Whether it was scheduling insanely tough opponents or still working out some personnel kinks, don’t be the person who writes off these Texas high school football teams for a 0-2 start.

Just last season, DeSoto won its third state championship in four years after starting the season 0-2. East Bernard made the state semifinals after starting 0-3! It’s happened before, and these teams have an opportunity to make it happen again.

Dickinson (Preseason No. 10 in Class 6A)

Schedule:

29-26 Loss to Fort Bend Ridge Point (current No. 8 in Class 6A) 
42-24 Loss to Katy (current No. 7 in Class 6A) 

Some people might panic that the Dickinson Gators have lost more games in two weeks than they did in the entire 2025 season, when they went 13-1. But not head coach John Snelson. He believes these losses will, in the long run, lead to a deeper playoff run.

Snelson stacked the deck for a Dickinson team that he knew would be young. The Gators return just three starters on offense, and four on defense. The Gators lost by three points to a Ridge Point team that went on to beat Shadow Creek – a Shadow Creek team that beat preseason Top 5-ranked Humble Summer Creek one week prior. In Week 2, Dickinson played a Katy team that has won a playoff game every year since 1993, and whose last season below ten wins was in 2001. 

“We could’ve very easily scheduled a not-as-tough non-district and been 3-0, and everybody’s patting us on the back, but we wouldn’t know who we are,” Snelson said. “We don’t get exposed for what we’re not good at. And what’s happened is the Dickinson Gators have made too many mistakes, starting with the head coach and going all the way down, to beat quality competition.”

The Gators have made a variety of mistakes – special teams errors, pre-snap miscommunications in the secondary that lead to wide-open receivers, and muscle cramps from a body not yet prepared for Friday Night Lights come immediately to Snelson’s mind. But those mistakes reflect a lack of experience rather than a lack of talent or drive. Dickinson’s offense returned just three starters, going up against defenses that had 8 (Ridge Point) and 7 (Katy), respectively. 

“There’s no substitute for experience,” Snelson said. “Just like when we were little, and Mama told us, ‘Baby, don’t touch that pot, that pot’s hot.’ As soon as she turned her head. What did we do? We touched that pot because we thought we knew better.”

With star quarterback Lorenzo Aguirre and an extremely athletic front seven headlined by four-year starter Chase Lewis, Dickinson should still be a favorite for a deep playoff run. Besides, an opportunity like this is the reason Snelson coaches in the first place. 

“That’s one of the biggest reasons kids need to be involved in extracurricular activities – it teaches you how to get knocked down seven times and get up eight,” Snelson said. “Because you’re going to have to do that often in the real world. Football is not life. But there are so many life lessons that football can teach us if we’re willing to receive them.”

Highland Park (Preseason No. 6 in Class 5A DI)

Schedule:

56-42 Loss to Lewisville (current No. 20 in Class 6A)
49-46 Loss to 6A Rockwall-Heath

Highland Park is 0-2 for the first time since 1989. But you won’t catch us selling our Scotties stock anytime soon, not with the head coach-quarterback duo of Randy Allen and Buck Randall. There’s too much history at stake. Allen is one playoff win away from becoming the winningest postseason head coach in state history, while Randall has Matthew Stafford’s school records in sight. 

The offense is humming with Randall back for his third year as a starter. The special teams also improved dramatically from Week One to Week Two. Highland Park gave Lewisville starting field position in their own territory four different times, then booted five touchbacks against Rockwall-Heath. 

Allen admits the Scots still have a long way to go on defense, but there are a couple of reasons to remain optimistic. For starters, Highland Park played two Class 6A programs on the road (OK, they did play Lewisville at The Star in Frisco, which is kind of a second home, but they technically were the away team, and Lewisville is closer to Frisco!) Also, Lewisville is now the No. 20-ranked team in the state after drubbing Class 6A Byron Nelson 49-7, while Rockwall-Heath could have one of the top offenses in 6A with returning All-District quarterback Prosper Neal and new head coach Casey Dick. These were difficult matchups for a young unit that returned only three starters and was without one of its best defensive linemen, Nick Van der Westhuizen (6-foot-4, 260). 

“We’ve got to make a stand,” Allen said. “This is a good week to start. In the playoffs, you’re going to lose starters, and you need to have a ‘next-man-up’ mentality. So, just because we don’t have a couple of guys playing doesn’t mean the guys who are playing aren’t quality players. They are quality players, and they’re getting valuable experience.”

If the defense makes moderate improvement – or even forces their first turnover all year – Highland Park will be back on track. The Scots were tied at 35-all with Lewisville deep into the third quarter and had a chance to beat Rockwall-Heath on the game’s final drive. While being 0-2 isn’t ideal, there’s a chance it makes Highland Park better in the long run.

