It will be a new-look Eisenhower football team when the Knights take to the road to face off with the Reynolds Raiders tonight.

With a nod to a new beginning, Eisenhower head football coach Jim Penley added a touch of Youngsville to the Knights’ longtime helmet decal, by adding a wing underneath the script Knights.

The Knights, who finished the 2024 season 4-7 and dropped two games to the Raiders last season including the playoffs, will open the season with a squad composed of players who played at Warren the last few years, due to Eagles not having a football program. With Youngsville High School now closed and its students assigned to Eisenhower for school and sports, it was up to Penley to merge the players from two schools into one team.

“The guys have worked extremely hard and I’m excited to see our players on the field tonight,” Penley said.

The Knights return a solid core of players from last year’s team including 6-foot-3, 190-pound senior quarterback Caleb Jakubczak, a dual threat with his arm and his feet. Jakubczak rushed for 860 yards and added 760 through the air.

The Knights are loaded at the skill positions with three-year starter Logan Penley returning at tailback. Penley rushed for 826 yards and added 13 receptions for 148 yards. The Knights will lean heavily on them to set the tone on the ground.

Senior Nolan Gesing, who had a strong second half to the 2024 season, takes over at fullback.

Top players new to the program include several who will start for the Knights, including Grayson Linkerhoff and Carson Sobkowski, who will each play on the offensive and defensive line.

The defense could be the strong side of the ball for the Knights early in the season as they return 14 players who saw significant playing time last year. Jakubczak led the way and tied the school record with eight interceptions a year ago. With Lindemuth, Linkerhoff, Sobkowski and Jacob Stuart on the line, the Knights will be hard to move in the middle of the defense.

The Knights also return all-stars in Penley, Gesing and Bryceton Coleson at the linebacker spots. The secondary for the Knights will come into the season with the most experience. Holding down spots are safety Joe Gigliotti, Jakubczak, Peyton Hammerbeck and Oliver Boozer.

The Knights will face a Reynolds team that returns all 22 starters from a team that was one of the youngest in District 10 a year ago, and is now one of the most experienced in 2025.

Jim Penley knows exactly what his team will face in Reynolds.

“They are always aggressive and play very physically upfront,” Penley said. “They have tremendous team speed and the quarterback is a nice runner who proved last year he is a threat throwing the ball as well.”

The Knights offense will face a defense according to Penley, “that always rallies to the football and is very disciplined in their assignments.”

Eisenhower will need to limit mistakes and has to be able to run the ball successfully to put themselves in position to win and Penley is excited for the opportunity.

“I am looking forward to watching our guys,” Penley added. “They have worked hard and have really meshed as a team, but until we face off with a good Reynolds team it’s a bit of a wait and see for us.”

Tonight’s game kicks off at 7 at Reynolds High School, located at 531 Reynolds Road in Greenville.