Salle before playing at Ford Field, though.   Zeeland West   At first, I ranked Zeeland West in the A Tier. After thinking about it throughout the day, I feel they're a definite favorite. The nature of the bracket plays a role in this. The Dux will likely be on the opposite side of the bracket than DLS, King, and River Rouge. Yes, the Dux did lose a great amount of talent in the class of 2025. Their legendary head coach, John Shillito, has retired, but they keep some continuity with the in-house hire of Jeff Bolthouse. With DeWitt losing a lot more than Zeeland West does, I've still got the Dux as a championship favorite in D3.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">A Tier - State Championship Hopefuls</h2>   DeWitt   For a while, it looked like it was going to be DeWitt's year. An insane senior class boosted DeWitt to a legendary 54PPG season. They still have some excellent pieces on offense, but I am expecting a step backwards from what was the #1 offense in Michigan. Senior ATH [player_tooltip player_id='563430' first='Traverse' last='Moore'] should have a phenomenal season, and he could lead this team to the State Championship.   River Rouge   Rouge is all-in on winning. Not a bad thing to be all-in on. The addition of head coach Jermain Crowell, plus a few transfers, should greatly raise this team's ceiling. [player_tooltip player_id='977483' first='Jerrimiah' last='Cross'] has a chance to be an incredibly good wide receiver, I'm talking Nick Marsh type of upside. A state Championship hopeful this season, and likely a State Championship favorite in future seasons.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">B Tier - State Championship Dark Horses</h2>   Coopersville   Hard-nosed, physical football team. That's how you win in West Michigan. I am a bit concerned about Coopersville having to replace Beau Harris, but I was quite impressed with Coopersville's young talent last season. Watch out for Coopersville's elite run game to bowl over most teams in D3. Improve upon the 24 points given up per game, and we've got an A-Tier team.   St Joseph   Consistently one of the least discussed Division 3 programs. St. Joseph is as consistent as they come. Seven straight seasons above .500, with consistent improvement in the last couple of years. I honestly don't know the players of St. Joseph as much as I should, but I know they're strong at QB, have a couple good young up-and-coming QBs, and will yet again have a very strong year.   Riverview   Riverview has been knocking on the door of greatness in these last couple of seasons. In last year's district finals, I watched Riverview nearly beat River Rouge. They've got the scheme, they've got an impressive defense, and this year could be the year they get over the hump. I'm quite excited to see the result of their week 1 matchup against Utica Eisenhower- a phenomenal early-season test.   Niles   Niles fell short in last year's Division 4 state championship. Interestingly, during the post-championship media availability, head coach Scot Shaw said he actually thought THIS year could be Niles' year, and that they were ahead of schedule in 2024. I loved Niles' breakout in 2024. Moving up a division, watch for Niles to be a major force. A ton of super interesting potential playoff matchups! Looking for experienced players like [player_tooltip player_id='1613610' first='Max' last='Rucker'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1615723' first='Brenden' last='Olsen'] to lead the way this season.   Forest Hills Central   FHC had its moments last season. They sported an OK-Gold best defense, only giving up 14.9 points per game. That kind of defense is good enough to stand toe to toe with any D3 program. Though, the offense sat at 20 points per game. Better offensive consistency will lead to state championship contention. Hoping to see the offensive unit step up!   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">C Tier - Deep Playoff Run Candidates </h2>   Mason   How will Mason adapt to the graduation of QB Cason Carswell? Cason was a high school football anomaly. He raised the ceiling of this program significantly, and they got a State Championship appearance out of it. Now, they still have some talent. I'm super interested in seeing the development of [player_tooltip player_id='1613580' first='Troy' last='Peters'] and [player_tooltip player_id='324060' first='Hayden' last='Hendrickson']. I still beleive in these players and this coaching staff. Expecting a good year, but not a State Championship run from Mason.   Lowell   Don't sleep on Lowell this season! Statistically, they had the best offensive unit in the RCA last season. A brutal rushing attack led to 37.7 points per game. Alongside a few great pieces on defense, I feel that this team could win the RCA this season. Looking forward to watching what Nathan Raison and co are able to accomplish.   East Grand Rapids   There's a bit of buzz surrounding EGR this season. This program took a definite step forward last season, going 5-5, but with a +80 point differential. This team beat Lowell by 19 in week 1, and beat Grand Rapids Catholic Central. A very inconsistent team in 2024, but man, were their highs promising. I'm looking forward to their week 1 matchup against Lowell! Should be a great measuring stick game.

Another unique preseason piece, departing from my usual prospect evaluation. With just a handful of hours until kickoff, let's take a quick look at some of the best Division 3 programs, and rank them on a tier list.