Wheaton, Ill. -- The Wheaton College football team will host Crown College (Minn.) for a First Round game in the 2025 NCAA Division III Playoffs on Saturday, November 22. The Thunder will face the Polars in a noon kickoff at McCully Stadium. The winner of this week's Wheaton-Crown game will advance to face Wartburg College in the next round on Saturday, November 29. That contest will be played in Waverly, Iowa as the Knights have secured hosting rights for the Second Round of the playoffs.

The Thunder, who finished the regular season with an 8-2 overall record and are ranked 19th in the country in the newest D3football.com poll, earned an at-large bid to this year's NCAA Division III Championship. Wheaton is making its 15^th overall appearance in the Division III Playoffs. The program has compiled an 18-14 all-time record in the postseason and returns to the national competition after becoming the first CCIW team to win the Culver's Isthmus Bowl last year.

Saturday's matchup will be the first-ever meeting on the gridiron between Wheaton and Crown. The Polars (7-3 overall record) earned an automatic bid to the postseason this fall by winning the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) and are making their first NCAA Division III Playoffs appearance in program history.

Ticket prices for the game are $10 for adults and $5 for students while children under the age of three are admitted for free. As a NCAA Championship event, no free passes will be accepted at Saturday's contest. Tickets will be available at the gate on Saturday and can be purchased with cash or a credit/debit card.

A live broadcast of Saturday's game will be available through ESPN+ instead of the Wheaton Thunder Sports Network, and a link to the video stream will be posted on the football team's schedule page later this week. Live statistics will also be accessible through the Wheaton Athletics website.