Big Eight 2026 Football Preview

Over the next several weeks, we’ll be previewing every conference in the state as part of our preseason preparations.

Check out all of our Football Conference Previews for every league in the state, here.

2025 Recap: Middleton claimed an outright Big Eight Conference title in 2025, going a perfect 7-0 in league play. Verona was second, joining Middleton in winning playoff games over MPS schools before going out in Level 2. Madison West was the only other Big Eight team to make the postseason.

2025 Season Information:
Standings
Stats
All-Conference

2026 PREVIEW:

Predicted Order of Finish:

1) Verona
2) Middleton
3) Janesville Craig
4) Madison Memorial
5) Janesville Parker
6) Madison West
7) Madison La Follette
8) Madison East

Players to Watch:

Sam Aparicio, WR, Madison Memorial: Aparicio earned Second Team All-Conference recognition in the Big Eight, catching 29 passes for 440 yards and five touchdowns last year.

Kamaria Carter, RB, Madison West: Carter was a First Team All-Conference selection last year, rushing for 712 yards and seven touchdowns for the Regents.

Reed Falk, RB/DE, Middleton: Falk was First Team All-Conference as a defensive end and Second Team in the offensive backfield.

Ethan Forrett, QB, Janesville Craig: Forrett was a Second Team All-Conference choice last year, throwing for more than 1000 yards with 12 touchdowns.

Ethan McIntosh, OL, Verona: McIntosh was a unanimous First Team All-Conference choice last year and has given a verbal commitment to play football at the University of Wisconsin.

Jax Wepking, RB, Verona: Wepking led the Wildcats in rushing last year, going for 633 yards and eight touchdowns on the ground to earn Second Team All-Conference recognition.

2026 Team Previews

1) Verona dropped non-conference games to Sun Prairie East and Oconomowoc early on, then fell to rival Middleton resulting in a second place finish in the Big Eight. Struggles against teams outside the Big Eight continued in the postseason, as after a blowout win over Milwaukee Pulaski in Level 1, they’d fall 42-20 to Franklin in Level 2. Brady Bowdish saw some time at quarterback as a sophomore last year, and is joined in the backfield by top rusher Jax Wepking. Of course, the offense features Wisconsin commit Ethan McIntosh up front as well. The defense can turn to tackling machine Jack Guenzler-Soda to lead the way.

2) Middleton claimed an outright Big Eight Conference title last year, defeating Verona mid-season en route to the crown. As has been the case a number of times in recent years, they struggled against top teams outside the league, falling to Bay Port to being the year, then going out to Badger 31-7 in Level 2 of the playoffs. The offensive skill positions were dominated by graduated seniors, including multi-year starting quarterback Joey Passaglia, leading rusher Elijah Jackson, and the top receiving threats. There will be some rebuilding at those key production spots for 2026. Reed Falk is one of the top defensive linemen in the state, recording 8.5 sacks last year as a First Team All-Conference selection.

3) Janesville Craig finished just outside the playoffs last year, going 4-5 overall, with a 24-14 loss to Madison West likely costing them a spot. The Cougars could be one of the more improved teams in the conference this year. “The strength of our team lies in returning every skilled player on the offensive side of the ball,” said third-year coach Joseph Brennan. “We bring back our leading passer, three leading rushers, and three leading receivers. The experience of this group and the cohesion that we began to develop towards the end of the year give us a chance to have a very good 2026 season.” A total of 10 starters return on offense, with six regulars back on defense.

4) Madison Memorial lost the first five games of the 2025 season, and while they’d win the final four, it wasn’t quite enough to get the Spartans into the postseason, as they were the first team out in Division 1. “There is a lot of excitement and energy in our program right now, and for good reason,” said head coach Austin Battaglia, a 2011 graduate of the school. “We ended last year with a four game winning streak and we are hungry to get back into the WIAA playoffs. We have great leaders and playmakers like Sam Aparicio and CJ Mulkey, and we are excited about the growth of our trenches throughout this offseason. There will be a lot of new faces stepping into starting positions for us this season. Speaking of starters, there are four back on the offensive side of the ball, with six starters returning on defense. Eric Johnson is a name to watch to step into a bigger role at running back.

5) Janesville Parker beat three of the Madison schools last year, but a 3-6 overall record wasn’t enough to get the Vikings into the playoffs, as they haven’t won a postseason game since 2004. Leading rusher Jayvion Hill graduates, but the team does return quarterback Ashton Smith, who led the team in passing and was second in rushing. They’ll have to replace All-State offensive lineman Gavin Meier, who is off to Minnesota. Four defenders who earned some form of All-Conference are back.

6) Madison West went 5-4 during the regular season and 4-3 in the Big Eight Conference last season, as the Regents qualified for the playoffs one year after a WIAA error had kept them out. West would go out to Muskego in Level 1, but it was the first playoff appearance for the program since 2019. “We will be an inexperienced team, with three full-time starters back and 14 returning letter winners,” said head coach Mike Wolfgram. Senior running back Kamaria Carter is a returning First Team All-Conference selection. Evan Quarm, Aaden Summers, Evan Fuhrken are breakout candidates this year.

7) Madison La Follette beat Beloit Memorial in a non-conference game and took down Madison East in Big Eight Conference play, but that was about it for competitive games for the Lancers last season. Austin Willis is replaced by former Madison La Follette All-State running back Toren Young as head coach. “We are returning a good amount of starters and are looking to build on our improvement last year,” said Young. The Lancers bring back five starters in what is planned to be a flexbone offense, including the top four rushers from last season. Patrick Toomey directs the offense at quarterback, leading the team in passing and rushing a year ago. Seven starters are back on the defensive side of the ball.

8) Madison East struggled to be competitive last season, as the Purgolders did not win a game and scored just nine points all season. Every one of their games ended in a running clock. Offensive lineman Joziah Hayes, receiver D.J. Nash, and defensive back Zion Ellis-Winkinson are returning Honorable Mention All-Conference selections.