Dairyland 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: Cochrane-Fountain City was the outright champion of the Dairyland Conference last year, and the Pirates didn’t stop there, advancing all the way to the Division 7 state title game. They fall to Kenosha St. Joseph, taking home a silver ball for the first hardware in school history. Pepin/Alma was second, joining Eleva-Strum in winning a playoff game. Blair-Taylor and Melrose-Mindoro also qualified for the postseason out of the Dairyland.

2025 Season Information:
Standings
Stats
All-Conference

2026 PREVIEW:

Predicted Order of Finish:

1) Cochrane-Fountain City
2) Pepin/Alma
3) Eleva-Strum
4) Whitehall
5) Melrose-Mindoro
6) Blair-Taylor
7) Augusta
8) Independence/Gilmanton

Players to Watch:

Max Carothers, OL, Pepin/Alma: Carothers is the only returning First Team All-Conference offensive lineman in the Dairyland.

Bo Killian, RB, Whitehall: Killian carried the load for The Norse last season, rushing for 890 yards and 11 touchdowns on 139 carries.

Isaiah Kleinsmith, RB, Melrose-Mindoro: Kleinsmith led Melrose-Mindoro in rushing and receiving last year, racking up nearly 800 yards of offense with nine total touchdowns.

Parker Kujak, QB/DB, Cochrane-Fountain City: Kujak threw for 1,440 yards and 12 touchdowns, adding eight scores on the ground last year.

Aidan Lisowski, RB/DL, Cochrane-Fountain City: Lisowski is a battering ram running back, going for 1,019 yards and 11 touchdowns last year to earn First Team All-Conference recognition.

Brock Stendahl, RB, Eleva-Strum: Stendahl was second on the Cardinals in rushing last year, going for 665 yards and three touchdowns on a team-high 143 carries.

2026 Team Previews

1) Cochrane-Fountain City put together one of the best seasons in school history, going undefeated during the regular season with seven shutouts, advancing to the Division 7 state championship game. They’d come up short against Kenosha St. Joseph, who moves up to D6 this year, but took home the school’s first hardware with a runner-up trophy. “We have only four returning starters on both sides of the ball, but we do have some key positions returning,” said head coach Jesse Cyrus, who also coached the boys basketball team to a 2025 state title. Cochrane-Fountain City welcomes back two of the top playmakers in the division, senior quarterback Parker Kujak and senior running back Aidan Lisowski, who led the team in rushing a year ago.

2) Pepin/Alma had another excellent season, with the only regular season loss a 15-14 decision to Cochrane-Fountain City. The team won a playoff game for a seventh consecutive season, but went out in Level 2 against Boyceville. Head coach Mike Olson, who is just four wins away from 200 for his career, brings back 19 letterwinners this season, though just seven total starters (four offense, three defense). The Eagles always find a way, and will need to do so again this season while replacing 1900-yard rusher Justin Bergmann amongst others. Max Carothers will be one of the best linemen in the league after earning First Team All-Conference recognition a year ago.

3) Eleva-Strum went 7-4 last year, making the playoffs and defeating league rival Blair-Taylor in a Level 1 road game before going out to Lourdes Academy the next week. After several years at Altoona, Eleva-Strum graduate Chad Hanson returns to coach the Cardinals in his second stint as the head man. Eleva-Strum welcomes back second-leading rusher Brock Stendahl as well as top receiver Bo Windjue, who averaged more than 38 yards per catch last season.

4) Whitehall finished 3-6 last year, missing out on the postseason. The league coaches think the Norse should be improved in 2026, with good size and numbers in the program. They relied heavily on Bo Killian to carry the load on offense, and he returns after rushing 139 times for 890 yards and 11 touchdowns. The team didn’t throw it much, but do return quarterback Karston Ausderau and the player who caught al nine passes last season.

5) Melrose-Mindoro made it back into the playoffs after missing out in 2024. The Mustangs would finish 5-5 overall after a Level 1 playoff exit against eventual Division 6 state champion Darlington. As always, they’ll be big and physical, and while quarterback Brady Blaken graduates, the Mustangs do return top rusher Isaiah Kleinsmith, who also was tops on the team in receiving a year ago.

6) Blair-Taylor won the first three games of the regular season and the last three, but a rough stretch in the middle of the season resulted in a distant fourth place finish in the Dairyland Conference. After falling to Eleva-Strum during the regular season, they’d go out to the Cardinals in the opening playoff game as well. The Wildcats had a prolific offense last year, but need to replace the primary pieces of that group, including 1900-yard passer Kole Trapp, 800-yard rusher Collin Johnson, and top receivers C.J. Dummer and Payton Kelly.

7) Augusta unfortunately did not win a game last year, scoring just 26 points all season. The Beavers have not won a game since October of 2023. “We return nearly all of our starters on both sides of the ball,” said head coach Derek Boldt. “These seniors will all have three to four years of starting experience and are great leaders. Our underclassmen are also coming back with some varsity experience. We have a group that works their tails off and does not quit.” Quarterback James Shong and leading rusher Nathan Atchison are among the players returning this fall.

8) Independence/Gilmanton did defeat Augusta 8-6 last year, but that was the only victory for the longtime co-op program. They have not made the playoffs since 2018. No survey was provided and no stats were entered last season.