Superintendents from the Cambridge and Salem School Districts in New York announced on Friday that the conjoined Cambridge-Salem varsity football team will not have a 2026 season.Statement from the Superintendents Superintendents James Ducharme of Cambridge and Julie Collier of Salem stated in a combined release that “low varsity registration numbers” resulted in a canceled 2026 campaign.“This decision was not made lightly and made in collaboration with both school districts and coaching staff. Currently there are not enough student-athletes registered to safely field a varsity football team for the upcoming season,” the release noted.Cambridge-Salem had a successful 2025 seasonCambridge-Salem was coming off a 2025 season that resulted in a 9-2 record and an appearance in the Section II Class D championship game. The team, however, lost 35-0 to Greenwich.Doug Luke, Cambridge-Salem’s head coach, told The Albany Times-Union in July that he was concerned there might not be a varsity team this year.Luke noted that 12 players were committed to play at the varsity level, which was below the required 16-player rule for varsity games each week during the season.“This is something you never thought you would be in,” Luke said via The Times-Union. “We were 9-2 last year and thought we were going to be pretty good this year. People just didn’t come out. I don't know how to change that.”Cambridge’s History as a ProgramCambridge has reached 18 Section II title games in history, including three with Salem. Cambridge has also competed in seven Class D state championship games, winning three of them in 1999, 2016 and 2017.In 2022, Cambridge-Salem was the Class D state runner-up following a 63-20 loss to Section IV’s Tioga. Between 2010 and 2018, Cambridge captured five sectional titles, including two with Salem.“I was shocked when I heard Cambridge-Salem was struggling with numbers,” said Section II football chairman Sean Colfer via The Times-Union. “They have been a perennial powerhouse for decades. When I coached at Onondaga (in 2003), we played against them in the state championship. My son was the quarterback. It is kind of mind-blowing.”Cambridge-Salem Football at Other LevelsThe joint release stated that Cambridge-Salem football as a whole will still have JV and modified seasons this year.As of late July, Cambridge-Salem’s JV team had 17 players committed. Luke mentioned that the goal is to add a few more players in the coming weeks.“The JV and modified teams will play full schedules, giving younger players practice and game time, which will allow the districts to rebuild a varsity team and build a stronger program for the future,” the release noted.Future of Cambridge-Salem Varsity Football To Be DeterminedIt is unclear if Cambridge-Salem will have a varsity football season in 2027, but the release stated that it is “the (school districts’) goal to have a varsity program in the future.”“Cambridge and Salem will work throughout this school year to rebuild the football program to increase interest and participation at all levels,” the release added.Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow