The Game
« Johns Hopkins opens the 2026 season as the Blue Jays welcome Ithaca to Homewood Field. This is the fourth consecutive year that the Blue Jays and Bombers will meet in the season opener for both teams.
A Look Back
« Johns Hopkins posted 12-2 record and advanced to the NCAA Semifinals for the second consecutive year last season. The Blue Jays finished fourth in the final AFCA Poll and third in the final D3football.com Poll of the 2025 season.
« Ithaca posted an 8-2 record in 2025 and narrowly missed out on an at-large bid to the NCAA Playoffs. The Bombers won eight of their final nine games of the season.
Poll Position
« Johns Hopkins drew a trio of preseason rankings as the Blue Jays were ranked #6 by Lindy's and drew number four rankings from the AFCA and D3football.com.
« Ithaca was not ranked in either the Lindy's or the AFCA Preseason Polls, but the Bombers did receive votes in the D3football.com Poll.
The Facts
« This is the 141st season of Johns Hopkins football. JHU first fielded a team in 1882.
« Johns Hopkins enters this week's game with an all-time record of 620-494-57 (.554).
« Overall, JHU owns 17 Centennial Conference titles (all 17 won since 2002) and has qualified for the NCAA Playoffs 14 times (all 14 since 2005).
« In this decade (2020-2025), Johns Hopkins ranks third in Division III in total victories (56/56-8) and fourth in winning percentage (.875).
Oh Captain, My Captain
« In a vote of the team, five players were selected to serve as captains of the 2026 Johns Hopkins football team.
« Seniors Cole Crotty (WR), Robby Enright (WR), Will Seibert (DL) and Browning Trainer (LB) and junior Luke Baker (QB) will lead the team as co-captains in 2026. Each of the five is in his first season as a co-captain.
First and Second
« Johns Hopkins was picked first in the Centennial Conference Preseason Coaches Poll, while Ithaca checked in at number two in the Liberty League Preseason Poll.
Tough Non-Conference Slate
« Johns Hopkins' game this week against Ithaca kicks off one of the strongest non-conference schedules in the nation.
« In addition to Ithaca, which posted an 8-2 record last season, Johns Hopkins will travel to Randolph-Macon and host Susquehanna in the first three weeks of the year. Â
« The Yellow Jackets went 9-2 with an ODAC title and a trip to the NCAA Playoffs last season, while Susquehanna rang up an 11-3 record and advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals in 2025.
« Combined, JHU's three non-conference opponents posted a 28-7 record (.800) a year ago.Â
Honoring Coach Margraff
« Jim Margraff, who served as the head coach at Johns Hopkins from 1990-2018 before passing away suddenly on January 2, 2019, was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame earlier this year and will be inducted at the National Football Foundation's (NFF) annual awards ceremony in December.
« As part of the NFF's showcase of electees, an on-campus salute is held at the alma mater of each incoming Hall of Famer during the season leading into the induction ceremony.
« At halftime of this week's game against Ithaca, representatives of the NFF will present members of the Margraff family with a replica of the plaque they will receive in coach Margraff's honor in December. The replica plaque will be displayed at Johns Hopkins along with the plaque for Bill Stromberg, Margraff's former teammate and the only other Blue Jay football representative inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. Stromberg was inducted into the CFB Hall of Fame in 2004.
Program Ties
« First-year Ithaca defensive coordinator Will Margraff is the youngest son of late Johns Hopkins head coach Jim Margraff. He joined the Bomber staff last season as the linebackers/co-special teams coach before being promoted to defensive coordinator in March.
« Prior to the appointment of Brandon Maguire as the Ithaca head coach after the 2025 season, the previous two Ithaca head coaches - Dan Swanstrom (2017-21) and Mike Toerper (2022-25) - had served as assistant coaches at Johns Hopkins under coach Margraff.
For Openers
« Johns Hopkins has won its last 14 season openers dating back to 2011.
« During the 14-game winning streak in season openers, the Blue Jays have outscored the opposition 573-248 and only four of the 14 games have been decided by 15 points or less.
