As the lights shut off at Navy Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, the players packed their bags which marked DeMatha football’s 77th season and their 26th conference championship, a league record. Their season ended with a 20-13 nail-biter win over Gonzaga in the WCAC Championship game. As the Stags carry over a 21-game winning streak, one game shy of the school record, to next season, it is time to preview DeMatha’s chances for a third consecutive Washington Catholic Athletic Conference championship in 2026.
For Head Coach Bill McGregor, this capped his 36th season as head coach and 46th season as a coach for the Stags. The title game against the Purple Eagles was Coach McGregor’s 390th career game; his record through those games is 334-53-3, a winning percentage of .860 that ranks No.1 in Maryland high school football history. Coach’s record in the league final is 17-8 (two of his league crowns were determined by regular season record).
McGregor’s first league crown came in 1982 with a triumph over Gonzaga, 21-14. Though he says that game stood out to him, winning in 2025 feels different. “What really makes this team a little bit special is it was an undefeated football team and those teams are really hard to come by,” McGregor said.
Some of DeMatha’s key players will not wear the jersey again, including wide receivers Lavar Keys and Joshua Parker, offensive guard Zion Smith, running back Elijah Lee, defensive backs Darrel Carrey and Thomas Berry II, and middle linebacker Kai Jones.
Jones was an agile middle linebacker for the Stags named to the All-WCAC First Team as a defensive lineman. Jones was the ‘quarterback of the defense’ and was able to call out plays.
DeMatha had two excellent safeties with Berry and Carey both providing a strong presence in the defensive backfield. Berry had 73 tackles, two fumble recoveries, and allowed zero touchdowns throughout the season. He joins Jones on the league’s First Team.
Carey recently decommitted from Penn State and is now signed to Maryland. Berry is currently not committed but holds an offer from Delaware State.
Thanks in large part to their efforts, the Stags’ defense stood with some of the best in the country. They allowed less than 100 points the whole year, giving up just 8.9 points per game on average. The defense had three shutouts in only 11 games. When the defense was at its best, they were able to stop all facets of the game, eliminating both the run and the pass. When the offense struggled, it was always the defense picking up the slack. With some key players going on to college, it is going to be interesting to see how this defense reloads.
When asked how you replace such stalwarts on the defense side, McGregor says the team is familiar with these situations. “It’s the same thing every year at DeMatha. It’s always the next guy up.”
For the defense, there are still some players with very bright futures like juniors James Pace, Knyair Crumb, and Devan Lassiter Jr., all of whom made the All-WCAC First Team this fall.
Pace is a defensive end with a lot of prowess. At 6-2 and 225 pounds, he is able to overpower guys on the line. Pace was the league’s defensive player of the year and holds more than 22 offers, among them powerhouses like Georgia, Alabama, and Ohio State.
Crumb is a high impact defensive back who thrives in the open field with great tackling ability. In 2025, he made 42 tackles, had two fumble recoveries, and seven interceptions, two of which he returned for touchdowns. Crumb holds offers from Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh, and Maryland to name just a few.
With players like them, it’s no wonder Coach McGregor has high hopes for the defense despite the losses they’ll suffer from this year’s seniors graduating. “Truthfully, we could come out tomorrow and have probably nine, ten guys who could step up and make plays.”
DeMatha’s reviving corps is going to be harder to replace with Keys and Parker both graduating. Keys had over 1,300 yards and 14 touchdowns on the season while Parker added 630 yards and 6 touchdowns. Both were named to the All-WCAC First Team at the receiver position.
Keys recently joined Carey in decommitting from Penn State; he is now signed to Indiana University. Parker has not yet committed but holds offers from Virginia Tech, UT-San Antonio, and Ohio to name a few.
Offensive Guard Zion Smith provided for the Stags a dominant presence on the offensive line. Another All-WCAC first teamer, Smith is signed to The University of North Carolina.
Lastly, Elijah Lee showed off explosive running ability throughout the season, running for more than 1,000 yards and finding the end zone 15 times. Lee holds offers from Illinois and Temple, to name a few, and joined his many teammates on the All-WCAC First Team this fall.
“We just trust the younger players to pick up where the seniors left off,” offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Luke Casey said of their departure. “We will continue to develop and see who works hard this offseason to put themselves in a position to produce for us next season.”
For the offense, the returning players that are key for next year are junior quarterback Tristan Sabb, sophomore wideout Chace Irvin, sophomore running back Cameron Wilford, and junior lineman Trenton Small.
