Highly-touted quarterback Colton Nussmeier will not suit up for Denton Ryan High School when the 2026 high school football season comes around.
The four-star quarterback transferred from Marcus High School to Denton Ryan following his junior year, but a district executive committee meeting at the C.H. Collins Complex Tuesday ended with the decision that Nussmeier had transferred for athletic purposes, according to a report from the Dallas Morning News.
According to the DMN, the committee vote was tied 3-3 and was sent to the previous athletic participation form (PAPF), which stated that Nussmeier moved for athletic purposes, therefore ruling him ineligible to play varsity football this fall.
Nussmeier’s 2025 season was cut short due to an injury, and he watched from the sidelines as the Marauders finished 5-4 and missed the playoffs.
Denton Ryan’s football program has brought home three state titles and lost in the state quarterfinals in 2025 to Aledo, which handed the Raiders their only two losses of the season.
It is an enticing program to join, however Nussmeier’s family told DMN the move to the Denton area was for family reasons and athletics had nothing to do with athletics.
According to the DMN, the family signed a lease on a house in Denton in April and are in the process of selling their previous house.
In a statement to DMN, Marcus head coach Mike Alexander said he and Nussmeier “had a disagreement,” he had no evidence or documentation against him. However, he chose to vote from what he felt was an integrity standpoint, citing the proximity of the relocation.
Football runs in the Nussmeier family, as Colton’s older bother, Garrett, recently finished his collegiate career as LSU’s starting quarterback and was drafted why the Kansas City Chiefs in the seventh round of the 2026 NFL draft.
Their father, Doug Nussmeier, is in his first season as the offensive coordinator for the New Orleans Saints of the NFL.
Colton Nussmeier is one of two top quarterbacks to change schools in the Denton County area.
Argyle High School recently picked up Prosper Walnut Grove transfer Hayes Hackney after Maguire Gasperson graduated and will soon suit up for the University of Texas at San Antonio.
While Colton Nussmeier was ruled ineligible, Hackney was approved to suit up for Argyle.
According to the DMN, Colton Nussmeier can appeal to the UIL’s state executive committee, but DEC rulings are rarely overturned since UIL does not allow students to transfer for athletic purposes.