Sweet September
« Dating back to 2010, Johns Hopkins is 54-5 in the month of September. Also dating back to 2010, the Blue Jays are 24-2 at home and 30-3 on the road in September.
Against the Liberty League
« In addition to being the fourth all-time game between Johns Hopkins and Ithaca, this week's game against the Bombers will also be the 17th all-time for the Blue Jays against a team from the Liberty League. The Blue Jays are 11-5 all-time against the Liberty League.
« JHU bookmarked its 12 wins in 2023 with wins against Liberty League opponents as the Jays opened the season with a 27-17 win over Ithaca and topped Union, 39-17, in the second round of the NCAA Playoffs.
A Fraternity of Two
« Johns Hopkins advanced to the NCAA Semifinals for the second consecutive year last season. These semifinal appearances followed a run to the NCAA Quarterfinals in 2023.
« Johns Hopkins and North Central are the only two teams in the nation that have advanced to at least the NCAA Quarterfinals in each of the last three years (2023, 2024, 2025).
A Fraternity of Three
« In addition to ranking as one of just two teams in the nation that has advanced to at least the NCAA Quarterfinals in each of the last three years, Johns Hopkins also belongs to another close-knit fraternity based on its recent success.
« Since 2021, Johns Hopkins has won 10 (2021), 10 (2022), 12 (2023), 12 (2024) and 12 (2025) games with a combined record of 56-8 in that time. Among Division III teams, only North Central and Mount Union have also won at least 10 games in each of the last five years as well.
Topping the Charts
« Johns Hopkins senior wide receiver Cole Crotty enters the 2026 season with career totals of 226 receptions for 3,260 yards and 28 touchdowns. He ranks seventh in school history in career receptions, second in receiving yards and fourth in touchdown receptions.
« Among players who were listed as juniors last season, Crotty enters the 2026 season with more receptions, receiving yards and touchdown receptions than any Division III player in the nation.
Many Happy Returns
« Josh Moore set a Johns Hopkins record for kickoff return yardage in a season with 687 last season (24.5 yards/return).
« Alex Orecchio averaged 14.9 yards per punt return in 2025, which tied for the second-best average in the nation among freshmen at all levels of the NCAA.
At Home at Homewood
« Including last season, the Blue Jays have enjoyed a dominant recent run at Homewood Field.
« Since the start of the 2014 season, the Blue Jays are 64-6 (.914) at Homewood Field; they are 80-9 (.899) at Homewood since 2010.
« JHU won a school-record 19 consecutive games at home from midway through the 2019 season until the 2023 NCAA Quarterfinal.
Four-by-12
« Johns Hopkins tied the program record for wins in a season with 12 last season.
« The 12-win season in 2025 marked the fourth season in program history, including the third straight, that Johns Hopkins has won 12 games in season (2018, 2023, 2024, 2025).
It's All Academic
« Since 2011, the Johns Hopkins football team has produced 49 CoSIDA/CSC Academic All-Americans. Only one other Division III program has produced even 30 during that time (Carnegie Mellon (32)) and only two others - MIT (25) and Rose-Hulman (23) - have even produced 20 during that time.
« Among all football-playing schools in the NCAA and NAIA, Johns Hopkins' 49 CoSIDA/CSC Academic All-Americans is also the most since 2011.
Starting QB Streak at 13
« Junior Luke Baker is expected to get his first start at quarterback this week for the Blue Jays and he'll be looking to extend a remarkable run for Blue Jay quarterbacks that extends back 20 years.
« Starting with a 21-14 win at Randolph-Macon in Shane Kibbe's first start at quarterback, 13 different Blue Jay starting quarterbacks have won their first career start. The streak was last extended in 2024 when then senior James Rinello got his first career start and guided the Blue Jays to a 20-13 win against Rowan.
« Interestingly, the 10th of those 13 consecutive quarterbacks to win his first start at Johns Hopkins was Zack Baker - Luke's older brother - who led the Blue Jays to a 41-10 win at Dickinson early in the 2017 season.
