Week 8 Preview: Undefeated MG Heads to Waunakee With Conference Championship on the Line
Updated: Oct 8
Monona Grove Silver Eagles at Waunakee Warriors
Friday, October 9, 2026 — 7:00 p.m.
Waunakee High School — Badger-Large Conference
No need to add any extra hype to this one. Undefeated Monona Grove travels to Waunakee on Friday night for a matchup between two state-ranked teams that have separated themselves from the rest of the Badger-Large.
Monona Grove enters 7–0 overall and 5–0 in conference play, ranked No. 3 in the Bound Wisconsin Division 2 Coaches Poll. Waunakee is 6–1 overall and 5–0 in the Badger-Large, ranked No. 6 in Division 1.
There is also some history behind the matchup. One year ago on this same field, Monona Grove and Waunakee played into overtime before the Warriors escaped with a 14–13 win. Now they meet again, this time with the conference championship on the line.
Something Has to Give
Monona Grove and Waunakee have spent most of the conference season making things look easy.
Both are 5–0 in the Badger-Large. MG has won those games by an average of 35.4 points. Waunakee’s average margin is even larger at 39.6.
Those numbers match what both teams have looked like on the field.
Waunakee opened the season with a 24–7 loss at Muskego, then quickly turned things around. The Warriors have won six straight games and allowed only 34 total points during that stretch.
MG has been just as dominant.
The Silver Eagles’ starting defense has allowed points in only two games — 14 against La Follette and 21 against Sun Prairie East. On offense, MG’s starters have scored touchdowns on 17 of their last 18 possessions.
That has led to plenty of second halves with the starters watching from the sideline.
Friday night probably will not look like that.
D-Lo Clay and the MG Front Meet Waunakee’s Biggest Strength
Monona Grove already knows it can make Waunakee uncomfortable up front.
In last year’s 14–13 overtime game, Waunakee ran the ball 31 times for just 51 yards, an average of 1.6 yards per carry.
Senior DL/RB Deangelo “D-Lo” Clay (5'11", 245) was a huge reason why. He finished with 15 tackles, four tackles for loss and a sack.
This season, Clay has taken that disruption to another level.
Through seven games, he has 50 tackles and 22 tackles for loss, the most among Division 2 players. Against Sun Prairie West, he recorded five tackles, four TFLs and two sacks.
Waunakee wants to stay ahead of the chains and create manageable second and third downs. MG wants the opposite. The Silver Eagles want second-and-12, third-and-8 and obvious passing situations. Few defenders in Wisconsin have been better at creating those situations than Clay.
MG also has a defensive front with a mix of size, speed and different skill sets. Against Sun Prairie West, the Silver Eagles faced an offense that mostly gave up on the running game.
Waunakee will be almost the exact opposite.
Waunakee Still Runs Through the Ground Game
There is no mystery to Waunakee’s offensive identity.
The Warriors want to run the football.
Through seven games, Waunakee has 1,543 rushing yards compared with 575 passing yards. Nearly 73 percent of its documented offense has come on the ground.
Senior RB Eli Drangstveit (6'0", 207) ranks fourth in the Badger-Large with 564 rushing yards and four touchdowns. Junior RB Zander Mackenzie (6'2", 186) has added 283 yards and three scores. Senior QB Aaron Trudell (6'0", 170) has been dangerous with his legs. Trudell has rushed for 223 yards and a team-high nine touchdowns. As a passer, he is 36-for-68 for 321 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions. His 101.3 NCAA passer efficiency rating ranks eighth in the Badger-Large, while his 321 passing yards rank seventh.
When Waunakee does throw, the ball can go to several different players.
Nine Warriors have caught at least one pass this season. Senior TE Gavin Selk (6'4", 203) and senior WR Andrew Mussallem (6'0", 189) both have more than 100 receiving yards, but no Waunakee receiver has more than 160 yards through seven games.
The bigger number is 25. Of Waunakee’s 31 offensive touchdowns, 25 have come on the ground.
MG Brings a Very Different Offense
Waunakee’s defense has been outstanding, allowing only eight touchdowns through seven games.
