Plenty of Talent Returns For Cardinal Newman In 2026

In the days leading up to the 1A state football championship at Pitbull Stadium on the campus of Florida International University (FIU), there were several high school football “experts” that were giving West Palm Beach Cardinal Newman no chance of unseating national power Hollywood Chaminade-Madonna.   When you step back and think why those “experts” would have felt that the Lions were overwhelming favorites, it was their 10th consecutive trip to the final game while the Crusaders were making their first ever trip – and Chaminade-Madonna had only lost to a 1A school just two times in a 10-year period.   But what many of those confident football purists didn't understand is that veteran head coach Jack Daniels has been down this road before – several times – and he had spent much of this decade putting together a quality program.   While the Lions were playing a challenging schedule, so were the Crusaders who lost three times to quality opponents such as Roman Catholic, Pennsylvania, Tampa Jesuit and Gainesville Buchholz. They also picked up a quality win against defending 6A state champion West Boca Raton, so they were more than ready for any team.   The crazy thing about football experts is they are limited on how much they watch teams from outside their own area, and when they come across programs who are not usually in the championship mix, they have no clue.   The 17-14 “upset” win showed that the talent across the state is getting better and more competitive, and while schools like Chaminade-Madonna are still going to be among the best, programs such as Cardinal Newman need to be taken seriously, and as both teams were recently elevated to Class 2A, things will get very interesting.   WHAT WILL THE CRUSADERS LOOK LIKE IN 2026?   As we already know – especially in this landscape – nobody really can predict what a full roster will look like anymore.   As we sit here two days before Christmas, we can only project what players will be on hand to defend the title when play starts next August.   Players move schools at a rapid pace here in south Florida, so it's only an educated guess what prospects will find a new landing spot. But when you win a state title, players seem to gravitate toward that winning program.   Here is a look at what the Crusaders have coming back as of this date:   Class of 2027 junior prospects [player_tooltip player_id='1562269' first='Cruz' last='Caldwell'] (DB/WR), Tyrece Campbell-Rollins (DB/WR), Angelo Caringi (LB/DE), Billy Connolly (QB), Anthony Dallesandro (DL/OL), Will Daniels (WR/CB), Sean Fleming (DE/TE), [player_tooltip player_id='896777' first='Kyrus' last='Haston'] (DL), [player_tooltip player_id='1148057' first='Chris' last='Laborde'] (LB/RB), Nathaniel Parks (K/P), Brooks Stauder (OL/DL), Logan Stepp (WR/DB), Janarro Sumpter (RB/LB), Scott Thomas (WR/DB), Gabriel Walsh (TE/LB) and Aidan Zisa (WR/CB).   There is also quite a bit of talent in the 2028 class – with Michael Abbott (DB/WR), Finn Beylo (K), Prince Curry (DB/WR), Jaxson Dillon (WR/SS), [player_tooltip player_id='1617746' first='Knox' last='Fletcher'] (WR), Kahlil Gabaud (QB/DB/WR), [player_tooltip player_id='895952' first='Colt' last='Hauser'] (OG), Ty Kirkpatrick (DE/TE), Jack Larsen (OL/LB), Shangler Limage (OL/DL), [player_tooltip player_id='1582418' first='Michael' last='Louidort'] (DE/LB/TE), Treshaun McClellion (RB/LB), Hunter Mekoliavitch (LS/OL/DL), Jackson Miner (TE/LB), Anthony Presto (RB/LB), Jasiah Thomas (OL/DL) and William Usliton (OL/DL).   There is also a solid group of current freshmen (Class of 2029) with elite Aydan Elam (WR/DB), Jermaine Hayden (OL/DL), Reed Jackson (WR), Bradley Rhineholz (Athlete) and Drake Schickling (DE).     2026 PREP REDZONE FLORIDA STOCK UP EVENT. <a href="https://events.prepredzone.com/e/2137/register/stock-up-showcase-florida ">https://events.prepredzone.com/e/2137/register/stock-up-showcase-florida </a>   Statewide Coverage Daily. h<a href="//prepredzone.com/florida/">ttps://prepredzone.com/florida/</a>   You Can Contact Larry Blustein with prospect or team information at: Floridakids1@aol.com.   COACHES, PLAYERS: Do You Have A Subscription? Contact us for a savings code so you can see what everyone has been talking about! <a href="mailto:Floridakids1@aol.com">Floridakids1@aol.com</a>.

In the days leading up to the 1A state football championship at Pitbull Stadium on the campus of Florida International University (FIU), there were several high school football “experts” that were giving West Palm Beach Cardinal Newman no chance of unseating national power Hollywood Chaminade-Madonna.