With the new high school football season beginning Aug. 4, let’s take a look at who is coming back for the 2026 season.
While seniors genuinely dominate the statistics, we’re going to see who the top statistical returners are for Manitowoc and Sheboygan counties in passing, rushing, receiving and defense.
Passing
Harry Schroeder, sr., Howards Grove
Schroeder led the Big East with 1,660 yards passing as a junior and threw 14 touchdowns. He did throw 11 interceptions though so decision making will likely need to be improved this season.
Augie Eigenberger, sr., Plymouth
Eigenberger was having a stellar season with 975 yards passing, six touchdowns and two interceptions until he was forced to miss the last few games with an injury.
Aiden Oldenhoff, sr., Kohler/Lutheran/Christian
Oldenhoff is the top returning passer with 1,891 yards which was tops in the Eastern Wisconsin Conference. He also had 23 touchdowns to six interceptions. With KLC moving to the much more difficult North Eastern Conference though it might be more of a struggle to put up such lofty numbers this season.
Rushing
Conner Schaefer, sr., New Holstein
Schaefer was second in the EWC last season with 1,275 yards rushing while averaging 6.4 yards per carry. He also scored nine touchdowns.
Mason Schaefer, sr., Kiel
While no relation to the Huskies back of the same surname, Schaefer also averaged 6.4 ypc while racking up 1,052 yards and 11 scores.
Jaquan Foth, sr., Manitowoc Lincoln
In an otherwise tough season for the Ships, Foth was a definite bright side. He ran for 994 yards and seven touchdowns. He’s been the focal point of Lincoln’s offense and should continue to see a heavy workload.
Receiving
Griffin Knight, sr., Cedar Grove-Belgium
Knight is a phenomenal athlete with the ability to make defenders miss in space and he used those skills to gain 626 yards and 10 touchdowns receiving.
Carter Zimmermann, sr., Kohler/Lutheran/Christian
Zimmermann was Oldenhoff’s top target, catching 60 passes for an EWC-best 883 yards and 15 touchdowns.
Ely Kohlman, sr., New Holstein
Kohlman caught 36 passes for 626 yards and nine scores for the Huskies last season but Kohlman’s all-around abilities might be among the best in the area. He’s a leading candidate for Lakeshore Elite player of the year when factoring in his skills as a return man and defensive back making him a walking big play waiting to happen.
Defense
Josh Anzia, sr., Cedar Grove-Belgium
Anzia led the Big East with 81 total tackles while having 41 solo tackles and 11 tackles for loss for the Rockets.
Cole Kuhn, sr., Plymouth
Kuhn made 67 total tackles, 43 solo, but most impressively he had 20 tfl along with 3.5 sacks.
Griffin Abler, sr., New Holstein
Abler had a nose for finding the backfield on defense for the Huskies, making 16 tfl and 78 total tackles. He had the best solo-tackle percentage among the three highlighted defenders though as 60 of his tackles were solo. If Abler got you in his sights you weren’t escaping.
Contact Tom Dombeck at 920-686-2965 or tdombeck@htrnews.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @Tom_Dombeck.
This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: Here are top football stat standouts returning in Manitowoc, Sheboygan
Reporting by Tom Dombeck, Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter / Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Tom Dombeck, Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter | USA TODAY Network
