Top 10 Breakout Stars of the 2025 TXHSFB Season

1. DeSoto RB SaRod Baker

SaRod Baker arguably had the greatest TXHSFB Playoff run of all time in 2025, leading the DeSoto Eagles to their third Class 6A DII State Championship in four years. The junior rushed for 1,628 yards and 21 touchdowns in six games against the best 6A competition in Texas. He finished the season with 3,096 yards and 45 touchdowns, and also played quarterback for an extended stretch of the regular season. DeSoto’s reliance on him made it hard to believe he was the fourth-leading rusher on the team in 2024. 

“What he’s doing right now hardly ever happens in high school football,” DeSoto head coach Claude Mathis said ahead of the state championship game. “The nation needs to recognize that he’s one of the best running backs in the nation.” 

Baker’s game toes the line between controlled violence and outright recklessness. He seemingly is never brought down by one man. But his passion is not a faucet that can be flipped off when the whistle blows. After every play, he pops up to jaw at the defense, or a referee, or even his head coach. And Mathis wouldn’t have it any other way.

“You may see SaRod and me on the sideline going at it, because he wants to win. I want to win, too,” Mathis said. “Sometimes, it can get emotional between him and me. But we have one thing in common. We respect each other. He knows that I’m fighting for it. I want every ounce I can get from SaRod Baker. He’s a dawg.”

Baker played like a man who took personally all the questions about DeSoto’s dynasty being over after a 0-2 start to the season. That confidence seeped into the rest of the team, allowing the Eagles to win the championship.

2. Ozona RB Christian Villarreal

This past fall, Mount Enterprise RB Kaegan Ash broke TXHSFB Hall of Famer Kenneth Hall’s 4,045 single-season rushing yards record set in 1953. But Ozona RB Christian Villarreal was the record-breaking candidate we had our eyes on all season. Villarreal was on pace to surpass the mark in 12 games, the same amount Hall played. 

Ozona’s first-round loss to Anson ended the chase, but did not diminish the season Villarreal had. To be clear, Villarreal didn’t come out of nowhere. He had over 1,400 yards as a junior. But as a senior, he morphed from a great 2A high school football player into a generational TXHSFB figure, rushing for 3,667 yards and 53 touchdowns, averaging 333.4 yards per game. 

Villarreal’s running style is even more of an enigma than his emergence from a small town at least two and a half hours away from the 25 most populous cities in Texas. At 6’2, 205 pounds, he was often the biggest kid on the entire field, and he ran like he wanted to prove it. Sometimes, Ozona head coach Jason Pitts would lift his arms in a touchdown celebration and turn to the sideline to get his PAT team ready, only to turn back to the field and see Villarreal had barreled toward a safety chasing him down at the five-yard line instead of an easy score.

“He doesn’t run like almost anybody I’ve seen,” Pitts said. “I’ve coached Jamarion Miller, who’s playing at Bama. That kid’s a freak and he’s going to get drafted to the NFL, but Christian runs differently from him. He’s always looking for contact.”

3. Frisco Lone Star QB Trey Wright

Frisco Lone Star had an all-state sophomore quarterback last year in Karece Hoyt. But head coach Jeff Rayburn and Hoyt, a Baylor commit, agreed that he should move to wide receiver and safety because of another quarterback waiting in the wings.

Rayburn said in the preseason that he’d either be proven the dumbest or smartest head coach in TXHSFB. Sophomore QB Trey Wright proved him right. The first-year starter became the nation’s leader with 5,860 yards and led the Rangers to their second state championship berth in program history.

“It’s like he’d been doing it his whole life,” Rayburn said after Wright’s first start against Argyle. “I’m really proud of his maturity and the way he handled our offense. Obviously, he’s dynamic with the ball in his hands and just creates so many plays. The unscripted stuff is the thing you can’t coach.” 

Wright had transitioned to point guarding Lone Star’s basketball team with similar dominance. His multi-sport prowess, 5’11, 165-pound build, and dynamic dual-threat play style have garnered comparisons to former Allen Eagles superstar Kyler Murray.

4. Stephenville QB Trot Jordan

Stephenville knew in the preseason that its defense would be stout with 10 of 11 starters returning. But the Yellow Jackets had to replace the Big Three on offense – QB, RB, WR.

After the first live scrimmage of fall camp, Stephenville head coach Sterling Doty said the staff realized they had a 5-foot-11 junior firecracker ready to take the reins in Trot Jordan.

“We labeled him early on, he’s a mini-Baker Mayfield,” Doty said. “He’s got a little bit of swagger to him. He believes in himself and his teammates.”

Jordan’s extensive baseball background made him the perfect fit for Stephenville’s RPO offense. His quick release – and quick decision-making – resulted in 3,241 passing yards, 45 touchdowns and four interceptions. In the last three games of the season against Canyon West Plains, Celina and Kilgore, he morphed into a running threat with 276 yards.

Jordan was one of several breakout players on Stephenville’s offense who will return in 2026. RB Zyler McClendon ran for 1,702 yards and 28 touchdowns, while WR Adan Jergins, who caught the only touchdown of the Class 4A DI State Championship, will be back in the fold. They just won’t surprise anybody anymore.

5. Boerne QB Grant Sweeney

Boerne head coach Che Hendrix’s departure for the University of Arkansas in January 2025 was a double whammy for the Greyhounds. Boerne not only lost Che, who’d led the program to a 71-19 record over seven seasons, but also his son Hank, a rising junior quarterback who’d blossomed into one of the state’s top passers.

But another junior quarterback would emerge for the Greyhounds in 2025 - Grant Sweeney. The 6’3, 195-pound signal-caller threw for 4,296 yards and 39 touchdowns, and also showed dual-threat ability with 1,075 yards and 19 touchdowns on the ground.

Sweeney was a breakout star who became a legend in the fourth round of the playoffs against district rival Alamo Heights. On the game’s final drive, Sweeney ran for a 4th down conversion, then threw the game-winning touchdown pass with 18 seconds to go. Boerne reached the state semifinals for the second consecutive year despite replacing its head coach and quarterback. 

“He is going to be successful in life; he just gets to play football and be successful at that,” Boerne head coach Brett Sawyer said. “If it were any other sport or any other aspect of life, he could work at Whataburger and be the most successful guy at Whataburger. That’s just the way he’s built.”

6. Willis QB Lincoln Frazier

Even with the return of five-star Jermaine Bishop, Willis was a question mark heading into 2025 with 17 starters who’d never played varsity football. But quarterback Lincoln Frazier quelled all the doubters by setting a Texas 6A freshman passing record with 4,232 yards and 47 touchdowns. The Wildkats, who’ve played varsity football since 1928, made it to the fourth round of the playoffs for the first time. 

Within the locker room, Frazier was no longer considered a freshman entering the playoffs. He didn’t play like one either, compiling over 1,800 total yards in four games against Westfield, Tomball, Forney and DeSoto.

“The last six games have been phenomenal outings for him,” Willis head coach Trent Miller said. “In the Forney game, he was taking some shots in the pocket. A couple of those times, if it were me 20 years ago, I probably wouldn’t have gotten up. But he just popped right up. He’s still so innocent and goofy enough to not understand that they’re trying to kill you.”

7. Houston Milby WR Artavion Davis

If you had polled TXHSFB coaches on who the state’s leading receiver was at the end of the regular season, how many would’ve guessed Houston Milby’s Artavion Davis? As a sophomore, Davis had five catches for 146 yards the entire season. One year later, he finished with 1,583 yards and 22 touchdowns.

Over the offseason, Davis sprouted from 6’0 to 6’2. But there are no physical traits that can explain the breakout season. For that, you have to take a peek into Milby’s practice field, where Davis asked the coaches how he could get more of his teammates to throw with him, fellow First Team All-District 10-5A DI wide receiver Isaiah Washington and sophomore quarterback Gabriel Gutierrez after practice.

“I’ll readily admit that he’s not the fastest guy on the field. He probably doesn’t have the highest vertical and isn’t the strongest guy on the field,” Houston Milby head coach Matthew Puente said. “But the work and commitment he puts into doing the things that he can control is what sets him apart.” 

The year prior, Washington was the one-man show at wide receiver. But Davis’s emergence allowed Milby’s offense to transform from a 75 percent run scheme to one of the city’s most dynamic passing attacks.

8. San Antonio Johnson WR Braelyn Allen

Braelyn Allen may have been a freshman, but there was no fear in his eyes with San Antonio Johnson’s season on the brink. Trailing Cibolo Steele 28-10 with eight minutes remaining in the third round of the playoffs, Allen’s nearly 60-yard touchdown reception helped the Jaguars storm back for a one-point win.

That performance was a signature moment in a breakout freshman campaign for Allen, who finished with 1,280 receiving yards and 19 touchdowns. 

Of course, Allen had some God-given gifts to compete at the 6A level as a freshman. His 10.25-inch hand size would’ve tied for the largest of all NFL QBs in 2022. He stands 5’11 with a 6’3 wingspan. He runs a 49.67 400-meter dash, showcasing a stride most defenders can’t keep up with.

But it’s his work ethic, instilled by his father on Johnson’s coaching staff, that allowed him to block on the perimeter, proving he could play without the ball in his hands before he made the electric plays with it.

“When nobody is looking, he’s working,” San Antonio Johnson head coach TP Miller said. “He’s quiet about doing so, too. I know nowadays a lot of kids like to use social media for exposure. But whenever I'm at the office on the weekends doing something, he’s on the field unexpectedly working out and getting better.”

9. Waller QB TK Gaines

Waller sophomore TK Gaines won District 16-6A Offensive MVP with 2,212 passing yards, 671 rushing yards and 36 total touchdowns. Those stats are even more impressive considering he played in 9-and-a-half games. Gaines missed Week 3 of the season to play shortstop on Team USA’s 15U National Baseball Team. 

But even while in Mexico, Gaines was hopping on Zoom meetings to study the offensive game plan with head coach Marcus Mendoza. Gaines was the Offensive Newcomer of the Year as a freshman, but Waller opened up the playbook for him as a sophomore, allowing him to call his own protections at the line of scrimmage. He was also allowed to show more dual-threat ability - but he’s still asking Mendoza for designed QB runs. 

“A lot of the guys look up to him, even though he’s one of the younger guys, because of his play. When he’s on the field, he turns into that different personality. We call it that dog mentality. He’s a physical kid. He wants me to call more run plays for him. He’ll lower his shoulder to try and run over a linebacker.”

Gaines led Waller to a 7-4 record, the Bulldogs’ best season since 2014. 

10. Dallas Life Oak Cliff WR Sukora Cooper Jr.

Sukora Cooper Jr. was on the national radar before he ever started a varsity game, running a 10.7 100m dash as an eighth grader and earning offers from Penn State and Texas A&M. He proved he was up to the hype from his first game at Dallas Life Oak Cliff, catching six passes for 191 yards and five touchdowns.

After star QB Camren Phillips was lost for the season in the middle of the year, Cooper became far more than a wide receiver. He threw for 677 yards and rushed for 634 yards. In total, the District 6-3A DI Co-Newcomer of the Year had 2,577 total yards and 25 touchdowns. 

“He understands what he wants to do in high school and at the next level,” Dallas Life Oak Cliff head coach Welton Johnson said. “He probably puts in more work than just about any kid that I’ve ever seen, and he’s had this type of work ethic since sixth grade.”

Cooper announced on his X account that he will attend Frisco Panther Creek as a sophomore in 2026.