Five Teams in Win Now Mode

Certain programs in Texas feel like mortal locks to make the state semifinals every year. Think Duncanville and North Shore, or Gunter at the smaller-school level. They are almost like cartoon characters who always have the same outfit no matter the episode.

But some of the best stories in Texas high school football are those senior classes with one shot at forever. You watch them take their lumps as talented sophomores before blossoming into stars as juniors. Before you know it, the championship window is wide open – except you don’t know how long it’ll stay open.

These are the five teams in Texas saying, ‘This could be the year.’

6A: Waxahachie Indians

Dave Campbell’s Texas Football magazine predicted Waxahachie to win its first state championship since 1992. The Indians have one of the state’s best rosters, headlined by Texas A&M safety commit Jayquan Snell (Class 6A Preseason Defensive Player of the Year) and South Carolina quarterback commit Jerry Meyer III. But it’s the depth – not just the top-line talent – that has us believing in Waxahachie. In DCTX’s offseason position group rankings, Waxahachie was listed in the top five for QB/RB duos, offensive lines, defensive lines, and secondary groups. 

But as we wrote in the magazine, ‘If it’s going to happen for the Indians, it’s going to happen this year.’ It’s one thing that arguably the most talented senior class in school history will graduate after this year. The larger concern is that a new high school, Waxahachie Long Creek, will open next fall and eat into their depth. 

Waxahachie having its most loaded senior class for its last year as a one-horse town is incredible timing – and also means they’ve got to win now.

5A: Boerne Greyhounds 

After reaching at least the state semifinal in three of the last four years, Boerne has been banging on the door. But is 2026 the year they finally kick it in with the first state championship in school history?

The Greyhounds return eight starters on offense, headlined by superstar quarterback Grant Sweeney. The UTSA commit went from preseason unknown to undeniable last fall with 4,296 passing yards, 1,075 rushing yards, and 58 total touchdowns. He’ll be protected by the “Great Wall of Boerne,” named the third-best offensive line unit in the state by DCTX this offseason. 

Boerne does hail from arguably the toughest district in Texas. The Greyhounds are one of four preseason top-10 teams in 13-5A DII (Alamo Heights, Liberty Hill, New Braunfels). Boerne could easily finish third or fourth and have a tougher playoff path. But if the Greyhounds race to a district championship, as they’ve done the last two seasons, they’ll be battle-tested come playoff time.

4A: Lindale Eagles

Ever since reaching their first state championship game in program history in 2020, the Eagles’ flight pattern has collided with a glass ceiling in the second round of the playoffs. Lindale has been bounced in the area round in four of the last five years. With a bevy of three-year starters like nose tackle Cam Beason and quarterback David Lindig, this could be Lindale’s best chance to get over the hump for the foreseeable future. 

This should be a vintage Lindale team that out-toughs opponents with a physical run game. Senior running back Hank Thurman rushed for nearly 1,500 yards and 22 touchdowns a season ago, and the offensive line should be stout. Really, the only two questions Lindale faces are on the defensive line and finding a deep threat at wide receiver. Normally, that would be a concern, but the Eagles have Beason (team captain, 24 starts) on the interior defensive line and two-time team captain Lindig at quarterback to mitigate any problems. 

But Lindale is truly in win-now mode because the Eagles’ ascendancy comes at the same time as Kilgore enters a rebuild following back-to-back state championship appearances.

3A: Paradise Panthers

When the bully Brock Eagles moved from Class 3A DI to Class 4A DII a couple of years ago, West Texas schools felt like Region I was finally open. Instead, the fringe DFW schools like Malakoff, Paradise, and Peaster have dominated. Paradise has been the most consistent, making at least the regional final each of the last three seasons. 

The Panthers have as good a chance as ever to reach their first state championship game in program history. Peaster, which beat Paradise in the regional finals last year, only returns three defensive starters from a salty unit and lost arguably their top offensive weapon, running back Hudson Salyers, after his father got a job at Marble Falls. Wall, last year’s Class 3A DII State Champion, jumped up a Division the same year they needed to replace 16 starters from a historic senior class. Perennial power Jim Ned has even more production to replace, returning one starter on offense and two on defense. That leaves Llano and Paradise, neither of whom have never made it to AT&T Stadium, with a golden opportunity. 

I especially like Paradise’s chances with three-year starting quarterback Ayden Olalde (3,050 passing yards, 40 total touchdowns) back at the helm. The Panthers should also have a stingy defense once again, a trademark under head coach and former defensive coordinator Tommy Koch. Cody Bridgeman and Jacob Jones will be the stalwarts at linebacker, while Beau Chenevert is a state powerlifter who wreaks havoc on the defensive line.

2A: Wink Wildcats

Honestly, Wink and Waxahachie were the teams who inspired this article.

Wink has made the playoffs for 14 consecutive years, and the Wildcats have won a playoff game in each of the last nine years. And while they’ve had sustained playoff success, they’ve never made it to a state semifinal. In fact, they’ve only ever made it to one regional final.

But with 18 starters back from a 9-3 team, including the program’s all-time leading rusher Kemyd Faciane (1,887 yards last fall), this might be Wink’s best shot yet. There are five other teams in Region I who realistically have AT&T Stadium aspirations, but each has questions. Preseason No. 1-ranked Stratford lost all-state quarterback Chase Lantelme this offseason. Ropes gained Lantelme after his brother took a defensive coordinator job, but it remains to be seen how he’ll fit into the mix. Gruver returns just four starters on each side of the ball after back-to-back trips to the state semifinals. Stinnett West Texas lost star quarterback Cayde Winters (graduation) and head coach Jeff Smith.

“If Wink’s going to do it, it’s this year,” Matt Stepp said on the Tep and Stepp Class 2A preview pod. “They’ve been knocking on the door with ten-win seasons for a while, third or fourth round here and there. They fell a little bit short last year. They ran into Gruver in the area playoffs, and Gruver ended up winning the region. It’s now or never for Wink. It’s not lining up better. Region I is still tough, but it’s not insurmountable. There’s not a team in Region I where we say, ‘It’s going to take a big upset for that team to get beat.’”