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

John Hamilton

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Regional Outlook

Class 5A-Division I Region I features the lone four-team district in the state as El Paso Chapin’s decision to opt up to Division I despite having Division II numbers, saved a lot of people a lot of headaches. The Huskies are projected to finish second in District 1-5A Division I behind El Paso Del Valle and could wind up hosting a playoff game.

District 2-5A Division I is the Interstate-27 district featuring Lubbock ISD and Amarillo ISD, the battle for first will be a definite contrast of styles as you’ve got Amarillo Tascosa dropping down from 6A with their flexbone offense, while you have Lubbock Coronado and their high-flying spread offense. Amarillo High could be the best third place team in the entire region and is fully capable of doing some damage as well.

The big news in 3-5A Division I is Abilene Cooper moving east from the West Texas district into the western DFW loop, the Cougars who were a regional semifinalist a year ago get the slight nod over Azle whom they beat in the area playoffs a year ago. Crowley and Granbury round out the playoff teams, but if you are looking for a fast riser it could be Brewer, but I think the Bears may be a year away. One thing to note in this district is every team took heavy graduation losses so there is plenty of unknown in this loop.

There may not be a district in the state of Texas with the depth from one to eight as there is in 4-5A Division I. All eight teams in this district made the playoffs, with two teams dropping down from 6A and three moving up from 5A-Division II, the district title could come down to a showdown between Red Oak and Mansfield Summit, both appear loaded and ready for a big season. Colleyville Heritage, a regional finalist a year ago has a new coach and a lot of new faces, they’ll battle with Richland a 6A playoff team a year ago for third. Don’t count out playoff tested Birdville or Burleson Centennial either.

 

District Predictions

District 1-5A Division I

  1. El Paso Del Valle
  2. El Paso Chapin
  3. El Paso El Dorado
  4. El Paso Bel Air

 

District 2-5A Division I

  1. Amarillo Tascosa
  2. Lubbock Coronado
  3. Amarillo
  4. Lubbock Monterey
  5. Amarillo Palo Duro
  6. Amarillo Caprock
  7. Lubbock

 

District 3-5A Division I

  1. Abilene Cooper
  2. Azle
  3. Crowley
  4. Granbury
  5. White Settlement Brewer
  6. Justin Northwest
  7. Fort Worth Arlington Heights
  8. Saginaw

 

District 4-5A Division I

  1. Red Oak
  2. Mansfield Summit
  3. Richland
  4. Colleyville Heritage
  5. Burleson Centennial
  6. Birdville
  7. Mansfield Legacy
  8. Midlothian

 

 

Predicted Playoff Matchups

W1 El Paso Del Valle vs F2 Lubbock Monterey

T3 Crowley vs R4 Mansfield Summit

W2 Amarillo Tascosa vs F1 El Paso Bel Air

R3 Azle vs T4 Richland

W3 Abilene Cooper vs F4 Colleyville Heritage

R2 Lubbock Coronado vs T1 El Paso El Dorado

W4 Red Oak vs F3 Granbury

R1 El Paso Chapin vs T2 Amarillo

 

 

Playoff Sleeper

Lubbock Coronado: The Mustangs have one of the state’s top signal callers, they have playoff experience and they don’t have to deal with the likes of Denton Ryan in Region I any longer.  If Coronado’s defense shows improvement, they’ll be a real tough out as they will score points.

 

Regional Winner

Red Oak over Amarillo Tascosa: This could be the year for the Hawks, they are ultra-talented and confident, this is a team whose athleticism top to bottom will be a real matchup problem for the teams in Region I.  A matchup against Tascosa in a potential regional final will be a chore, but the Hawks face two flexbone teams in district play so the Rebels usual schematic advantage may be limited against teams from District 4-5A Division I.

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