The 2026 PSAL football season hasn’t kicked off yet, but one program in Brooklyn is already giving people plenty to talk about.
Eagle Academy for Young Men II may have assembled one of the most intriguing rosters in New York City.
After finishing 8–4 last season and reaching the PSAL 4A playoffs, Eagle enters 2026 with a combination of returning talent, college prospects, impact transfers and a quarterback competition that could make the Eagles one of the deepest teams in the city.
The question heading into the season is simple:
Is Eagle Academy Brooklyn the favorite to win the 2026–27 PSAL 4A championship?
It may be too early to officially give them that title, especially with traditional PSAL powers such as Tottenville, Curtis and Erasmus Hall still standing in the way.
But on paper, Eagle Academy has built a roster capable of making a serious championship run.
A TEAM THAT WAS ALREADY CLOSE
Eagle Academy isn’t starting from the bottom.
The Eagles finished last season 8–4 overall and 6–2 in league play.
Their season eventually ended with an 18–24 playoff loss to Curtis.
Eagle also showed throughout the season that it could overwhelm opponents offensively.
The Eagles defeated Fort Hamilton 40–0, Brooklyn Tech 59–6, Canarsie 54–0, South Shore 40–0 and Wagner 42–6.
Now a large part of the young talent from that roster returns with another year of development.
And Eagle has added even more talent around them.
THE RETURNERS
The Eagles’ championship expectations begin with a strong group of returning playmakers.
Josiah Brown returns as one of Eagle’s most versatile athletes. The Class of 2027 prospect is listed around 5-foot-11 and 180 pounds and can contribute on both sides of the football as a defensive back and receiver.
Brown already showed his big-play ability last season. In Eagle’s 40–0 victory over Fort Hamilton, he caught two touchdown passes.
Then there is Beyty Diouf, one of the most important pieces of Eagle’s defense.
The 6-foot-2, roughly 220-pound linebacker has begun attracting legitimate Division I attention. Diouf has announced scholarship offers from Wagner College and the University of Rhode Island, giving Eagle another player on its roster capable of playing football at the next level.
At receiver, keep an eye on Juvens Lindor.
At approximately 6-foot-4 and 210 pounds, Lindor gives Eagle a huge target on the outside. His combination of size, catch radius and athletic ability has already attracted attention on the recruiting circuit. At a 2026 Prep Redzone 7-on-7 event, Lindor was described as one of the top performers in attendance.
And then there is Zy’eare Schulters.
Schulters may be one of the most explosive young weapons in the entire Eagle offense. The Class of 2028 athlete brings speed, quickness and versatility as a runner and receiver.
His emergence could be a major part of Eagle’s championship hopes.
Eagle’s roster contains even more college-level talent beyond those names, giving the program something that is difficult to find in public-school football:
depth.
DIVISION I TALENT IN BROOKLYN
This isn’t simply a roster filled with good PSAL players.
Eagle has athletes receiving legitimate college attention.
Diouf has Division I offers from Rhode Island and Wagner.
The Eagles also feature highly recruited defensive prospects such as Sincere Hester and Chase Hyacinth.
Hester has emerged as one of New York’s better defensive prospects in the Class of 2027, capable of playing linebacker or along the defensive front.
Hyacinth has also generated significant Division I recruiting attention, with programs including Syracuse, Temple, UMass, Rhode Island, East Carolina, Dartmouth and Prairie View A&M appearing in his recruitment.
That type of college talent gives Eagle a defensive foundation capable of competing with virtually anyone on its PSAL schedule.
TWO BIG ADDITIONS FROM CURTIS
Perhaps the most interesting part of Eagle Academy’s offseason is the arrival of two players from Curtis:
Anthony Caratelli and Charles Simmons.
Both come from a Curtis program that knows exactly what championship-level PSAL 4A football looks like.
Caratelli played quarterback at Curtis, where the Warriors went 9–3 during the 2025 season.
Simmons brings another physical presence to the roster after playing linebacker and tight end for Curtis.
Adding players with experience inside another successful PSAL 4A program only increases the expectations surrounding Eagle.
And Caratelli’s arrival creates one of the most interesting position battles in New York City.
THE QUARTERBACK BATTLE: CARATELLI VS. KOPPELMAN
Eagle Academy enters training camp with two quarterbacks competing for the starting job: Anthony Caratelli and Martin Koppelman.
Caratelli brings his experience from Curtis.
But Koppelman isn’t giving up the position without a fight.
The Class of 2027 quarterback/kicker stands approximately 6 feet tall and is coming off a season in which his recruiting profile credits him with 1,360 passing yards, 17 touchdown passes and a 66 percent completion rate.
Koppelman already has experience running Eagle’s offense.
During Eagle’s 40–0 victory over Fort Hamilton last season, Koppelman and then-senior Aaron Smith combined to throw six touchdown passes.
Now the competition belongs to Caratelli and Koppelman.
Whoever wins the job will have something most quarterbacks would love to have:
weapons everywhere.
Brown.
Lindor.
Schulters.
A talented backfield.
And a defense capable of giving the offense extra possessions.
The quarterback battle could ultimately determine just how high Eagle Academy’s ceiling goes.
WHY EAGLE SHOULD BE IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP CONVERSATION
There is still football to be played before anyone can crown a champion.
Tottenville remains one of the standards of PSAL football.
Curtis eliminated Eagle last season.
Erasmus Hall beat Eagle 52–32 during the regular season.
Those programs aren’t disappearing.
But Eagle Academy may be better equipped to challenge them than it has ever been.
The Eagles have returning starters.
They have size.
They have speed.
They have Division I prospects.
They have experienced transfers.
They have two quarterbacks battling for the offense.
And most importantly, they have the experience of getting to the playoffs and discovering exactly what separated them from the teams at the top.
Last season, Eagle Academy was trying to prove it belonged among PSAL 4A’s elite.
This season could be about something completely different.
Winning it.
So, is Eagle Academy Brooklyn officially the favorite to win the 2026 PSAL 4A championship?
Maybe that title still has to be earned.
But when the season begins, there should be no question about this:
The road to the PSAL 4A championship may have to go through Brooklyn—and Eagle Academy has the talent to make sure it stays there.