Sabb had a great season after transferring from St. Frances Academy. He threw for more than 2,000 yards and had 25 all-purpose touchdowns including a tush push with one minute left to give the Stags the win against the Eagles the Sunday before Thanksgiving. Sabb was named the best quarterback in the WCAC and WTOP Touchdown Club Player of the Week. He has offers from Boston College and Charlotte, to name a few.
“Tristan Sabb is back so right away we’re in good shape,” says McGregor, who has a lot of confidence in his quarterback.
Irvin was DeMatha’s No.3 wide receiver and was on the field more than any other receiving outside of Keys and Parker. Despite being in their shadows throughout the season, he received honorable mention recognition from the WCAC and with two years left in high school he already holds offers from Virginia Tech, Marshall, and Southern Miss.
Wilford saw limited action as the running back behind Lee. He has a bright future and is seen as the possible starting running back next year. Cam scored two touchdowns and his best statistical game came against Gonzaga in the regular season when he had 121 yards. Wilford showed incredible toughness when he got turf toe and opted to postpone surgery until after the championship game so he could play. He holds offers from Virginia Tech and Colorado.
The offensive line corps looks bright with Jared Taylor, Trenton Small and Kevin Nesbitt. Taylor and Small saw consistent action in the trenches alongside senior offensive linemen Cameron Black, Zion Smith, and Falou Gueye. Taylor played most of the season, and though he battled injuries towards the end he still managed to allow zero sacks all season. He holds offers from Maryland and Hampton, among others. Small was named First Team All-WCAC as a utility player and has an offer from Syracuse. He joined Taylor in allowing zero sacks all season. Kevin Nesbitt was named to the WCAC’s Second Team offensive line and holds an offer from Temple.
“We have four offensive linemen coming back so we should be ok there,” McGregor said.
In 2025, the Stags offense began the year with a great start. They struggled in the first half of their conference schedule but were able to pick it up in the final two games of the regular season against St. John’s and Gonzaga. They carried that momentum through the postseason. At the end of the day, the offense picked it up when it matters most. “I’m proud of how this team etched their own mark in DeMatha history,” Coach Casey said. “They dealt with adversity all season long and were able to go 1-0 every week no matter the circumstances.”
When the offense was successful, they were really good at running the ball down hill, which opened up the pass game, as well. But when the run game wasn’t working, it usually slowed down the rest of the offense. When the offense slowed, they often lost discipline and would either jump offside or try to hold somebody to give a struggling offense more time for the play to develop. Next year it is going to be interesting to see some bright faces on the offense line and at the wide receiver position, alongside a more experienced Tristan Sabb, and how they’ll be able to attend to these problems and fix them.
“The offense saw great teams early in the season that prepared them for conference play and playoffs. It’s always a challenge in the WCAC because of how talented the defensive players historically are,” Casey reflected. “This group and these seniors were able to prove they are the best offense in the WCAC.”
For the special teams department, key subtractions are senior kicker and punter Robert Reeser and long snapper Declan Foran. Reeser was named the first team kicker in the WCAC. Foran was a steady long snapper all season and it is a real loss to lose two of our operation specialists.
Reeser’s longest punt of the season was 62 yards, his longest kickoff was 72 yards, and his longest made field goal was 45 yards. Robert holds an offer from Long Island University.
The special teams department was great on kickoffs and punts, but when they struggled it was in the kicking game. During the first two games of WCAC play, Reeser either allowed a block or fumbled the snap on three kick attempts in a row. In the championship game, he went 2-for-4, missing a kick and having another blocked. Reeser showed great composure and was able to bounce back and hit the extra point that ultimately gave DeMatha the win.
For a department that had a lot of blocked kicks and fumbled snaps, it is going to be interesting to see how they will change that with a new kicker and long snapper.
The Stags ended the season the No. 10 team in the nation by Sports Illustrated, 2nd in Maryland by MaxPreps, and ended the season the No. 1 team in the DMV by The Washington Post. DeMatha was preseason No. 1 by The Post and stayed there the whole season.
The Stags hope that a better equipped Tristan Sabb with a mixture of veterans and newcomers getting their first real play can propel this team to a three peat as WCAC champions in 2026. “Our goal every year is to win the WCAC championship… so we’re going to work really hard to make that happen,” McGregor said.
