The 2026 high school football season in the Coachella Valley begins Friday. If you're wondering what to expect, we have you covered.
There are several storylines marking the start of the new season. We've circled six of them that we're following closely.
Who will be the teams to watch? The players? The coaches? We'll get to that.
These are the storylines that we believe will shape the 2026 season. Let's get into it.
James Dockery at Indio
Longtime Xavier Prep head coach James Dockery is now coaching at Indio High School, a team that has made the CIF-SS playoffs just once since 2001. What makes this a big storyline is that Dockery was quite successful at Xavier Prep, leading the school to its first league title, it's first playoff appearance, its first playoff win and
its first trip to a CIF-SS semifinal.
Dockery brought with him to Indio most of his coaching staff from Xavier Prep. So, the staff is larger than a year ago, the roster is deeper and the talent seems to be decent, from what we've seen at practice.
But how good could Indio actually be this season? Maybe the school's first league title since 1995 is in play.
"I'm excited to be a Rajah," Dockery said. "It took me a little time to see myself in the blue, white and red when I looked in the mirror, but it's been refreshing."
Who will rise to the top in the new DVL?
Coachella Valley won the Desert Valley League last year, and Yucca Valley finished second and also made a nice little playoff run. This year, Sun Valley League champion Banning enters the league with Desert Hot Springs, another playoff team from the SVL.
So, which of those four playoff teams will win the newly stacked league? "Stacked" may be pushing it a bit, but this league should be incredibly competitive. Coachella Valley returns some key players from a team that reached a CIF Southern Section semifinal last year; Yucca Valley has one of the elite players in the valley in receiver Aiden Pope; Banning returns the top quarterback/receiver combo in the area and Desert Hot Springs may actually be the most talented of the four teams, top-to-bottom.
This league is going to be so fun to watch. Get your popcorn ready and pay close attention to how these teams look early in the season.
Can Palm Desert three-peat?
The Aztecs won a share of the Desert Empire League title each of the last two seasons. In 2024, Palm Desert shared it with Rancho Mirage. Last year, the Aztecs shared it with Palm Springs.
But Palm Desert lost a ton of talent from last year's CIF-SS semifinal squad, including star receiver Trey Boulton. Gone is record-breaking quarterback AJ River, the league's co-offensive player of the year. Also gone is record-breaking receiver Jonah Toland and record-breaking edge rusher Jackson Bishop. Do the Aztecs have enough returning to repeat?
It's a question that seems to be on a lot of minds when we talk to players and coaches.
That La Quinta offense
This may surprise some people, but the Blackhawks might have the offense to win the DEL this season. They may, once again, have one of the best offensive lines in the valley, a potential superstar workhorse running back in Colton LaCrone and a better, deeper group of receivers than they did last season.
That creates the type of balance that could be scary for opponents.
Two question marks remain: Can the Blackhawks stay healthy and will Mason Flores be able to adequately fill the shoes of Roman Ansley, who was a first team all league selection at quarterback last season. Those are questions we need some answers for.
Appropriate expectations for DCA
Desert Christian Academy was 10-0 during the regular season last year and many of the Conquerors' key players have returned, including two-way star Judah Garrison. The offensive line also looks solid and there's just a lot to like about this year's squad.
But DCA has moved into a tougher league and its non-league schedule is more challenging this year. So, that makes 10-0 a daunting challenge.
Still, the Conquerors were unable to make a playoff run last season and with the tougher schedule and key pieces back there's a reason to believe that this year could be different.
Xavier Prep's new quarterback
Samuel Mourhess, who looks every bit the part of a major college quarterback, transferred from Desert Chapel after throwing for 48 touchdown passes over the last two years. At Xavier Prep, he has a head coach who knows and runs a similar version of the run-and-shoot offense that he ran at Desert Chapel.
The one wrinkle is that Mourhess, who stands 6-foot-4, may have to sit out games before he's eligible. That part has yet to be fully worked out.
Once Mourhess is able to play, it should be must-watch with some of the playmakers he'll have around him.
Andrew John covers sports and recreation in the Coachella Valley for The Desert Sun. Email him at andrew.john@desertsun.com. Find him on Instagram at @desertwriter.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Six key storylines heading into the 2026 high school football season
