Last Call for a Playoff Spot!
Has football season started? Nope. It’s just about over. At least for the regular season, then – as coaches will tell you – Part III is just about to begin… at least for some teams. We’re now in Week 11 folks. Let that sink in for a minute.
Just in case you haven’t been paying attention class, the regular season of Texas High School Football is coming to a close this coming Friday night, Nov. 7 (And for others who play Thursday and/or Saturday). Several districts are still undecided in overall playoff seeds, while others will be determining who is going to be the district champion.
Taking a quick gander, in District 11-3A, Division I, Franklin is currently in the No. 1 seed spot, followed by Little River Academy No. 2, Troy at No. 3, and three teams tied for the fourth and final seed – Rockdale, Cameron Yoe, and McGregor.
In District 13-2A DI, the No. 1 seed will be decided in a showdown of district unbeatens, the Crawford Pirates and the Rosebud-Lott Cougars. Both teams have identical 8-1 season records, and 4-0 district records. One of these two teams will be the No. 2 seed, while seeds three and four will be decided between Moody and Marlin.
Looking at District 142A DI, Mason’s Punchers are the current No. 1 seed. That could possibly change if they fall to the San Saba Armadillos this Friday night. If Thorndale beats Holland, and San Saba beats Mason, that will throw this district into a three-way tie for first place. The fourth seed will belong to either Johnson City or Harper, depending on which team defeats whom as they face-off against each other.
District 13-2A DII seems – at the moment – decided as the regular season has concluded, mainly due to the six teams left in the district after both McDade and Snook decided weeks ago to fold and cancel the remainder of their games. At the “moment,” Granger is the No. 1 seed, followed by Iola in the No. 2 spot, Burton follows at No. 3, and Somerville is in at No. 4.
Barring an upset, top ranked Bremond should be the No. 1 seed. Chilton should be the No. 2 seed, and either Goldthwaite or Mart – depending on which team beats the other – should be either the No. 3 or No. 4 seed. Unless, the Frost Polar Bears put a freeze on everything. Hey, it’s Texas High School Football, and anything is possible.
In Six-Man, District 161A, it looks like the top two seeds go to either Cherokee or Calvert. Both teams will face-off this Friday night in a battle for the No. 1 seed from the district.
With all of that said – give or take an error or two, maybe – let’s take a look at this week’s area games.
District 11-3A DI Little River Academy Bumblebees (3-1, 5-4) at Cameron Yoe Yoemen (13, 3-6) Yoe Field, Friday, at 7:30 p.m.
The Bumblebees have won three of their last four games, and ironically, that’s their record (3-1) in district. One game behind frontrunner, Franklin. They were in a shootout last week with McGregor, coming out with a 56-49 win. Academy’s offense is led by QB Brody Allen, who has 758 passing yards and has thrown for 12 touchdowns. Allen is also the second leading rusher on the team with 345 yards on 42 carries and two TDs. Brian Grissom leads the team in rushing with 1,909 yards, averaging 9.7 yards per carry, and has 20 rushing TDs. Senior Carter Kuhn leads the Bumblebee defense with 139 total tackles (seven for losses).
The Yoemen could be tied for the No. 4 seed, or go into the playoffs as the No. 4 seed with a win, and losses by Rockdale and McGregor. Coach Aaron Babino’s offense will need to match the Bumblebees and the D will have to step up big to slow down the Academy offensive charge. QB Jacoby Scott already has 603 yards passing, and five passing TDs, along with 146 on the ground and three touchdowns. Teammate De’marques Lopez-Pinchback has over 500 total yards and six TDs (four rushing, two receiving). Jax Aguirre and Andrew Castillo have combined for over 90 total tackles this season, and Edgar Velasquez is tops in solo tackles with 28. The Yoemen will/should play lights out this Friday night for sure, as they want to go out this season on a positive note, especially when they have the opportunity to make the playoffs.
District 13-2A DI Crawford Pirates (4-0, 8-1) at Rosebud-Lott Cougars (4-0, 8-1) Cougar Stadium, Friday at 7:30 p.m.
