Badger remains favorite after winning outright league title in 2024.
2025 SOUTHERN LAKES CONFERENCE PREVIEWPredicted Order of Finish1. Badger (Lake Geneva)
2. Union Grove
3. Waterford
4. Burlington
5. Westosha Central (Salem)
6. Elkhorn
7. Beloit Memorial (Beloit)
8. WilmotPlayers to WatchCaiden Dessart, QB, Waterford: Dessart enters his third year as the starting quarterback for the Wolverines, earning Honorable Mention All-Conference recognition last season.
J.J. Fletcher, OL/DL, Union Grove: Fletcher is a transfer from Racine Horlick, earning First Team All-Conference recognition in the Southeast Conference last year as a sophomore.
James Ford, RB, Beloit Memorial: Ford earned First Team All-Conference recognition last season after rushing for 991 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Quintyn Martinez, RB, Union Grove: Martinez led the Broncos with 791 yards on the ground last season, scoring seven rushing touchdowns.
Matthew O'Grady, QB, Badger: O'Grady is a dynamic athlete and one of the best running quarterbacks in the state, with 1,817 yards and 29 touchdowns on the ground last year, with 427 passing yards as the league's Offensive Player of the Year.
Quinn Schultz, QB, Union Grove: Schultz was extremely efficient last season, throwing for 1,306 yards with 12 touchdowns and zero interceptions, completing 64.8% of his passes as a Second Team all-league pick.
Grant Sulik, QB, Burlington: Sulik had an excellent season, throwing for 1,302 yards and 16 touchdowns with just five interceptions a year ago.
Brock Walser, RB/DE, Badger: Walser ran for seven touchdowns, was second on the team in receiving yards, and earned First Team All-Conference as a defensive lineman.
2025 Team Previews1. Badger was the state champion in Division 2 in 2023 and followed it up with another outstanding season. The Badgers won an outright Southern Lakes Conference title, but couldn't quite figure out the Slinger Owls. They lost 35-33 in an early non-conference game, then 35-28 to the Owls in the Division 2 state semi-finals. Head coach Matt Hensler brings back 25 letterwinners from last year's group, with eight starters returning in the flexbone option offense. That includes dynamic senior quarterback Matthew O'Grady, the Southern Lakes Offensive Player of the Year, who ran for more than 1800 yards. Logan Levitt and Brock Walser also have plenty of experience in the Badgers' backfield. Up front, Ethan Barriga and Jackson Buchanan are both three-year starters and among the best offensive line duos in the state. The defensive unit is solid, with seven starters back on that side of the ball as well, including disruptive linemen Brock Walser and Luke Brown. O'Grady will spend time in the defensive backfield as well. Badger has a 22-game conference winning streak dating back to October of 2021.
2. Union Grove dropped three one-score games during the regular season, but still found a way to sneak into the playoffs despite a 3-4 conference record. The Broncos would go down to Badger in Level 1, finishing 4-6 overall. It will be a big group returning for head coach Craig McClelland. "Overall, we have a very experienced team with a combined 50 players who are juniors or seniors," he said. "I feel this is our most balanced team across the board since 2021. We will lean on that experience throughout the year. Slow starts to games killed us last year, as we found ourselves battling back into games every week. This is something we are looking to vastly improve on in 2025." Eight starters are coming back, including junior quarterback Quinn Schultz, plus leading rusher Quintyn Martinez. The lineman group is solid, and will get a big addition with the transfer of J.J. Fletcher, who comes over from Racine Horlick after earning First Team All-Conference in the Southeast a year ago.
3. Waterford lost four consecutive games to open the 2024 season, but rebounded nicely to win six straight, including a Level 1 victory over Stoughton. They'd fall to Mount Horeb/Barneveld in Level 2, finishing 6-5 overall. Second-year coach Brent Thoen has 28 letterwinners coming back this season, with seven starters returning on offense and five on defense. "We return a three-year varsity quarterback and four offensive linemen," said Thoen. "We do have to replace the entire defensive line, though the back half of the defense should be a strength." Caiden Dessart has thrown for more than 2200 yards and 18 touchdowns in his career, showing excellent improvement year-over-year.
4. Burlington came out of the gates hot, winning five straight. However, the Demons would drop four of the last five, including a Level 1 playoff loss to Racine Horlick. The Demons have an excellent building block coming back in senior Grant Sulik, who stepped in at quarterback with an excellent junior campaign that saw him throw for 1,302 yards and 16 touchdowns last season. His favorite target from last year, senior Jackson Bebow, is also back for the Demons.
5. Westosha Central struggled down the stretch last year, dropping four straight games, including a Level 1 playoff exit to Milton. The Falcons finished 4-6 overall and 3-4 in conference play. The team has to replace versatile star Landon Taylor, who ran for more than 1200 yards and was one of the best linebackers in the state. Despite that, there's a good group of talent coming back, including six starters on offense and nine on defense. "We return Mason Juga, a senior starting quarterback who grew tremendously over the off-season and will help the offensive consistency both in the air and on the ground," said head coach Jason Koeppel. Kaden Kranz was the team's second-leading rusher and returns this fall. Carter Klementzos will be a weapon for the Falcons as a kicker and punter, able to influence the game on special teams.
6. Elkhorn was able to get some things going late in the year, winning the final two games of the season to sneak into the playoffs. The Elks kept the momentum going, upsetting Monroe in the first playoff game before going out to Milton. It was the first playoff victory for the program since 2004. There are five starters returning on offense and four on defense for the Elks, who should be strong up front on both sides of the ball. "It should be incredibly competitive within the conference and should have a chance to win all conference games," said head coach Todd Ghilani.
7. Beloit Memorial scored three impressive wins to open the season, but would get just one more victory the rest of the way, finishing 3-6 and out of the playoffs. Head coach Bradley Dement, a 1998 graduate of the school, brings back 30 letterwinners this season, including six starters on offense and defense. "We have great skill players and experience at the offensive and defensive line positions," said Dement. James Ford is one of the top running backs in the league, going for 991 yards and 10 touchdowns last season as a First Team All-Conference pick.
8. Wilmot won the first game of the year against Kenosha Bradford, then defeated Burlington in the closing game of the season, but unfortunately, there were no wins in between, as the Panthers finished 2-7 overall. Wilmot relied heavily on Brock Kibler last season, as he not only was the team's top passer, but also led the Panthers in rushing as well. With his graduation, there's a big hole to fill on the offensive side of the ball.
