Kickoff is just around the corner, in less than a month, for the 2026 season on the gridiron for the Dodge City football team, as the Conquistadors look for a bounce-back season. The Conqs enter year three under Head Coach Ryan Lusby and have been picked to finish fifth in the preseason KJCCC poll. 

The Conqs, after a solid year one under Coach Lusby which saw the team finish 6-4, finish fourth in the KJCCC and be ranked #15 in the final NJCAA poll, went just 1-9 during the 2025 season. Entering the 2026 season, the Conqs have a revamped roster with a few returnees from last fall, as well as several players who spent the 2026 spring with the Conqs. With overall better depth across the board on the roster and a full coaching staff, the Conqs look to challenge for a top spot in the KJCCC. 

The 2026 KJCCC preseason poll is as follows: 1. Hutchinson, 2. Coffeyville, 3. Garden City, 4. Butler, 5. Dodge City, 6. Independence, and 7. Highland. 

The 2026 schedule is stacked again for the Conqs with the competition in the KJCCC, alongside the three games against the Iowa schools, the addition of a matchup with Northeastern Oklahoma A&M, and another non-conference tilt against New Mexico Military Institute. 

The Conqs will open as one of the first NJCAA football games of the 2026 season on Thursday, August 20^th in Roswell, New Mexico when they take on New Mexico Military Institute that evening. Jayhawk Conference play opens on Saturday, September 5^th as the Conqs will host rival Garden City in a night game at Memorial Stadium in Dodge City at 7:00 pm. In game three of the season, the Conqs hit the road for a matchup against the defending NJCAA DI National Champions, Iowa Western in Council Bluffs, Iowa on September 12^th. Conqs will wrap up September at home against Independence and Iowa Central on the 19^th and 26^th, respectively. 

October will feature five games for the Conqs, starting with the addition of NEO to the schedule on the 3^rd as the Conqs will play them on the road in Miami, Oklahoma. On October 10^th, the Conqs will take on Ellsworth at home, and the final four games of the season will all be KJCCC matchups, starting with a road contest against Butler on October 17^th. Conqs will host Highland on October 24^th and cap October on Halloween at the NJCAA DI national runner-ups, Hutchinson. The regular season will finish out for the Conqs on November 7^th against Coffeyville at home.