The most impactful head-to-head showdowns for the final eight.
May 24, 2026 by Alex Rubin and Aidan Thomas in Analysis, Preview
Ultiworld’s coverage of the 2026 college ultimate season is presented by Spin Ultimate; all opinions are those of the author(s). Find out how Spin can get you, and your team, looking your best this season.
ROCKFORD, IL — If anything is clear after ten rounds of games across two days, it’s that a single player can make a big difference. Whether putting up large stat lines, always being available for a reset, or clamping another team’s best player, there is a lot a single player can do to help their team win. Ahead of a rousing set of quarterfinals, we take a look at some of the one-on-one matchups that could define the next set of games.
#10 Penn State Spank vs #3 Oregon Ego
Drew Loughnane on Raekwon Adkins
Loughnane has been the engine behind a pair of ridiculous Penn State comebacks to get back to quarterfinals. From here, it’s a really uphill battle for Spank, but if there’s a narrow path to victory, it’ll come via Loughnane — likely on both sides of the ball. On D-line, he’ll likely get more than a handful of points matched up with Raekwon Adkins.
While Oregon runs plenty deep, they’re at their best when Adkins is making huge initiating cuts and gaining swaths of yardage to open up space for the rest of the cutters. If he draws that matchup, Loughnane will have the task of restraining Adkins’ opening moves and forcing Oregon to win through others. And on the counter, I’d love to see a shot go up to Loughnane in a sky battle with Adkins and a chance to produce a Spank break. Pure electricity if it happens.
D-I College Championships 2026: Matchups That Will Define Every Quarterfinal (Men’s Div. Preview) is only available to Ultiworld Subscribers
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