FRCC-North 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: West De Pere won the FRCC-North last year, edging Bay Port late in the year in another thriller. The Phantoms would go all the way to Madison, winning a Division 2 state title. Bay Port finished second, following up a state title in 2024 with a runner-up finish in D1 last season. Pulaski was third, followed by De Pere, who shocked Neenah and Hudson in the playoffs before going out to Waunakee. Ashwaubenon also made the postseason.

2025 Season Information:
Standings
Stats
All-Conference

2026 PREVIEW:

Predicted Order of Finish:

1) Bay Port
2) West De Pere
3) Pulaski
4) De Pere
5) Green Bay Preble
6) Appleton West
7) Ashwaubenon
8) Green Bay Southwest

Players to Watch:

Cayden Cavanaugh, TE/LB, De Pere: Cavanaugh is a tackling machine, racking up 112 last year as a First Team All-Conference linebacker in the FRCC-North.

Landon Kibbe, WR, West De Pere: Kibbe was second on the team in receiving yards (616) and touchdowns (10) last year, catching 35 passes.

Connor Navis, QB, Appleton West: Navis threw for 1,543 yards and 18 touchdowns last year, completing 61% of his passes.

Bennett Nelson, WR, Appleton West: Nelson was a First Team All-Conference pick and big-play threat, catching 34 passes for 778 yards and 11 touchdowns, averaging 23 yards per catch.

Jackson Otradovec, WR, Bay Port: Otradovec was the team’s leading receiver last year, catching 37 passes for 677 yards and seven touchdowns.

David Provost, OL, West De Pere: A First Team All-Conference and WFCA Honorable Mention All-State choice, Provost has given a commitment to Northern Illinois.

Bohdan Schmidt, QB, Pulaski: Schmidt is a single-wing quarterback, which means he runs it way more than he throws it. Last year, he rushed for 1,471 yards and 18 touchdowns, adding 515 yards and four scores through the air.

Sam Schmidt, OL, West De Pere: Schmidt was a First Team All-Conference pick last season, helping the Phantoms to a state title. Schmidt gave a commitment to Western Michigan in early June.

Harrison Selk, QB, Green Bay Preble: Selk completed 61% of his passes last year for 1,546 yards and 12 touchdowns, entering his senior year with a great deal of confidence.

Jordy Walker, LB, Bay Port: Walker took home unanimous First Team All-Conference recognition as a linebacker for the Pirates.

2026 Team Previews

1) Bay Port claimed the Division 1 state title in 2024, and dropped a couple games in the regular season last year. Still, they’d make a nice postseason run, with victories over Franklin and Muskego, to advance to the state title game once again. A touchdown with less than a minute left put them in front, but they’d drop a heartbreaker when Arrowhead returned the ensuing kickoff for a game-winning touchdown. The Pirates certainly have a chance to make it three in a row for appearances at Madison. “We have strong depth across the board this season, with 28 seniors and 37 juniors,” said head coach Steven Jorgensen. “This quality of depth creates a lot of competition for starting spots with guys who have waited their turn and worked in the program.” Among the returnees are six starters on both sides of the ball. However, the two players who carried the bulk of the load offensively move on, quarterback Matt Stevens, who had more than 2000 passing yards and 1000 rushing yards, as well as 2000-yard rusher Brady Moon. It figures to be a dogfight in the FRCC-North between Bay Port and West De Pere once again.

2) West De Pere had quite the 2025, going unbeaten through the regular season, including a thrilling 48-45 win over Bay Port to claim the FRCC-North title. They’d ride a strong offensive attack all the way to Madison, defeating Notre Dame 28-14 in a highly anticipated matchup. West De Pere is another team with a number of changes this year, with head coach Chris Greisen stepping down following the season, as Kegan Wirtz takes over. Also, the WIAA’s Tournament Performance Factor elevates the Phantoms to Division 1. While record-setting All-State quarterback Patrick Greisen graduates, the team has some strong players back on offense, including three, three-year starters. That includes D1 tackles Sam Schmidt and David Provost. The quarterback battle will be interesting, featuring senior Morgan Mertens and junior Andrew Greisen, the younger brother of Patrick. Like the offense, the defense returns six starters for 2025, led by linebacker Braylon Stegall and safety Cooper Borowicz.

