Texas Football

By Travis Stewart/TexasFootball.com

• 5A Standings
• 5A Top 25
• Preseason ranked teams still ranked: 19 of 25 (Out: No. 6 Odessa Permian, No. 13 Smithson Valley, No. 17 Pearland, No. 18 Arlington, No. 21 Klein Oak, No. 22 Converse Wagner)
• Unranked teams now in Top 25: 6 teams (No. 12 Tyler John Tyler, No. 20 Mesquite Horn, No. 21 Arlington Bowie, No. 22 Coppell, No. 23 Cy Creek, No. 24 Abilene)
• The undefeateds: 24 teams (Dallas Skyline, 5-0; RR Stony Point, 5-0; Cedar Hill, 5-0; Abilene, 5-0; The Woodlands, 5-0; FB Hightower; 5-0; Tyler John Tyler, 5-0; SA Clark, 6-0; Coppell, 5-0; Harlingen, 5-0; Copperas Cove, 5-0; Cypress Creek, 5-0; Mesquite Horn, 5-0; Katy Cinco Ranch, 5-0; EP Coronado, 6-0; SA Southwest, 4-0; EP El Dorado, 6-0; Mission Sharyland, 5-0; Belton, 5-0; Humble Atascocita, 6-0; PSJA North, 5-0; Klein Collins, 5-0; Bastrop, 4-0; FB Elkins, 6-0)
• Highest risers: (These teams have made the highest climb in the Pigskin Prep, a ranking service used by TexasFootball.com): No. 16 Coppell (opened at 118), No. 62 Plano East (opened at 174), No. 31 Mesquite Horn (opened at 157), No. 87 North Mesquite (opened at 201), No. 85 Bastrop (opened at 196)
• Lowest droppers: (These teams have dropped the farthest in the Pigskin Prep): No. 181 Mansfield (opened at 42), No. 229 Justin Northwest (opened at 103), No. 168 SA Warren (opened at 31), No. 200 Humble (opened at 86), No. 166 Clear Brook (opened at 43)

DIVISION I:
Region I final: Euless Trinity over Odessa
Region II final: Dallas Skyline over The Woodlands
Region III final: GP North Shore over Pearland
Region IV final: SA Madison over Westlake
Semifinals: Dallas Skyline over Euless Trinity; GP North Shore over SA Madison
State final: Dallas Skyline over GP North Shore
DIVISION II:
Region I final: Cedar Hill over Allen
Region II final: Copperas Cove over Tyler John Tyler
Region III final: Katy over La Porte
Region IV final: Smithson Valley over Converse Wagner
Semifinals: Cedar Hill over Copperas Cove; Katy over Smithson Valley
State final: Cedar Hill over Katy

• Region I: QB Ronnell and RB Herschel Sims, Abilene >> It would be tough to take one without the other, and while QB Ronnell has the better numbers (43-74-754-4, 8 TDs passing; 389, 6 TDs rushing), Herschel has proven to be every bit the game breaker as his cousin (and, for that matter, the old running back he shares a name with). This versatile duo gives Abilene the kind of speed that it may have been missing a year ago.
• Region II: QB Ryan Polite, Desoto >> There was a time in the offseason that DeSoto was flirting with unranked status -- only a late argument amongst the staff here broke it in at No. 23. But with Polite (1,717 yards, 16 TDs passing) leading the way, DeSoto is off to a 4-1 start with its only loss coming by three points to No. 1 Cedar Hill. The biggest argument against DeSoto in recent years has been a lack of cohesiveness; well, Polite has been the glue holding all of the Eagles' talent together in 2009.
• Region III: RB Tim Cornett, GP North Shore >> Some may argue that Cornett should be excluded after he started the year so slowly, but that's actually my rationale for selecting him -- as Cornett has gone, so has North Shore. In the season-opening loss to Katy, Cornett split carries and finished with just 56 yards. But back-to-back huge games against La Marque and highly-ranked Southlake Carroll both resulted in Mustangs victories. He won't crack 2,000 yards in the regular season, but he darn well might get to 1,500, and that's not bad.
• Region IV: RB David Glasco, SA Wagner >> You could make a convincing argument for SA Southwest RB Trevion Johnson, but Glasco has to be the choice here. He's already at 959 yards rushing with nine scores, and when you're averaging more than seven yards per carry on 134 touches, you're doing something right. His team flopped against rival Judson, but Wagner is still going to be playoff bound. With Glasco, there's a good chance that's no longer the case.

TOP COACHING JOB: Gerald Perry, Bastrop
I got your rankings right here! Perry's Bastop crew is off to an unbeaten (4-0, 2-0 in district start), and a win this weekend against Westlake would not only stun Chaps faithful all across the Centex area, but it would give the oft-overlooked Bears their first five-win season since 2005. And if Bastrop could pull off that minor miracle, it would have a real shot at sweeping 25-5A play. And do you know the last time Bears fans saw a double-digit season? Well, they probably didn't -- it was way back in 1966, one of only three such instances in a nearly 100-year school history. Want an underdog? Bastrop was supposed to finish sixth in this district, well outside the playoff picture.