“Our guys are hungry, and they’re working really hard,” Allen said. “I don’t think they would pay attention to detail like they are now if they had won two. But, boy, when you’re hungry, you’re disappointed, you pay attention to detail because you want to win so badly.”

Sulphur Springs (Preseason No. 8 in Class 4A DI)

Schedule:

38-14 Loss to 5A Mount Pleasant
34-27 Loss to Pleasant Grove (No. 4 in Class 4A DII)

Even in a loss, the improvement Sulphur Springs made from Week 1 to Week 2 of the season has us high on Sulphur Springs for the rest of the year. The Wildcats got shell-shocked by Class 5A Mount Pleasant in Week 1. Sulphur Springs was shocked by new formations Mount Pleasant had added in the offseason, then didn’t tackle well. But in Week 2, Sulphur Springs took state-ranked top-five Texarkana Pleasant Grove to the mat. Sulphur Springs had a chance to tie the game with two minutes remaining, but dropped a touchdown pass. 

Head coach Brandon Faircloth said the difference that one week made was a testament to his kids’ character.

“These are the types of kids we have in Sulphur Springs: they didn’t get down, and they came back to work,” Faircloth said. “We had a great week of practice, and they fixed a lot of their mistakes, and we were able to play a really competitive game against Pleasant Grove.”

Faircloth, the all-time winningest coach in Port Neches-Groves history, says this year’s team has a chance to be like his PNG squad from 2010. That year, PNG started 1-4 in a grueling non-district, then went on a seven-game tear to play Manvel on Thanksgiving.

“There’s no gold football for the end of non-district,” Faircloth said. “I’ve been a head coach for quite a while now, and I’ve had some really good non-district seasons and maybe some not good district seasons. I’d definitely want to be the team that has some struggles against some good teams in non-district – learns some lessons and gets exposed – and learns how to get better so that you give yourself a better chance in district to be successful.”

Sulphur Springs still has some of the best offensive skill players East Texas has to offer. It starts with quarterback Deuce Timmons, whom Faircloth calls one of the more elite quarterbacks in Class 4A. Timmons had an undefeated record as the Wildcats’ starting quarterback last year before he was injured for the year in the Celina game. The dynamic athlete is back to full speed after an offseason of recovery. Timmons has a bevy of weapons to distribute to. Wide receiver Jaxon Virgil (6-foot-4, 200) and tight end Quin Harris (6-foot-2, 225) are both reigning First-Team All-District selections, while RB Dobson Martin had a 70-yard touchdown run against Pleasant Grove. RJ Doss is a freshman wide receiver TXHSFB fans need to know.

They might not all be freshmen like Doss, but Faircloth has a young bunch after graduating 32 seniors. The important thing is that players from last year’s 9-1 district championship JV team are growing up fast. 

“There’s no such thing as moral victories, but when you watch the film, you definitely see a team that’s improving and getting better.”

Franklin (Preseason No. 4 in Class 3A DI)

Schedule:

42-16 Loss to Waco La Vega (current No. 3 in Class 4A DII)
40-20 Loss Newton (current No. 3 in Class 3A DII)

I’d argue that Franklin had the hardest first two games of any team in Texas, regardless of classification. 

Waco La Vega is always loaded, but the Pirates look even scarier this year after a blowout over Franklin, then a 57-0 drubbing against Austin LBJ. To put that into perspective, Austin LBJ was the No. 8-ranked team in Class 4A DI at the time, an entire division above Waco La Vega.

Newton, on the other hand, is the preseason Class 3A DII state championship pick after coming one point away from a state championship win last fall.

Franklin isn’t a program used to starting 0-2. Since 2011, the Lions have only three seasons in which they’ve won fewer than ten games. But head coach Mark Fannin said that this may have been exactly what his young team needed.

“I knew going into the year that we were going to need to be tested early – especially with the group of kids that I got right now,” Fannin said. “There are a lot of kids who don’t have a lot of Friday night experience, and I need them to get caught up at a rapid pace.” 

For a team with just five starters back on each side of the ball, there’s no better Friday night crash course than Waco La Vega and Newton. The Franklin football program has had resounding success in the past two decades, but few of the current players have been part of it. They had to learn firsthand what it takes to win in a game, and they’re going to find out more about how to win in practice this week.

“I’m very fortunate for a bye week this week,” Fannin said. “I think it’s coming at a good time. We’re gonna pick up the bar, and we’re gonna pick up the intensity, the accountability, and get these guys ready to play so they can win on Friday night.” 

Because, for as good as Waco La Vega and Newton are, Franklin beat themselves. Against Waco La Vega, the young Lions turned the ball over four times, and two were returned for touchdowns. Franklin turned it over only once against Newton, but the Lions came out flat, ending the first quarter down 20-0.

Franklin is humbled and hungrier than ever. For those reasons, we still believe they can reach the third round of the playoffs for the 14th time in 16 seasons.