It is late July, which means that every team in northeast Indiana has visions of this season being successful.
However, some teams have more motivation than others to show out this fall. For some, it could be high preseason expectations. For others, it could be bouncing back from a down season or setting the tone for future success.
There is a multitude of reasons why, but suffice to say there is a bit more incentive with the teams below to put together a solid, if not stellar, 2026 campaign.
DEKALB
It was quite the first season for the Barons under coach Ryan Robertson. DeKalb’s seven victories were the most since an eight-win campaign back in 2019.
The goal now is to show that the Barons are going to be a favor every year in the Northeast Eight and beyond and not just a one-year wonder.
The challenge is real. Graduation gutted the offense, with the quarterback (Eli McCormick), the leading rusher (Brady Culler) and 95 percent of the receptions needing to be replaced.
There is some talent and athleticism on this year’s roster. There is a lot of excitement around senior do-everything athlete Drake Hall, while junior Xavier Vice is set up for a promising breakout campaign as well.
Last year’s runner-up finish to East Noble in the NE8 is in the past. Can DeKalb show it can reload and be a factor year in and year out like the Knights and Leo?
FREMONT
Another team looked to prove that last year was no fluke, the Eagles had a campaign to remember in 2025. Their eight victories were the most since 2001, while the winning season was the first for the program in 16 years.
With over 15 starters back from a year ago, the goal is to reach the same heights, if not higher, in 2026. Coach Trevor Thomas has been building something over the last several years, and the plan is to showcase that it wasn’t just a single-year thing.
Jaret Laughlin may be the best player in northeast Indiana that no one knows about. He helmed the offense last year that averaged 33 points per game, rushed for 1,333 yards and was on the overall leaders of the defense from his safety position.
The senior class, with Laughlin one of the mainstays, is numerous and talented. It will lead the way and decide whether Fremont can be a factor in the small division of the NECC and challenge for its first-ever sectional title.
GARRETT
The 2025 campaign was a mixed bag for the Railroaders, who had their season end in one of the best games of the entire year, a 30-28 setback at Angola in the sectional championship.
While there was no hardware secured in Coach Chris Albertin’s first campaign at the helm of the program, Garrett peaked at the right time. It went 4-2 over the second half of the season, with the losses both coming to Angola on the road by a combined five points, while finishing 6-6.
The last time the Railroaders went 6-6 was in 2024. One year later, they went 13-1 and advanced to semistate.
Quite a bit of production graduated, but the senior duo of Aiden Reed and Alex Guzman are going to be a stellar one-two punch in the run game and on defense. If stability at the quarterback position can be found, all the better for Garrett.
However, the schedule isn’t easy. While Adams Central is off the schedule after a four-year cycle, Garrett will open the year at perennial foe DeKalb, followed by Huntington North, West Noble and Angola.
NORTHROP
The Bruins took the SAC by storm a season ago, beating the likes of Bishop Dwenger and Snider (twice). The 8-3 campaign ended a streak of 21 consecutive years without a winning season for the program.
Much like other teams on this list, Northrop has to show its 2025 season wasn’t a one-hit wonder. There is some big talent on the roster with the likes of Michigan commit Ifeanyi Emedobi and Maddox Weil, but quarterback David Callison deserves big praise for what last year’s team was able to achieve, in addition to his top target Jerquaden Guilford and a defense that had its fair share of playmakers, anchored by Dee Hogue on the back end.
Add a first-year head coach in John Schaefer, and the Bruins are going to look different this fall. While the majority of the coaching staff was retained, how does the dynamic work under a new man at the helm? Can the Bruins get the ball in the hands of its playmakers with a new QB1 as easily as it did last year with Callison? Can the defense come up big in huge moments?
One season doesn’t make a resurgent program. Years of consistent competitiveness does.
WAYNE
Ask any coach who has been in the position that Darrion White was last year. Being a rookie head coach in the SAC is not easy.
Despite Coach White’s best efforts, the Generals went winless in 2025. Both the offense and defense had its fair share of struggles, but if you watched Wayne enough, you could see that there was talent in the pipeline. The senior class has some dudes. Mykalan Westmoreland is a disruptor and is primed for a standout campaign, while Tyree Eldridge could put up some big numbers offensively if Wayne can find a way to get him the ball more often. And that doesn’t even include junior Javontae Eldridge, who is sitting on a solid amount of scholarship offers from Power 4 schools, including Tennessee, Missouri, Iowa State and Purdue.
White has done a tremendous job of building up the ‘buy-in’ to Wayne. The goal for Year 2 is to get some dubs to make sure that the buy-in stays solid in a city notorious for talent quickly gravitating towards winners.
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