3) Pulaski went 7-4 overall last year, including a pair of losses to eventual Division 2 state champion West De Pere. The Phantoms and Bay Port have been the top dogs in the FRCC-North for a while, but Pulaski is hoping they have what it takes to finally break into that top two. “This year’s squad has some really good steam speed,” said veteran coach Jerad Marsh. “It’s a hard-working group who has high expectations of themselves and the team.” The quarterback spot is incredibly important in the team’s single-wing offense, and Bohdan Schmidt is back to man that spot. Last year he led the team with 1,471 yards and 18 touchdowns on the ground, while adding more than 500 passing yards as well. Four offensive linemen are among the seven starters back on offense. There are five regulars returning on the defensive side of the ball.

4) De Pere went 5-4 during the regular season after a distant fourth place finish in the FRCC-North. However, head coach Ben Strickland’s crew picked up a couple close road victories in the postseason over Neenah and Hudson before falling to Waunakee in a sectional final. The Redbirds bring back just three starters on offense, but Strickland likes the look of a defense that brings back eight regulars, with good speed, athleticism, and experience. Cayden Cavanaugh is a tackling machine at linebacker while Liam Fieber has all kinds of athletic ability in the backend of the defense.

5) Green Bay Preble narrowly missed out on the playoffs last year, finishing 4-5 overall, though just 2-5 in the FRCC-North. While the Hornets have been the best of the Green Bay public schools the last few years, they’re still searching for their first playoff appearance since 2019. “We return a lot of great skill players on both sides of the ball,” said head coach Bradley Boockmeier. “We have guys who can make plays in space on offense and guys who can fly around on defense. We are relatively unproven in the trenches, but those guys have been working hard, and if we can win the battle at the line of scrimmage, I feel very good about the quality of football that we will be able to play.” Harrison Selk gives the team an experienced quarterback after he looked good last year with 1,546 passing yards and 12 touchdowns, completing 61% of his passes. He’s one of four starters returning on offense, with six back on defense.

6) Appleton West continues to participate in the FRCC-North for football, while moving from the FVA to the Bay in all other sports in the next realignment cycle. Last year, the Terrors won their two non-conference games, but picked up just one victory in FRCC-North play, a 38-0 shutout of Green Bay Southwest. “We are excited for this season,” said head coach Dominick Thompson. “We have all our All-Conference guys returning. We have some new kids coming out that we think will help our program in a lot of ways. All in all, the future belongs to the team who prepares for it today. This team will be ready to compete. No one truly knows how the season will unfold, but my group knows we will all face it together.” It will be an experienced crew, with 45 returning letterwinners and seven starters back on offense with eight returning on defense. The offense has the potential to put up some points, with quarterback Connor Navis, leading rusher Charlie Blevins, and explosive receiver Bennett Nelson all returning.

7) Ashwaubenon snuck into the playoffs in 2025, just barely, going 4-5 during the regular season and finishing fifth in the FRCC-North. They’d exit to New Richmond right away. “We have some juniors and seniors that got playing time as sophomores and juniors,” said head coach Brian Ryczkowski. “That playing experience should make Friday nights less of a surprise for those players.” The Jaguars return 40 letterwinners this fall, including five starters on offense and four on defense. Leading rusher Abel Schubring is back, along with versatile two-way perimeter player Isaac Aoki and expected starting quarterback Landin Joachim.

8) Green Bay Southwest did not win a game last season, as a 16-7 late season loss to Ashwaubenon was the only competitive game (less than three scores) the Fighting Trojans would have in 2025. Unfortunately the program did not return a preseason survey or enter any stats information on Bound last year.