This game was probably at the top of the schedule, once district started. The showdown between what has turned out to be the district’s top two teams. Crawford is riding a five-game win streak, with their only loss to the Axtell Longhorns in Week 4. The last three games have been decided by 18 points or more, with their latest a 57-8 win over Bruceville-Eddy. Started the season with 14 starters returning off a team that finished 3-9 in 2024, that features WR/DB Cade Carroll, WR/DB JJ Suarez, QB/DB Cameron Parsons, and WR/DB Ryan Yocham leading the offense. So far, it’s been a big turnaround for Coach Tanner Jacobs team.
The Cougars are picked to win by four in this game. R-L is coming off another big win, beating Marlin by 25 last Friday night, 42-17. The Cougar offense has weapons. Lots of weapons. Led by junior QB Pryce Rabroker, who has thrown for 1,298 yards and 19 passing touchdowns, while rushing for 655 on 74 carries for nine TDs. Add to that, leading ground gainer, Zaylon Wells. Wells has 1,008 yards rushing and 12 touchdowns. Kaiden Johnson is the top target for Rabroker. Johnson has caught 20 passes for 414 yards and seven TDs, followed by teammate Daniel Rincon (24-287-3), and senior Bo McGinniss (11-158-3). On defense, Labron Washington is the tackle leader with 78 combined, three of those for losses, and Brayden Warner is the sack leader with four. This should be a good game folks, and I go as far as this being the game of the week. Last season, Crawford notched the win, 34-20.
Marlin Bulldogs (2-2, 2-7) at Moody Bearcats (22, 5-4) Bearcat Stadium, Friday at 7:30 p.m.
Marlin has not had the greatest of seasons this year. You might say that Jeff Rogers team is in rebuild mode… hints of 2020, in which the Bulldogs reeled off four consecutive seven plus wins seasons. Against Moody, you could also say that Marlin has had their number for the past three seasons, beating the Bearcats last year, 62-0; 2023, it was 62-7; and in 2022, 617. Question will be, can Marlin put another 60 plus points on the scoreboard and come away with a fourth straight win? That remains to be seen this Friday night. Marlin was briefly in second place in district with a 2-1 record until falling to Rosebud-Lott last Friday, 42-17. The Bulldogs haven’t put up big numbers offensively this season, but they did score 28 against Riesel, and 40 in their game with Bruceville-Eddy. Not shabby. However, Marlin’s defense has stumbled at times, but it’s a young group getting in the experience for what hopefully will be a bounce back season next year.
Moody’s two district wins have also come against Riesel and Bruceville-Eddy. The Bearcats have lost to Crawford and Rosebud-Lott. Pretty ironic that the losses are against the teams battling for the No. 1 seed, and the fact that they have wins against the same teams as Marlin has. Looking at the Bearcats offense, QB Lee Womack has thrown for 1,049 yards and nine TDs, with the run game divided between two backs, Dominic Eubanks (54-400-3) and Khirey London (68282-3). The defense is led by senior Devonte Johnson with 53 tackles, five for losses, and teammate Christian Ely jumps in with 35. Both teams have a good chance to win, but it’ll come down to who really wants this game the most.
District 14-2A DI Thorndale Bulldogs (3-1, 6-3) at Holland Hornets (0-4, 1-8) Hornet Field, Friday at 7 p.m.
The Bulldogs should, I say should… I’m pretty sure I said SHOULD, win this game handily. There’s quite a bit on the line in this one. Thorndale – with a win – could wind up in a threeway tie for first in the district, IF, San Saba knocks off Mason. Then it’ll be up to the district’s tie-breaker rule to see what team ends up in what position for the playoffs. Either/or, these three teams will be in the playoffs. Moving to this Friday night’s game, Thorndale is looking to make it two in a row over Holland, beating them last season in a close game, 18-13. So far this season, the Bulldogs have played tough, winning their last three district games with their only district loss to Mason. QB Case McDaniel leads area quarterbacks in passing with 1,301 yards and 16 touchdowns, with Will Cloud leading the receiver category with 23 catches for 544 yards and nine TDs. Hudson Thigpen is the No. 4 RB in this area with 78 carries for 633 yards and five TDs. It’s clear that this Thorndale team is capable of scoring big and putting up some nice numbers offensively.
