CUBA – During the Cuba R-2 and Steelville R-3 district school board meetings on Nov. 20, both boards voted in favor of uniting Cuba and Steelville High School student athletes for football starting in the 2026 fall season.

Steelville High School students will play for Cuba High School, which some have already dubbed the ‘Wildcards’ after combining Wildcats and Cardinals. This would be the first time Steelville students had the opportunity to play football. 

Cuba’s football team is coming off a season in which they had 24 players to start the season, and saw the number dwindle as the season went on due to injuries. This led to the cancellation of the homecoming football game due to safety concerns from R-2 district superintendent Scott Davidson.

“As our season unfolded, we saw that there’s definitely a need to have a co-opping opportunity with another school to be able to have a competitive football program,” Davidson said. 

Davidson updated the board on numbers of Cuba’s student body next year, which will affect participation in sports. With 112 students graduating, 35 students learning virtually, 46 students in RTI and just 68 current eighth graders, Cuba is looking at a student body of 262 students to start next year. 

“I think people think that we have 400 or 500 students in the building, and that’s just not true,” Davidson said. “So this is just a good opportunity to co-op with Steelville. We were in talks with Steelville and so they sent out some surveys to see what their interest was.”

Davidson reported that Steelville has nine eighth graders, 10 freshmen, two sophomores, and one junior who are interested in football. Barring the number decreasing, that would add 21 student athletes to Cuba’s football team, which would potentially increase Cuba’s numbers to over 40 players. Cuba cancelled this year’s JV season due to a lack of players, and this move could make a JV season possible next year. 

This would move Cuba’s football team from a Class 2 team to a Class 3 team. Cuba would still be a part of the Quad County Conference along with St. Vincent, Perryville, Jefferson, Grandview, Herculaneum and Bayless with Hancock — many of which are Class 4 schools. Cuba is coming off a season in which their closest away game was in Hermann — over an hour away from campus. 

Cuba athletic director Ryan Okenfuss did say that Cuba is scheduled to play smaller schools closer in proximity next season such as St. James, while dropping games against St. Pius X and Clever. Okenfuss added that Cuba would play schools like Owensville and Salem in the future. Cuba’s non-conference opponents next season will be St. James, Linn and Pleasant Hope.  

Steelville will provide one assistant coach and their district (R-3) would pay for the coach’s stipend. Each student would pay $225 each season for equipment and uniform refreshes and upgrades. Steelville would also be responsible for transportation of their athletes to and from Cuba. The co-op is currently in place for one season, but Davidson said that the board would reevaluate the situation after the season and could vote for a four-year approval of the co-op. 

Okenfuss said that he and head football coach Kaleb Cason have already begun discussing how they could make Steelville’s student athletes feel welcome in Cuba.

“We’ve talked about changing to Crawford County Wildcats in the locker room,” Okenfuss said. “We’ve also discussed adding a helmet decal of a Cardinal for those athletes. At a distance, nobody would ever know. But all those kids coming up from Steelville would know and would help them feel incorporated and integrated into the team.”

Davidson said that he’s already been in contact with the Missouri State High School Activities Association and has been approved to join the co-op. 

R-3 District Superintendent Steve Vetter said that the co-op is mutually beneficial to both schools and could increase comradery between the communities. 

“I am very grateful for to the Steelville BOE for supporting this opportunity for our students. This is a win-win for both communities,” Vetter said. “Most importantly, it ensures our students have the opportunity to plug in and be a part of a sport they love safely and competitively. We look forward to a great partnership and are very appreciative of Dr. Davidson and the Cuba BOE for allowing us to move ahead with the program.”

Both districts put out a joint press release saying, “While the athletes attend different schools during the day, they will unite as one team on the field. Both superintendents are committed to a smooth transition leading up to the Fall 2026 season. Further details regarding transportation, eligibility and logistics will be communicated to parents and students as the implementation phase begins.”