CFB Zeitgeist
June 22, 2026 · Dead Period · Heritage Window · 2026 Outlook

Kean University

3-7 2025 final

A 20+ year era under Dan Garrett (since 2006) that has built Kean into an NJAC tournament regular — stable, dependable, and content in New Jersey football.

The Cougars survey the territory.

Record
3-7
win% .300
Conference
6th of 7
New Jersey · 1-5
Index Rating
43.1
D3 #176 of 240
Playoff Path
Win the league
Dead PeriodOffseasonPatientPost-loss — reckoning
The Long Wait·Offseason

A 20+ year era under Dan Garrett (since 2006) that has built Kean into an NJAC tournament regular — stable, dependable, and content in New Jersey football.

Title DroughtSince 2011 · 14 yrs

LIVE as of 2026-06: Kean competes in the NJAC under Head Coach Dan Garrett's 20+ year tenure (since 2006). The program is anchored by coaching stability and a 15+ tournament appearance tradition (since 1991). The 2011 NJAC champio…

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Read the full program story ↓

Offseason

69 days

until kickoff · Sun Aug 30 · 17:00 UTC

Act I

The 2026 Outlook

DIVISION III · THE PATH TO THE STAGG BOWL

Kean University sits 6th in the New Jersey Conference and 176th of 240 in the CFB Zeitgeist — outside the at-large picture — the path runs through the conference title.

New Jersey · 2025
TeamConfOverallIndex
1Christopher Newport6-010-171.2
2Salisbury5-110-268.2
3Rowan4-28-265.4
4Montclair State3-35-553.6
5College Of New Jersey2-46-455.5
6Kean1-53-743.1
7William Paterson0-62-840.3
43.1 CFB Zeitgeist#176 of 240 D353.0 strength of schedule

Win the New Jersey Conference for the automatic berth into the 40-team NCAA Division III bracket. Miss it and the path is an at-large bid, selected by NPI — the metric the CFB Index mirrors. Six wins survive the bracket to the Stagg Bowl.

Source: CFB Zeitgeist — conference records + NPI-style rating from 2025 games · the field is 40 teams, NPI-selected
THE 2025 SEASON · 3-7
W 17-14 vs SUNY Morrisville · Wk 2+3SUNY MorL 14-42 at Ursinus · Wk 3-28UrsinusL 7-38 vs Western Connecticut St · Wk 5-31Western L 28-38 vs Montclair State · Wk 6-10MontclaiL 24-38 at Salisbury · Wk 7-14SalisburL 0-49 at Christopher Newport · Wk 8-49ChristopL 7-24 vs College Of New Jersey · Wk 9-17College W 14-9 vs Castleton · Wk 10+5CastletoW 17-7 at William Paterson · Wk 11+10William L 34-47 vs Rowan · Wk 12-13Rowan

Signature win 17-7 over William Paterson; toughest day 0-49 against Christopher Newport.

The Pulse on Kean University

Quiet · dead period heritage · signal ramps back in camp
The Cougars survey the territory.

What moved it — offseason · last 30 days

June Dead-period quiet — official-visit + heritage window
Camp Fall camp ~40 days out
"Go Kean" — Kean University fanbase · recurring line
0 mentions · awaiting signal

Aspiration Ladder

Brief Part III §33.4 · Kean University

Winning record

The baseline for a successful season.

Conference title

The primary goal and national bracket path.

32-team bracket qualifierLocked

One of 32 national tournament entries.

Stagg BowlLocked

The Division III national championship game.

Kean University · Next-Season Outcome Band

Floor / Base / Ceiling

floor1-11Rebuild year. Below .500.
base3-9Mid-table finish.
ceiling6-6Conference title race. Bracket qualifier in range.

Variance assumed at ±2 wins from last-season record. Replace with the season-path projection once preview data is built.

Act II

Who We Are

Home-Field Advantage · Kean University · 2018-present

Soft

15% home win rate vs 25% on the road. margin runs +0.1 better at home.

Home3-17Away5-15
Act III

Last Season Reviewed

2025 season · tap to expand

Recent Form · last 10 games

Cooling

Two of five. Schedule has caught up.

Streak L1Last 5 · 2-3Last 10 · 3-7

Schedule Strength · Kean University · 2025

Balanced

Average opponent win rate 51% across 10 finalized games. Balanced slate across the conference slate.

Opp Win %0.518

From the Archive — Kean University

2024: Lost 21-32 vs Christopher Newport

In 2024, the program lost 21-32 vs Christopher Newport — a one to file away home result, 11 points either way.

Cougars own this peak.