Holland. Well, they haven’t won a game since Week 4, when they beat Florence 42-7. The Hornets did play a couple of close games after that, losing to Crawford 21-13, and Harper, 27-12. They’ve been shutout in their last two games, losing 34-0 and 51-0. Offensively, the Hornets have had a down year. Defense has been along those same lines. Top players to watch will be LB/RB Mason Chaney, WR Chance Harvey, QB/RB Hunter Mariante, and WR Eathyn Pritchard.
District 13-2A DII
It was a tough year for the Milano Eagles, but they fought hard despite multiple injuries throughout. The Eagles ended the year with a 25 record in district and 2-8 overall. Milano should improve next season as they had a lot of younger players playing at the varsity level, and picking up some valuable experience along the
way.
District 10-2A DII Chilton Pirates (5-1, 81) at Meridian Yellowjackets (1-5, 1-8) Pirate Stadium, Friday at 7 p.m.
The Pirates play in one of the toughest districts in the state, that feature the Bremond Tigers, Goldthwaite Eagles, and Mart Panthers. But Chilton also belongs in this elitist category of teams. Despite having a down year last season (3-7) and missing the playoffs for the first time in six years, this team has turned it back around to be in position for another playoff run. This Pirates have an elite group of receivers, but this team relies heavily on their run game. QB Marneko Thomas, Jr., have only 403 passing yards, but has 10 passing TDs on 23 completed passes. It’s the run game that has kept Chilton on the winning side this season, with Thomas, Jr. leading the charge with 1,066 yards rushing on 91 carries (11.7 yards per carry) and – get this – 15… yes, 15 touchdowns on the ground. What does that tally up to? Oh yeah, 25! You think that’s impressive, then check out X’Zavion Taylor’s 807 yards on the ground, and another “get this” moment… 20 TDs! Chilton averages 8.6 ypc. Meridian will have a very difficult time stopping these two guys. Get this – I feel I’ve worn that phrase out now – the Pirate defense has been on point through these nine games. They’ve given up a total of 70 points. That’s a little over 7 points per game. If the 48 given up to Bremond in their loss in Week 8, that point total would be beyond phenomenal. Did I mention that Chilton’s D has six shutout wins? Yes, six!
The Yellowjackets have averaged a little under two wins per season, at least for the past seven years. They’re on goal to meet that average this year at 1-8. Coach Jim Kerbow’s squad has a huge task this Friday night, and it will take all Jackets on deck to reverse the “plank” in their favor. Players to watch for Meridian are DL Gunnar Chandler, LB Garrett Pope, RB Dustin Padgett, and OL Bradley Perry. The Pirates won last year’s meeting, 49-- 14.
District 16-1A/Six- Man DII
Buckholts Badgers (02, 2-6) at Pawnee “Fighting” Indians (0-2, 0-6) Pawnee Field, Friday at 7:30 p.m.
The Badgers have played hard throughout the season, but injuries sidelined a few players and Coach Robert Smith had to dig deep to replace them. However, the Badgers have a chance this Friday to pick up a district win, against a team that has only scored 18 points in their six games this season. This will be a chance for Coach Smith to utilize his young talent in a game that they should win. I’m sure Coach Smith would like to see his team go out on a positive spin, and begin preparations for next year. The Badgers have gotten great play at times from freshman Blade Duarte (247 yards passing, six TDs, 101 yards rushing, four TDs through their game against Prairie Lea), senior Joseph Hansen-Blum (244 yards passing, three TDs), and sophomore Miguel Hernandez (257 yards rushing, two TDs).
Pawnee has played when they can this season, it seems like. So far, the Indians have played only six games. This coming Friday will make seven. Why such a short season schedule? It can be related to the Indians playing with only six players last year. That reason overlapped into this year, but at least the team has added additional players. According to – and oh, by the way, those same six players are back this year – DCTF Coach Danny Gonzalez has a total of nine players. Be sure to check out TE/DL Austin Hernandez, QB/DB Scott Oberheide, WR/DB Joaquin Ureste, and RB/LB Branden Glover. Last season, Buckholts shutout Pawnee in a mercy rule game, 50-0.