Top 10 Non-District Games in 2025: 4A & 3A
Bellville Brahmas vs Columbus Cardinals, a Bulldog Brawl between Kilgore and Carthage, plus Sealy Tigers vs Bay City Black Cats lead top non-district games in 2025.
It’s a meeting of the minds between Carthage offensive wizard Scott Surratt and Kilgore defensive strategist Clint Fuller.
Surratt won his 10th state championship last season, but come Week 1, the only thing on his mind is avenging Carthage’s only loss in 2024. Running back KJ Edwards, the Offensive MVP from the state championship game, returns after over 2,100 all-purpose yards. He’s a perfect complement for quarterback Jett Surratt, who threw for over 3,300 yards and 53 touchdowns. The defense boasts two scary edge rushers in DaQuives Beck (102 tackles, 21 tackles for loss, 5 sacks) and Carson Crawford (91 tackles, 22 tackles for loss, 9 sacks).
But Fuller has the defensive personnel to give Surratt fits. Outside linebacker LaKeyleon Graves is a two-way star with 136 tackles and 987 receiving yards. He pairs well with money backer Ja’Kalen Sheffield, a ballhawk with 131 tackles, 14 pass breakups and seven interceptions. Senior quarterback Kayson Brooks leads the offense. He passed for 3,673 yards and 43 touchdowns as a first-year starter.
Here’s a challenge: find two head coaches as ingrained in their respective communities as Celina’s Bill Elliott and Waco La Vega’s Don Hyde. Elliott has coached at Celina since 1992, while this season will be Hyde’s 22nd with the Pirates.
Elliott’s never had a quarterback like Bowe Bentley. The rising senior had 4,263 all-purpose yards and 63 touchdowns. Per Dave Campbell’s Texas Football, Bentley is the No. 1 ranked quarterback in the Class of 2026. He has a top three of Ohio State, Georgia and Oklahoma.
But Hyde’s front seven could give a reworked Celina offensive line fits this early in the season. Linebacker Caden Roland is one of the state’s most underrated defenders with 154 tackles, and JJ Johnson is a 315-pound fire hydrant transitioning to the defensive line.
This game has two of Class 4A’s most underrated recruits in Cuero’s Walker Dietze and La Vernia’s Sean Garza.
Garza earned district Offensive Player of the Year honors after leading all of 4A with 2,212 rushing yards. La Vernia’s rushing attack should again be a strength in 2025 with returning First Team All-District offensive lineman Coy Hollingsworth and H-back Peyton Stahl blocking for Garza.
Dietze hauled in 73 passes for 1,231 yards and 19 touchdowns and could be in for a bigger year if quarterback Jaxxon Marie stays fully healthy. Marie is Cuero’s leading returning passer (1,283 yards, 22 TDs) and rusher (725 yards, 9 TDs) despite playing sparingly after the first five games.
Not all programs’ rebuilding years are the same. Just ask Wimberley and Austin LBJ, who are replacing most of their starters on both sides of the ball but still retain regional final expectations.
Wimberley is looking for a new head coach to replace Doug Warren, who retired in April. Warren, who coached for 36 years, compiled a 119-47 record from 2013-2024 as Wimberley’s coach. His departure, combined with that of do-it-all quarterback Cody Stoever, spells a new era for the Texans. They’ll lean on a pair of linemen to control games. Cody Phillips led Wimberley with 81 tackles and four sacks, while Will Kellerman was the district’s Offensive Line MVP.
Austin LBJ, meanwhile, boasts its best returning players at skill positions. Antoine Baker is a force on both sides of the ball (84 tackles, 14 tackles for loss, five sacks, four interceptions) while Javarlyn Smith does his primary damage at wide receiver (48 receptions, 804 yards, 13 TDs).
Editors Note: This article was originally published before Wimberley hired defensive coordinator Wesley Lambert to replace retired head coach Doug Warren.
Sealy and Bay City are both programs on the rise. Of course, Sealy was the “Team of the 90s” after winning four-straight state championships from 1994-97. But last year’s 10-4 record was just its third 10-win season in the 21st century. Meanwhile, Bay City won its first district championship in 20 years with a 12-2 record.
Sealy should be strong again with 35 returning lettermen, including nine offensive and eight defensive starters. Quarterback Kane Killough is on the short list of top returning quarterbacks in Class 4A. He led the Tigers with 2,326 passing yards and 879 rushing yards.
Bay City returns three first-team all-district linebackers who look to limit Killough. James Copeland is the heartbeat with 142 tackles, while Davont’a Harris racked up 78 tackles and three interceptions. Jordan O’Neal sets the edge.
We know, it’s not a true 3A v 3A matchup. But the storyline of three-time defending state champion Gunter’s first game without head coach Jake Fieszel is too intriguing.
Gunter’s decision to promote offensive coordinator Jordan Gill to head coach signals the Tigers will stay with the signature flex spread offense. Gill, named Assistant Coach of the Year by the THSCA in 2022 and 2023, returns just two starters on offense. Running back Jay Campiti should be the focal point after piling up 946 yards and 13 TDs last season. A road trip to Houston could provide a chance for the new regime to band together.
Kinkaid has a dynamic running back, too, in Wayne Shanks Jr. (1,800 yards and 27 TDs). But will Shanks have room to run behind four new starters on the offensive line in Week 1?
What happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object? Texas high school football fans find out when Newton running back Kendray Porter Jr. sees Jefferson linebacker Kobin Tomlinson off tackle.
Porter used his 4.4 speed to gain 2,238 yards and 36 total touchdowns last season as a sophomore. Tomlinson, meanwhile, posted a school record 134 tackles. The 5-11, 195-pound junior is the leader of the defense and will also line up at QB.
Tomlinson is the headliner of a loaded junior class at Jefferson with nearly 30 kids. The Newton game will hint at whether this team is ready to compete for a state championship in 2025, or if it's still a year away.
Goliad is a surging power under Kevin Salazar. The Tigers went 0-9 in his first season in 2020. Now, Goliad has won 10 games in back-to-back seasons. Salazar’s squad lost a heartbreaking regional semifinal, 30-29, to Edna. The Tigers will again have a high-powered offense with seniors Lamont Franklin and Donovan Perry. Franklin, a jack-of-all-trades, was the district’s Offensive Player of the Year with 2,102 all-purpose yards and 30 total touchdowns bouncing between wide receiver and running back. Perry was a First Team All-District running back and safety.
David Lucio inherited a better situation when he took over at Tidehaven in 2016, but he’s taken the program to new heights. The Tigers have compiled a 37-7 record over the past three years, and senior quarterback Kale Russell has been a starter for all of them. Cousins Boogie and TJ Galvan are two of Tidehaven’s rare two-way starters. Boogie has started since his freshman year, and TJ was an all-state defensive back.
This article is available to our Digital Subscribers.
Click "Subscribe Now" to see a list of subscription offers.
Already a Subscriber? Sign In to access this content.
We've been the Bible of Texas football fans for over 60 years. By joining the DCTX Family you'll gain access to all of our exclusive content and have our magazines mailed to you!