MIDDLETOWN — The standard changed quickly at Middletown High School.
Two years after Kali Jones arrived with the stated goal of restoring a championship culture, the Middies enter his third season no longer trying to prove they can compete on Ohio’s biggest stage.
They already have.
Middletown went 11-3 last season, captured the Division I, Region 2 championship and reached the state semifinals before falling 21-6 to St. Xavier. The run marked a dramatic rise from Jones’ first season, when the Middies finished 5-6.
The challenge entering 2026 is figuring out what comes next.
“What’s different about this year is, you know, having a final four run last year with some really impactful seniors that were big-time difference makers puts us into a situation this year where you have to find that identity,” Jones said. “With the new senior leadership, finding that identity is a process.”
That process comes with considerably different expectations surrounding a program that spent much of the previous decade searching for sustained success.
Jones was hired in December 2023 after leading Withrow to a 12-2 record and a regional runner-up finish. A former U.S. Marine with more than 15 years of coaching experience at the time of his hiring, Jones said from the beginning that his objective was to build a championship program at Middletown.
The progress accelerated last fall.
Middletown opened 5-0 and finished second in the Greater Miami Conference at 7-2, including a 14-6 road victory over eventual GMC champion Princeton in the regular-season finale. The Middies then beat Lebanon 31-0 and Springfield 14-0 before defeating Wayne 21-14 for the Region 2 championship.
Middletown’s defense was the backbone of that run.
The Middies allowed just 126 points in 14 games — an average of 9.0 per game — and surrendered 173.6 yards per contest, both the best marks among GMC teams. They posted four shutouts, including two in the postseason.
Replicating that production will require replacing several significant pieces.
Linebacker C.J. Bryant finished last season with 144 tackles, 25 tackles for loss and three interceptions, while defensive lineman J.D. Singletary totaled 19 sacks and 30 tackles for loss. Defensive back Jordan Vann recorded 57 tackles and three interceptions while also becoming a dangerous offensive and special-teams weapon.
Jones also pointed to Virgil Coleman among the departures from a veteran group.
“Obviously missing C.J. Bryant and Derek Singletary and Jordan Vann are some big-time losses,” Jones said. “Virgil Coleman — we had some guys that we’re missing. But we got some talent coming back. I mean big-time talent coming back.”
Senior defensive lineman Jaiden Davis gives Middletown a proven presence up front.
The Northwestern commit recorded 50 tackles, 8.5 sacks and 10.5 tackles for loss over 14 games last season. The 6-foot-4, roughly 255-pound lineman is expected to anchor a defensive front Jones still considers one of the strengths of the team.
“We got one guy from our defensive line missing with Singletary,” Jones said. “That was a starter. So the other guys are back, and they’re nasty, athletic, and we got some young guys coming up there pretty good as well.”
Davis said the returning Middies haven’t forgotten how close they came to playing for a state championship.
The playoff run provided proof of what the program could accomplish. It also gave the returning players a reference point for what will be required to get there again.
“With Middletown having a rocky past before Coach Jones joined the program, it was definitely a surreal feeling,” Davis said. “We didn’t get to our finalized goal, but we made it so far, and I feel like that’s motivation for this year.”
Middletown’s offense will have a different look, too.
The Middies produced 4,043 yards of offense last season — 2,224 passing and 1,819 rushing. Joseph Ward threw for 1,323 yards and eight touchdowns, while Jastin Bourne added 687 passing yards and five scores.
Jones said a quarterback competition remains underway, but he expects an offense entering its third season in the system to have greater flexibility than previous versions.
“Offensively, this year, I think we’ll be able to open it up a little more because our core group has been in the system for three years now,” Jones said. “A dynamic quarterback competition going on right now. Plenty of weapons at receiver where we can really get into a lot of different things formation-wise.”
The Middies also have players capable of moving between receiver and running back, something Jones hopes will allow Middletown to create matchup problems through formations and personnel groupings.
“We’re able to attack people from some different perspectives,” Jones said. “We got receivers that can play a little running back. We got a tailback, young tailback that’s pretty good. And so I think putting us in multiple formations, in multiple situations, allows us to be dangerous.”
There won’t be much time for Middletown to ease into its new identity.
The Middies open Aug. 21 at Elder’s historic Pit before hosting Princeton on Aug. 28 at Barnitz Stadium.
“We preach 16 weeks here,” Jones said. “That’s the mission, is prepare for 16 weeks. It’s not easy being in the GMC. It’s not easy opening up at Elder. It’s not easy, but that’s the road that you have to go down.”
The opener should provide an immediate measuring stick. Elder went 12-0 before reaching the Division I, Region 4 championship game last season, and Middletown will walk into one of the state’s most demanding road environments.
Jones wouldn’t have it any other way.
“You can’t duplicate that anywhere else,” he said. “I’d rather not be at Paul Brown. I’d rather be at the Pit. We’re going to see what we’re made of week one and week two.”
Davis said the Middies have spent the offseason developing chemistry despite changes to the roster. Practices have been physical, sometimes confrontational, but he views that as part of a group learning how to replace the leadership that carried Middletown through last November.
“Players butt heads and make up, and the team chemistry is just insane this year,” Davis said. “You wouldn’t think that with having so many guys from different areas coming together, but the chemistry that’s been created here this year is just amazing.
“They’re going to see that chemistry. They’re going to see that aggression. I think they’re going to see that physicality. They’re going to see that yearning to win. They’re going to see that hate to lose. They’re going to see championship effort. They’re going to see a championship team.”