Best of ...
Region I: Joey McBride, Coppell >> Ken Plunk at Amarillo Tascosa and Irving Nimitz's Steven Hohenberger would have been good choices too, but McBride, in his first year after coming over from Frisco Liberty, is the third Cowboys coach in three years and already has a marquee win over Highland Park under his belt.
Region II: Willie Amendola, Spring DeKaney >> It was hard to go against RR Stony Point's Craig Chessher and Belton's Rodney Southern, but Amendola has his second-year program -- which failed to win a single game last year -- out to a 4-1 start, and with two district wins already under his belt, his Wildcats look playoff-bound. The win over Spring Westfield, long the district bully, was the tiebreaker for me.
Region III: Keith Knowles, FB Clements >> Coming off of a 3-5 season and lacking in experience at several keys positions, the Rangers didn't look like they were going to be this year's Cinderella. But the slipper might just fit, and Clements hasn't been off to this hot a start since 2007, when it went 13-0 en route to the regional finals. * Note: Clements lost last night to undefeated Elkins and is now 5-1.
Region IV: David Wetzel, SA Reagan >> It's not like Wetzel is some young gun turning heads across San Antonio -- he's been at Reagan since 2004 and has gotten better every year. But his rebuilding effort this season has been impressive, and after being left for dead in the preseason, his Rattlers are out to a 3-1 start in district play. That looks like playoff-caliber stuff to me.

• Harlingen (10-3 in '08; 5-0 in '09) >> Returning just nine starters this season apparently hasn't slowed Manny Gomez's Cardinals in the slightest, and the team that we picked to win district in the preseason is living up to expectations. So why are they underrated? You never know -- this could be the year that Harlingen, which has given up just 46 points all season, finally topples either Austin or San Antonio's best in the regional finals.
• EP El Dorado (6-5 in '08; 6-0 in '09) >> And, for that matter, El Paso Coronado, too. But this one is all about El Dorado, which, by the numbers, is apparently the best team in the state. The Aztecs have given up just 24 points all season long, and considering their six games in, that's saying something. Montwood (whom El Dorado faces this weekend) was last year's big stunner. Is it the Aztecs' time to shine?
• Smithson Valley (13-2 in '08; 4-2 in '09) >> This has nothing to do with last year's performance and everything to do with how this season started -- after Larry Hill's group started off the season with a disappointing loss to Converse Wagner, the offense and defense have seemingly hit their stride, and just when everyone thought the Rangers were taking a year off, Smithson Valley is sitting atop the 26-5A standings.
• Katy Cinco Ranch (11-2 in '08; 5-0 in '09)>> It sure didn't look like Cinco Ranch was going to be able to keep last year's momentum going when it started the 2009 season with just eight returning starters, but the rise of RB K.C. Nlemchi and DB Zach Velliquette (6 INTs) has the Cougars on the right path. Too bad we won't know just how good Cinco is until it tangles with Katy in the season finale ... a game it won last year, by the way.
• Cedar Park (6-5 in '08; 3-2 in '09) >> Not all 3-2 records are created equal, and Cedar Park has fallen off the radar since its early-season losses to Lake Travis and Austin Westlake, two teams you may have heard of. But there's a good chance it'll end the year at 7-3 or, if it gets lucky, 8-2. The latter would require a monumental win over Round Rock Stony Point, but hey, I'm open-minded.

• Arlington (8-5 in '08; 3-2 in '09) >> The Colts are still above .500, so obviously the wheels haven't completely fallen off, but two of Arlington's three wins have come against struggling teams, and both of its losses have been blowouts (40-14, Southlake Carroll; 38-20, Arlington Martin). Arlington was supposed to be a contender this year, but such a bad loss to a Dragon that also has a loss isn't a good sign. The Colts will probably win three of their four remaining games (Bowie looks like a loss), but after that, the playoff picture could be tough.
• Tyler Lee (7-5 in '08; 0-4 in '09) >> Sure, we give the Red Raiders a pass for loss No. 1. And probably No. 2, just because the schedule is so tough. But Nos. 3 and 4? At some point, you have to beat a contender in order to be considered one, and so far Lee has whiffed every time. I still think there's time for this team to turn it around (and so do the experts, who still have Lee in the top 50), but I think it's safe to say that I'm a little disappointed. I would've thought this group could have gotten to 1-4, at the least.
• Odessa Permian (12-1 in '08; 2-3 in '09) >> Last year, Permian was a play away from upsetting Allen and possibly storming its way into a state final. But Darren Allman's move to Westlake, paired with the loss of key seniors, has really hog-tied this group, and the Panthers' offense has been struggling mightily all year. Out of all the teams listed here, Permian is probably in the most amount of danger of missing the playoffs entirely. And for a team we thought could win a title, that's a big drop, indeed.
• Temple (5-6 in '08; 1-4 in '09) >> It just doesn't look like it's going to happen for this Temple squad, Seastrunk or no Seastrunk. Last year's playoff finish left us hungry for more, confident Temple would turn the tide with a more experienced team in 2009. But that hasn't been the case, and the Wildcats are already sitting at 0-2 in district. Copperas Cove is for sure in, and Belton probably is, too. Temple has already lost to A&M Consolidated, which means the Wildcats are in a dogfight for fourth with Bryan and Killeen Ellison. Yikes.
• SA Warren (9-3 in '08; 1-5 in '09) >> And worse yet, 1-3 in district play, which means Warren's goose is essentially cooked. One of just seven teams in 5A that have dropped more than 100 spots in the class-wide rankings, Warren has been victimized by close losses all season long: four points to Converse Judson, eight points to SA Stevens and seven points to SA Jay. At this point, Warren would have to win out, with some help, to get back in the postseason picture.