REGIONAL OUTLOOK
Region III was one of the more wide open regions in the state a year ago come playoff time, with a surprising and young College Station squad emerging from the pack to bring home its second straight regional crown. Can the Cougars handle the expectations heading into 2023?
Galveston Ball dominated Houston ISD a year ago and cruised to the district title. The Golden Tornadoes should be better in 2023, but will the lack of competition inside of the district hurt them come playoff time? Houston Sterling is pretty clearly the second best team in the district on paper, while Madison, Waltrip and Milby will be in contention for the final playoff spot.
Distriict 10-5A Division I is the deepest district in the region and should provide plenty of intrigue as there isn’t a team in the district that is going into the season without a question mark. Fulshear broke onto the scene last season with an 11-2 finish. The Chargers do return one of the state's most productive running backs, but they were hit hard by graduation. Manvel has a lot of excitement surrounding the program with the return of head coach Kirk Martin, while Angleton and the two Magnolia ISD programs will be in contention for those final two playoff slots along with Richmond Foster, which is really starting to feel the effects of growth in Lamar Consolidated ISD.
The top three in 11-5A Division I seem to be pretty locked in with the two College Station programs and Georgetown. A&M Consolidated will be especially fascinating to watch in 2023 under new head coach Brandon Schmidt. Consolidated has never beaten College Station, so CSHS gets the edge. A veteran Cedar Park squad isn’t the state power it once was, but the Timberwolves still have enough to hold off Glenn and Hendrickson for the final playoff spot.
If Smithson Valley didn’t lose its star WR in the season opener last season, the Rangers may have ended up being the regional champions. Still, they ran all the way to the regional finals before a College Station goal-line stand ended their season. Smithson Valley gets the edge in a tough 12-5A Division I just ahead what should be a much-improved Wagner squad. New Braunfels Canyon brings a lot back as well, but they’ve got a big question mark at the QB spot, while Seguin continues to be one of the better under-the-radar teams in South Texas.
DISTRICT PREDICTIONS
District 9-5A Division I
- Galveston Ball
- Houston Sterling
- Houston Madison
- Houston Waltrip
- Houston Milby
- Houston Sharpstown
- Houston Austin
- Houston Wisdom
- Houston Northside
District 10-5A Division I
- Fulshear
- Manvel
- Angleton
- Magnolia West
- Magnolia
- Friendswood
- Richmond Foster
- Fort Bend Kempner
- Rosenberg Terry
District 11-5A Division I
- College Station
- College Station A&M Consolidated
- Georgetown
- Cedar Park
- Leander Glenn
- Pflugerville Hendrickson
- Georgetown East View
- Leander
District 12-5A Division I
- Smithson Valley
- San Antonio Wagner
- New Braunfels Canyon
- Seguin
- Boerne Champion
- Buda Hays Consolidated
- San Antonio MacArthur
- Kyle Lehman
PROJECTED BI-DISTRICT MATCHUPS
W9 Galveston Ball vs F10 Magnolia West
R12 San Antonio Wagner vs T11 Georgetown
W10 Fulshear vs F9 Houston Waltrip
R11 College Station A&M Consolidated vs T12 New Braunfels Canyon
W11 College Station vs F12 Seguin
R10 Manvel vs T9 Houston Madison
W12 Smithson Valley vs F11 Cedar Park
R9 Houston Sterling vs T10 Magnolia
REGIONAL CHAMPION
Smithson Valley over Fulshear
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