Monona Grove brings a very different kind of challenge.
The Silver Eagles have scored 45 touchdowns and can attack a defense in several ways.
Junior QB Jaxon Zukowski (6'3", 205) enters Week 8 leading the Badger-Large with 28 total touchdowns — 14 passing and 14 rushing. He has thrown for 966 yards and rushed for 653, ranking second in the conference in both categories.
Next to him, junior RB Carson Schoenherr (6'2", 200) ranks third in the Badger-Large with 572 rushing yards and has scored seven touchdowns.
MG also has several weapons in the passing game.
Junior Nic Busalacchi enters Friday as MG’s leading receiver with 330 yards and four touchdowns. Junior WR/LB Diego Adame (6'0", 180) has 212 yards and four touchdowns, while senior WR/DB Hunter Meyer (5'11", 160) has 209 yards.
The Silver Eagles are also getting healthier.
Senior WR/DB Makai Fowler (6'0", 190) and senior RB/DB Jay Ramsey (5'8", 170) have both returned after injuries limited them for much of the season. Their return gives MG two more experienced athletes in an already deep group.
Waunakee’s Defense Can Score, Too
Waunakee’s defense has done more than keep teams out of the end zone.
It has created points of its own.
Junior DB Nolan Misfeldt (6'1", 173) intercepted three passes against Franklin and blocked a punt against Oregon last week before recovering it in the end zone for a touchdown.
Senior LB Jackson Strobel (6'1", 191) has several interceptions, including a pick-six against DeForest.
Senior LB Leiland Roessler (6'0", 184) returned an interception for a touchdown against Sun Prairie East, while senior LB Kyan Newman (6'1", 195) scored on a fumble return.
The front is experienced, too.
Senior DT Sawyer Ellis (6'0", 200), senior DE Sam Follen (6'3", 225) and junior DE Charlie Elliott (6'3", 212) are part of a defense that has consistently put opponents behind the chains.
Against Oregon last week, Waunakee led 28–0 after the first quarter and won 42–7 while allowing only 120 yards and seven first downs.
The week before that, Sun Prairie West finished with only 67 total yards in a 49–0 loss.
The 2025 Game Still Matters
Last year’s meeting is a good reminder of how small the margin can be between these teams.
Neither offense could establish the run. MG finished with 86 rushing yards. Waunakee had only 51.
The game was tied 7–7 at the end of regulation, with both defenses controlling most of the night.
In overtime, Jaxon Zukowski opened the scoring with a 25-yard touchdown pass to give MG a 13–7 lead. The extra point was blocked.
That gave Waunakee an opening.
The Warriors answered with a touchdown on fourth down, then made the extra point to win 14–13.
Several players who played major roles that night return in even bigger roles this season.
Zukowski finished the 2025 game with 177 passing yards and two touchdowns.
Clay was already a problem for Waunakee last season. Now he enters the rematch with 22 tackles for loss in seven games.
Fowler also made a major impact last year, intercepting two Waunakee passes and adding a 38-yard kickoff return.
Waunakee has plenty of returning experience, too.
Drangstveit was held to 35 yards on 14 carries last season but added a 27-yard reception. Newman had eight tackles and two tackles for loss, while Elliott, Ellis and Follen all contributed along the defensive front.
Strength Against Strength
There are big matchups all over the field. Waunakee has rushed for 1,543 yards. MG has the leading tackles-for-loss producer in Division 2 and a defense that held the Warriors to 51 rushing yards last season.
Waunakee has allowed 8 total touchdowns this year. MG has scored 45.
The Warriors can control games with Drangstveit, Mackenzie and Trudell and appear to have the size advantage along its offensive line.
MG has the statistical edge when it comes to creating negative plays.
That matchup could decide the game.
Can Waunakee use its size to move the MG front and stay ahead of the chains?
Or can MG use its speed and disruption to force the Warriors into uncomfortable down-and-distance situations?
Waunakee has not lost a conference game since 2019.
Monona Grove has not lost a game in 2026.
One year after a single extra point separated them, the Silver Eagles and Warriors return to the same field with big stakes on the line.
Win the game. Win the conference.
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