Nouvel Catholic Central went 8-3 last fall, beat Michigan Lutheran Seminary 34-28 in a Division 8 district semifinal and lost the district final at Beal City 41-13. WNEM noted it was the program's first district final since 2019.
Nouvel lists 145 students, Class D, Division 8. Drew Weigl is 40-26 entering year eight. In 2024 the Panthers were 8-2 and lost to MLS 21-20 in a district semifinal; Nouvel won the 2025 regular-season meeting 27-14.
The opener is Thursday, Aug. 27, at Allen Park Cabrini at 7 p.m.
Gone are all five starting offensive linemen and six TVC all-league players: Christian Lopez, Jason Sherrer, Ian Ziegelmann, Tino Medina, Joe Trevino and John Carlson. Six seniors are back, three of whom have started three seasons.
Returning all-conference players include Owen Vance and Parker Kingsbury. Isaiah Garcia, Matthew Kusowski and Mario Bables are also back.
Weigl said: "We may only have six seniors, but three of them have been starting for three seasons. They're really talented seniors." The new linemen come up from an undefeated JV team.
Garcia told WNEM: "We lost a lot of talent but we've got a lot coming in. ... Ready to take the field, storm the field, show them what we got."
Sources: [MHSAA](https://www.mhsaa.com/schools/nouvel), [MLive](https://www.mlive.com/highschoolsports/2026/08/nouvel-cc-leans-on-star-seniors-to-lead-young-2026-football-team.html) and [WNEM](https://www.wnem.com/2026/08/13/close-knit-senior-group-looks-lead-young-nouvel-catholic-central-squad/).
