By Ray Hamill — Replacing a group of legendary players from a team that set a new standard for H-DNL football is never an easy thing to do, but the Ferndale Wildcats appear well equipped to do just that.
And anyone who expects the Wildcats to come crashing back to earth this fall after such a phenomenal campaign in 2025 will be sorely disappointed.
This year’s team may or may not match the lofty heights they achieved last fall — including eight straight shutouts to start the season — but they’ll still go into the 2026 season as the red-hot favorites to win a third straight Redwood Conference (formerly the Little 4) and quite possibly as the best team in the H-DNL.
“It’s a new year and our student-athletes have done their due diligence to properly prepare,” said Ferndale head coach Clint McClurg, whose team kicks off the new campaign at Anderson High School on Friday night.
Key to that is the return of six players who are playing varsity football for the third straight year, five of whom received all-league recognition in 2025.
Ferndale fans got their first taste of what to expect from this year’s team at last weekend’s H-DNL jamboree, and McClurg saw a lot of positives, as well as some things he feels they need to work on.
“I think, just like any time you review film, there’s a lot of good, bad and ugly,” the longtime coach said. “And that’s just the way we are as coaches.”
Senior Adrian Lopez will start at quarterback, replacing conference MVP Tanner Pidgeon, and he has been working hard during the offseason to prepare while impressing his coaches with his work ethic and ability.
Lopez will benefit from having a good offensive line in front of him, a unit that returns all-league selection and Humboldt Sports Little 4 Boys Athlete of the Year finalist Angel Zaragoza, along with 2025 all-league honorable mention Ruben Peredia and Mason Garrett, all three of whom are third-year varsity players.
Garrett, in particular, has enjoyed a great preseason.
“Mason Garrett has had a phenomenal camp,” McClurg said. “He’s just come out with a sense of urgency that you’d want every senior to have.”
Joining the experienced trio in the trenches are juniors Greyson Mathews and Obadiah Gobel, each of whom also have impressed the coaches this month.
“Garrett Mathews had an amazing offseason,” McClurg said of the starting center, who has a high football IQ. “Realistically he’s been the talk of the camp for the coaches. He plays at a pretty high level.”
Also back for their third year of varsity football are the team’s three starting linebackers — Luke Dixon, Garyn McClurg and Liam Bishop — each of whom will also feature as playmakers on offense.
The hard-hitting McClurg was outstanding last year and grew in stature as the season progressed, while Bishop is a player capable of finding the end zone every time he touches the ball and Dixon is an unheralded hero who could be the most underrated player in the Redwood Conference.
Junior Preston Killingswortth is another playmaker who should see a lot of time on the field and will give the Cats an additional threat on both sides of the ball.
The Cats, who were undefeated during the regular season and North Coast Section playoffs last year, open the new season at Anderson and Clint McClurg is expecting a battle right out of the starting gates.
“Like every team in the first game you’re very hopeful and you’re excited,” he said. “Everyone’s undefeated, so we expect a very competitive fiery football team.
“We’ll have our work cut out for us, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.”
The Cubs finished 5-5 last year.
Friday night;’s game kicks off at 7:30 p.m.
