2020 Class 5A-Division I Region IV Outlook: Predictions for every district, playoff matchup, sleepers and regional winner

Ashley Wirz

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Regional Outlook

In what appears to be the most wide open 5A regional race in years, 5A-Division I Region IV offers plenty of chances for some new faces to earn a coveted regional title. 13-5A Division I is a San Antonio metro district consisting mostly of San Antonio ISD programs with two Edgewood ISD programs joining in. This will be a very competitive group of teams amongst each other with Brackenridge and Burbank looking solid for the two top slots. Sam Houston, Highlands, Lanier, Memorial and Jefferson will all be in the mix for the last two slots, however don’t expect any team from this district to be a serious contender in the post-season.

Maybe the oddest grouping of teams in the state is 14-5A Division I which covers a wide swath of area from the southern edges of San Antonio, down I-35 to Laredo, over to the western edges of the Rio Grande Valley and then out to Eagle Pass. There will be lots of bus miles in this district. San Antonio Southside, who competed very well in a tough 5A-Division II district the past two years looks to be the early favorite, while Southwest an area round playoff squad in 2019 appears to be right in the mix as well. The Valley representative Rio Grande City brings plenty of veteran experience from a playoff team in 2019, while San Antonio Legacy and Eagle Pass Winn all can make cases for playoff contention as well.

The Coastal Bend district comprises 15-5A Division I and with last year’s district champion down to Class 4A, Veterans Memorial a regional finalist a year ago gets the nod over always tough Flour Bluff. Both teams are regional title contenders once the playoffs come around. Victoria West, an area round playoff team a year ago brings back plenty of experience and looks to solid for a return playoff trip. The battle for the final spot will be interesting as Gregory-Portland, who opted up despite a 5A-Division II enrollment and Victoria East appear to be the two leading candidates, with Corpus Christi Moody lurking as a sleeper.

The lone ten-team district in the state is situated in the Rio Grande Valley and the headline here is the four 6A programs who are dropping down into this loop. Expect the 6A programs to take most of the playoff glory, with Weslaco East and McAllen Memorial being favorites, both are perennial multi-round 6A programs. The real battle will be for third and fourth where McAllen Rowe, La Joya Palmview, McAllen and Brownsville Veterans Memorial are expected to battle it out. If you want a sleeper, take a look at Donna who has a ton of experience back and could be a revitalized program under a new head coach.

 

District Predictions

District 13-5A Division I

  1. San Antonio Brackenridge
  2. San Antonio Burbank
  3. San Antonio Sam Houston
  4. San Antonio Highlands
  5. San Antonio Lanier
  6. San Antonio Memorial
  7. San Antonio Jefferson
  8. San Antonio Edison
  9. San Antonio Kennedy

 

District 14-5A Division I

  1. San Antonio Southside
  2. San Antonio Southwest
  3. Rio Grande City
  4. San Antonio Legacy
  5. Eagle Pass Winn
  6. Laredo Martin
  7. Laredo Cigarroa

 

District 15-5A Division I

  1. Corpus Christi Veterans Memorial
  2. Corpus Christi Flour Bluff
  3. Victoria West
  4. Gregory-Portland
  5. Victoria East
  6. Corpus Christi Moody
  7. Corpus Christi King
  8. Corpus Christi Ray
  9. Corpus Christi Carroll

 

District 16-5A Division I

  1. Weslaco East
  2. McAllen Memorial
  3. La Joya Palmview
  4. McAllen Rowe
  5. McAllen
  6. Brownsville Veterans Memorial
  7. Donna
  8. Brownsville Pace
  9. Brownsville Porter
  10. Brownsville Lopez

 

 

Predicted Playoff Matchups

W13 San Antonio Brackenridge vs F14 San Antonio Legacy

R16 McAllen Memorial vs T15 Victoria West

W14 San Antonio Southside vs F13 San Antonio Highlands

R15 Corpus Christi Flour Bluff vs T16 La Joya Palmview

W15 Corpus Christi Veterans Memorial vs F16 McAllen Rowe

R14 San Antonio Southwest vs T13 San Antonio Sam Houston

W16 Weslaco East vs F15 Gregory-Portland

R13 San Antonio Burbank vs T14 Rio Grande City

 

 

Playoff Sleeper

McAllen Memorial: The Mustangs lose a decorated group of seniors from a team that went 10-2 at the 6A level a year ago, but overlook Bill Littleton’s squad at your own peril. They always seem reload and they’ve typically got the best overall crew of athletes in the RGV. They may struggle early on, but this will be a tough out come playoff time.  

 

Regional Winner

Weslaco East over Corpus Christi Flour Bluff: The Wildcats become the first team from the Valley to win a regional title since Port Isabel in 2003 as their tough defense and physical running game holds off always tough Flour Bluff. In order for Weslaco East to get it done, they’ll likely have to take out the two best teams from Corpus Christi in Veterans Memorial and Flour Bluff.

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