DELPHOS, OH (WLIO) — Three straight one-win seasons is a tough pill to swallow for a program like Jefferson.

The Wildcats hold 16 league titles, second-most in Northwest Conference history behind Columbus Grove.

But as a new season kicks off, it is a clean slate for Jefferson.

The Jefferson Wildcats went 1-9 last season and finished last in the Northwest Conference. Third-year head coach Allan Pohlman has 10 starters returning on both sides of the ball. And these returning Wildcats bring back a level of confidence for 2026.

"They've seen a lot of the live action of varsity football and playing, starting as a freshman and a sophomore over the past few years, you do learn a lot and they're ready to take those lessons onto the field, and I just feel like this is a very confident group and we believe in our mission and what we're trying to achieve here," said Pohlman.

This season, Jefferson has a new quarterback in junior Heath Schnipke, who moved from Pennsylvania. And it's a full-circle moment for Heath, whose dad, Christopher, is a Jefferson graduate who also played football.

"I would say that's the biggest thing. I love playing football. Like my dad started my love for football when I was young, just out throwing the football with me in the backyard. So obviously the biggest thing you want to do is impress your dad, make your dad proud. So that's a huge thing for me and always has been, always will be, is I want to impress him and make him proud and happy with what he's saying," said Schnipke.

"Heath has played a lot of football while he was at Pennsylvania. He came here in the summertime and completely gels with the guys, is a phenomenal athlete and is developing into a really strong leader as well. We're really excited to see what he's going to do for us on the football field," said Pohlman.

After graduating five seniors last season, the Wildcats have a class of 10 this year. According to head coach Pohlman, this senior class is all about accountability.

"It's the most we've had in several years and they've really taken it upon themselves to hold not just themselves accountable, but the rest of the team as well, and that's something we always want to have here is a team led by the players. I feel like we have that with this group of kids," said Pohlman.

Jefferson will be tested from Week 5 to Week 8 when they take on the top four teams in last year's NWC standings in Bluffton, Columbus Grove and Lima Central Catholic. And while this is a tough stretch for the team, Coach Pohlman and the Wildcats are ready for the challenge.

"The NWC, there is no off week. It's a strong conference and you know the key is just really stay healthy. We've been putting a lot of focus on that and keeping that culture moving in the right direction, I think will help us weather the storm of the NWC schedule we got coming at us," said Pohlman.

"Just from how they were last year, we're not going to let that get to us. At the end of the day, we know what we got to do. We're going to execute it. We're just going to play football at the end of the day. That's all we have in our heads, just play football," said Jefferson senior wide receiver and cornerback Kellen Brotherwood.

The Jefferson Wildcats have endured three straight one-win seasons. But this year's team isn't letting the past define them — they're using it as motivation to fuel their 2026 run.

"It means a lot to us and I think we've worked very hard. We've kept that in the back of our minds and I don't think, we're not going to let that happen. We're going to keep fighting. We're going to keep doing our thing and just going to play football at the end of the day. We're going to see what happens but I think we got the guys to make it happen this year to have a good record," said Brotherwood.

"I think you're going to see a really physical, exciting football team that flies around fast. You know, we're not going to be the biggest team out there but we got a lot of speed on the field. Again with our returning seniors that have been through a lot of varsity football, we feel really good about that," said Pohlman.

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