West Virginia high school football team cancels 2025 season

For the second time in two weeks, a high school football program out of the state of West Virginia will be cancelling its 2025 season.

According to a report by 13 News WOWK, Van (W. Va.) head coach Mark Agosti confirmed that the Bulldogs will not be playing this upcoming fall. Van is coming off a 2-8 record in 2024 under Agosti.

The Bulldogs become the latest West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission (WVSSAC) Class A school to cancel its football season after Madonna High School made the call on June 18.

“Due to an insufficient number of student-athletes committing to participate, we will be unable to field a football team at Madonna High School for the 2025–2026 season,” Madonna principal Jason Heckathorn said via a WTRF.com report. “Without sufficient numbers, we simply cannot ensure a safe and productive experience for our players.”

In West Virginia’s latest realigned classifications released ahead of the 2025-26 academic year, both the Blue Dons and Bulldogs were slated to be apart of the WVSSAC’s Class A, which features schools with an enrollment of 350 students or less. Van is expecting just 90 enrollees this fall and Madonna will have 80.

The Mountain State isn’t the only one seeing player participation issues ahead of the 2025 campaign as Florida has also seen a football program decide to temporarily shut down its team.

Tallahassee St. John Paul II back in mid-June decided to shutdown its football program for the 2025 season, also citing a lack of players. The Panthers had a successful campaign in 2024, winning a district championship and clinching a berth in Florida’s Class 1A postseason last fall.