In 2025, the Sioux City East football team put together a memorable season, finishing 9-2 while averaging almost 35 points per game.Now, a year later, the Black Raiders are looking for more in 2026.The schedule will once again feature several fellow Iowa High School Athletic Association State Football Playoff qualifiers from 2025. Sioux City East starts off the season on Friday, August 28 with intra-city rival Sioux City North.They follow that up with Norwalk and Sioux City Bishop Heelan. From there, Sioux City East gets Sioux City West and Ankeny.One of the benefits of playing intra-city foes early on is that the Black Raiders will not be leaving Sioux City until a Friday, October 1 trip to Des Moines Roosevelt. Officially, Norwalk, Sioux City Bishop Heelan and Ankeny are home games.Sioux City East is back home for Johnston, heads to Council Bluffs Abraham Lincoln a week later and concludes the regular season at home vs. Ames.High School On SI Iowa placed Sioux City East fourth in the preseason Top 25 rankings.Sioux City East Started 2025 Off With Four Straight VictoriesThe Black Raiders were a perfect 4-0 heading into a Week 5 matchup at Ankeny, as they suffered a tough 26-20 setback. They would rebound to win four in a row to close out the regular season, including a 21-17 victory at Johnston.In the playoffs, Sioux City East knocked off Dallas Center-Grimes, 28-14, before coming up short in a thriller with Waukee Northwest in the Class 5A quarterfinals on the road, 48-34.The Black Raiders, Johnston and Ankeny all finished 4-1 in District 3.Replacing Cal Jepsen Is Step No. 1 For Black RaidersThroughout the preseason, Sioux City East has one key task for the offense: finding a replacement for standout quarterback Cal Jepsen.A multi-year starter, Jepsen threw for 2,587 yards and 26 touchdowns, completing almost 66 percent of his passes last year. He is now set to head off to Western Kentucky University to play NCAA Division I baseball.Callan Koch saw key time under center as a sophomore, completing 28 of 47 for 286 yards with four touchdowns. He also was effective with his feet, rushing for 31 yards on four attempts.One benefit Koch will have is a surplus of returning starters on offense. Amos Collins led Sioux City East with 506 yards rushing last year, adding four touchdowns on the ground. Quintin Pollard averaged 14.3 yards per carry as a sophomore.The receiving group includes a pair of college football recruits in Chris Ford and Kason Clayborne. Ford, who is committed to South Dakota, caught 39 passes for 661 yards and four TDs while Clayborne, who committed to Minnesota, had 27 receptions for 302 yards and six touchdowns.Add in leading receiver Isaiah Grant, and Koch will have weapons at his disposal. Grant had 734 yards receiving and eight touchdowns as just a sophomore. Collins and Pollard both had over 100 yards receiving while Tanner Boonstra had 472 and five TDs.Minnesota Commit Kason Clayborne, Chris Ford Anchor DefenseAlong with being stalwarts on offense, Clayborne and Ford will be key figures for the Black Raider defense.Clayborne had 13 tackles for loss and one quarterback sack last year while Ford recorded 62 total tackles and had two interceptions. He also averaged 48 yards per kickoff return, with three going for scores, and 25 yards per punt return, taking two back to the end zone.Nolan Demke, Tanner Hamilton, Lincoln McCaffrey, Titan Nation, Jack Ryan, Kuper Fritz, Landan Monk, Brecken Wagner and Teegan Surber all had double-digit tackle totals last year and are set to return. Monk had 11 tackles for loss, Fritz recorded nine and Surber six.The nine wins by Sioux City East last year were the most since the 2007 team that went 10-1 overall. They have had eight seasons in a row with at least five wins.2026 Sioux City East High School Football ScheduleAug. 28 - at Sioux City NorthSept. 4 - vs. NorwalkSept. 11 - vs. Sioux City Bishop HeelanSept. 18 - at Sioux City WestSept. 25 - vs. AnkenyOct. 1 - at Des Moines RooseveltOct. 9 - vs. JohnstonOct. 16 - at Council Bluffs Abraham LincolnOct. 22 - vs. AmesAdd us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow