Ranking the Best QB/RB Duos in Class 6A and 5A

6A

5. Katy Tompkins QB JP Vaclavik and RB Ethan Meadows

Tompkins should be back in the playoff hunt after a one-year hiatus with one of Class 6A’s top QB/RB duos. Quarterback JP Vaclavik (6-foot, 185 pounds) led the district in passing yards with 2,053, throwing for 17 touchdowns. He’s racked up offers from Graceland University, Benedictine, East Texas Baptist, and Rochester this offseason after impressive showings during 7-on-7. 

Vaclavik was a breakout star, but his running back, Ethan Meadows, backed up his breakout sophomore year. At 5-foot-10, 185 pounds, Meadows is an exceptional athlete with a 4.44 40-yard dash and 425-pound squat. He rushed for 1,124 yards and 18 touchdowns as a junior. He has offers from Southern Miss, Columbia, Lamar, and Tennessee State.

4. Midland Lee QB JP Reyes and RB Hayes Hamm

Midland Lee is on a mission in 2026 after missing out on the district championship by a last-second field goal. With several three-year starters back, Coach Clint Hartman is confident his Rebels will avenge last year’s loss. 

Senior quarterback JP Reyes (5-foot-11, 184 pounds) is the leader of the group. The two-time First Team All-District selection looks to extend upon his record-setting career. Last fall, he broke his own school record with 472 passing yards in the Abilene game. He has offers from East Texas A&M, Hendrix, and Howard Payne.

He has an elite West Texas running back at his side in fellow senior Hayes Hamm (5-foot-9, 175 pounds). Hamm was a First Team All-District selection with 1,288 yards and 16 touchdowns on the ground as a junior. He is also a capable receiver out of the backfield with 18 catches for 168 yards and two scores. Hartman says Hamm is an explosive open-field runner who combines a high motor with great vision.

3. Rockwall-Heath QB Prosper Neal and Carter Zahm

Rockwall-Heath is one of the most intriguing offseason storylines. New head coach Casey Dick, a former SEC QB for the Razorbacks and an Arkansas state champion high school coach, inherits a dynamic offense. Dick’s first quarterback protégé is Prosper Neal (5-foot-11, 195 pounds). The reigning First Team All-District selection is a true dual-threat with 2,018 passing yards, 575 rushing yards, and 33 total touchdowns. He’s stacked offers from Southwestern Oklahoma State, Washburn, and Millsaps.

Neal forms one of the state’s top backfield duos with senior running back Carter Zahm. At 6-foot-1, 220 pounds, Zahm is one of the bigger running backs in the Class of 2027. He combines that elite frame with the versatility to play any backfield position. He was the District Utility Player of the Year with 1,220 yards and 15 touchdowns, as well as 22 receptions for 302 yards and two touchdowns out of the backfield. Zahm holds offers from McNeese, Georgetown, Houston Christian, Montana State, Columbia, and Penn.

2. Klein Oak QB Andre Phillip II and RB Micah Rhodes

Klein Oak went 5-5 last season, but the Panthers have playoff hopes with a full season of West Virginia quarterback commit Andre Phillip II. As a junior, Phillip dazzled in 3.5 games of action, including a 61-54 victory over rival Klein in which he had 7 total touchdowns and 400+ yards. Phillip (6-foot-2, 196) is an elite runner from the quarterback position, evidenced by his 21.78 200m dash. He is the No. 10-ranked quarterback in the DCTX Class of 2027.

Phillip forms a potent rushing attack with rising junior running back Micah Rhodes. As a sophomore, Rhodes (5-foot-9.5, 193 pounds) was a First Team All-District selection with 1,307 yards and 19 touchdowns. The DCTX four-star has a balanced game (power and vision to run in between the tackles, speed to bounce it outside, and hands to be a threat in the passing game) that’s earned him over 30 scholarship offers.

1. Waxahachie QB Jerry Meyer III and RB Taylen Strange

Readers who picked up their Dave Campbell’s Texas Football magazine and immediately flipped to the Class 6A preseason rankings were in for a shock. Waxahachie at No. 1? And the preseason state champion pick? If you fell into this group, then let us introduce you to a juggernaut forming in far South Dallas.

South Carolina quarterback commit Jerry Meyer III is one of the faces of this resurgent power. A four-year varsity starter, Meyer broke the Nevada single-season passing touchdown record as a freshman. Since moving to Texas, he’s led Waxahachie to a 20-7 record and the first regional final appearance since 2009. He was a unanimous First Team All-District selection in the vaunted 11-6A league, throwing for 2,736 yards and 33 touchdowns. 

Meyer has two of a quarterback’s best friends this season: a strong defense and elite run game headlined by Taylen Strange. As a sophomore, Strange earned unanimous First Team All-District accolades with 1,300 yards and eight rushing touchdowns in the toughest league in DFW. Strange has elite power behind his 5-foot-8, 190-pound frame and forms a nice Thunder/Lightning duo with senior Jordan Smith.

5A

5. Corpus Christi Ray QB Tripp Thompson and RB Brian McCullum

New head coach Brian Herman, formerly an assistant on the perennial playoff Georgetown Eagles, believes his first Corpus Christi Ray team can compete for a district championship. The Texans have 15 returning starters and help on the way from a 10-0 JV squad. But the belief begins with the QB/RB combo of Tripp Thompson and Brian McCullum.

Thompson (6-foot, 180) was the District Offensive MVP last season with 2,245 passing yards and an efficient 24:4 TD/INT ratio. He’s also dynamic on the ground, evidenced by his 675 rushing yards and eight touchdowns, as well as earning Second Team All-District in basketball. Herman says Thompson is the de facto leader of the offense. 

McCullum (5-foot-10, 170 pounds) was a First Team All-District selection with 1,212 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns. He was Third Team All-South Texas as a sophomore, but Herman says McCullum will carry an even bigger load as a junior.

4. Boerne Champion QB Julian Navarrete and RB Caleb Farias 

Boerne Champion reached the third round of the playoffs for the first time since 2019 last fall. With seven returning starters on each side of the ball, headlined by the elite QB/RB duo of Julian Navarrete and Caleb Farias, Coach Blaine Ellis believes his squad could be even stronger in 2026.

Navarrete (5-foot-10, 175), a Southern Miss commit, is a three-year starter whom Ellis describes as an excellent decision-maker. He threw for 2,265 yards and 31 touchdowns to just four interceptions last year, adding six touchdowns on the ground. He earned Second Team All-District accolades. 

Farias may be 5-foot-9, 161 pounds, but he will rack up yards after contact with the best of them. He earned Second Team All-District as a junior after leading the district with 1,087 rushing yards and 7.5 yards per carry. Farias is also a dynamic special teams threat with 439 return yards, including a 95-yard kickoff return touchdown.

3. El Paso Hanks QB Jordan Morales and RB Austin Deucher

Quietly, Scott Veliz has pioneered one of the state’s best rebuilds at El Paso Hanks. In the three years before his hiring, the Knights went 4-24. Since then, they’ve had three straight winning seasons and two playoff berths. Year 4 this fall may be the season the entire state takes notice, with nine returning starters on offense and eight returning starters on defense. 

Quarterback Jordan Morales and running back Austin Deucher are both three-year starters who’ve been instrumental to Hanks’ resurgence. Morales (6-foot, 175 pounds) led the district with 2,577 passing yards and 19 touchdowns last fall. He is 3,500 yards away from breaking the all-time El Paso record, which is well within reach for this type of offense. 

Deucher (5-foot-7, 190) is the city of El Paso’s returning leading rusher with 1,621 yards and 20 touchdowns. He earned the Knights’ Player of the Year award at the team’s banquet and was named Second Team All-City by the El Paso Times.

2. Frisco Lone Star QB Trey Wright and ATH Karece Hoyt

Two years ago, Karece Hoyt (6-foot-2, 205) was a sophomore All-State quarterback who looked like he’d be the next big thing under center. Fast forward, and Hoyt is still building a legendary status at Lone Star – just at a different position. Hoyt, a Baylor commit, is the No. 2-ranked athlete in the state according to Dave Campbell’s. A First Team All-District running back and safety, Hoyt is a dynamic playmaker out of the backfield with 849 rushing yards and 22 touchdowns on 8.1 yards per carry, along with 396 receiving yards and three touchdowns through the air. 

Hoyt made one of the state’s most unselfish decisions to move from quarterback to two-way athlete because he knew the type of talent Trey Wright had. Wright (5-foot-11, 180) led the nation with 5,863 total yards. He was named one of the ten breakout stars of the 2025 season by Dave Campbell’s. 

Wright and Hoyt led Lone Star to its second-ever state championship appearance last year. They’ll look to win the first for the school in 2026. 

1. Richland QB Brett Kates and RB Jayshon Gibson

After three straight trips to the third round of the playoffs, Coach Ged Kates has raised the bar at Richland’s program. It’s up to his son, Brett, to clear it. The younger Kates had a prolific first year as a starter, winning the Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Offensive Newcomer of the Year with 2,732 passing yards and 24 touchdowns. Kates (5-foot-10, 175) is also quick when he tucks it to run, gaining 582 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on the ground.

His backfield mate, running back Jayshon Gibson, experienced a similar breakout performance. After an impressive 500 rushing yards two years ago as a sophomore, Gibson exploded for 2,263 yards and 41 touchdowns as a junior, earning District Offensive Player of the Year. The UCLA commit gets to his top speed before anyone else and is tough to bring down in the middle of the field at 5-foot-10, 190 pounds. He’s also more than capable as a receiver out of the backfield with 387 yards and five touchdowns.