JEWELL, Ia. — After 5 consecutive playoff seasons in Jewell, South Hamilton football missed the state playoffs for the first time since 2019 as the Hawks fell to a 1-8 record, their lowest win total since a 1-7 mark in 2015. However, things are looking up going forward for the Hawks, bringing back a majority of their production, including the state’s leading rusher in Wyatt Gelder, and young players who saw tons of playing time in 2024, along with a wide-open district race, all under the direction of first-year head coach Cole Billerbeck.
Offense
Despite the change at the top, South Hamilton’s wishbone attack will remain in tact and looks to take a big leap forward in 2026. Quarterback Garrett Johnson returns after a roller coaster of a sophomore campaign and looking to take a big jump as a junior. The Hawks backfield returns a majority of their production, including Class 1A’s reigning rushing champion in Wyatt Gelder, who rushed for over 1,400 yards and 16 touchdowns as a sophomore. He’ll have an experienced fullback in Maddux Becker in front of him, and will have the likes of Kaden Dean and Kash Northrop to help carry the load of the Hawks rushing attack. The offensive line has some unknowns, but brings back a couple stalwarts in Ben Swenson and Davien Henderson, who look to anchor the heart of the Hawks offense. Others to watch up front include Kyler Ziesman and Cooper Stuck.
Defense
Defense was the area that seemingly took the biggest hit from the lack of experience the 2025 team had, but despite those lumps, the Hawks have a lot of potential to improve exponentially on the defensive side. The anchor of the South Hamilton defense on paper will be the defensive line, returning the Hawks leading tackler in Ben Swenson, who tallied 70 tackles, 9 TFL and 5.5 sacks, while Davien Henderson, Maddux Becker and Lyndon Johnson are three guys to look at to also hold the line of scrimmage. Kaden Dean will anchor a young linebacking core, that could feature the likes of Wyatt Gelder and Cooper Stuck, as the defensive backfield all returns, with Kash Northrop leading returners 2 interceptions last season, as Garrett Johnson also brings back a plethora of experience.