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2024 Texas high school football playoff predictions: Best bi-district matchups

Published

1 year ago

November 13, 2024

2024 Texas high school football playoff predictions: Best bi-district matchups

Our panel of high school football experts — Greg Riddle, Myah Taylor, Ronald Harrod, and Colin Capece — break down each playoff region featuring Dallas-area teams.

Other playoff predictions

6A Division I Region I

Best first-round matchup

Taylor: Allen vs. Lewisville. For the third straight year, Allen and Lewisville will meet in the first round of the playoffs. Lewisville won 43-18 in 2022, and Allen pulled out the 18-17 win in 2023 before making a run to the regional finals.

Harrod: North Crowley vs. Trophy Club Byron Nelson. North Crowley leads area 6A teams in total offense, averaging 556.4 yards per game, while Byron Nelson ranks 14th in scoring defense, allowing 22.6 points per game. North Crowley quarterback Chris Jimerson Jr. has a region-best 42 passing touchdowns and leads the No. 4 passing offense with an average of 262.9 yards per game.

Riddle: Prosper vs. Coppell. Coppell has one of the best passing games in the area, averaging 274.3 yards per game with Baylor pledge Edward Griffin throwing for 2,721 yards and 38 touchdowns and Harry Hassmann catching 34 passes for 1,054 yards and 16 touchdowns and averaging 31 yards per catch. Prosper has one of the best offensive lines in the state and averages 42.8 points as Leo Anguiano has run for 862 yards and 15 touchdowns.

Capece: Allen vs. Lewisville. These two teams will meet in the bi-district round for the third consecutive year. Allen is ranked No.5 in The Dallas Morning News’ final regular season rankings, and Lewisville is No.11. Friday night’s game could be a classic.

6A Division I Region II

Best first-round matchup

Taylor: Rockwall vs. Sachse. Sachse picked up its second consecutive District 9-6A title and rides a nine-game winning streak into the playoffs. Its offense has been mostly powered by three-star Boise State commit Brendon Haygood, who has rushed for 1,500 yards and 17 touchdowns. Rockwall quarterback Brent Rickert has passed for 2,327 yards and 36 touchdowns.

Harrod: Waco Midway vs. Waxahachie. Waxahachie boasts a top defense among area 6A teams, ranking No. 16 in rushing (127.4 yards allowed per game) and No. 19 in scoring (23.5 points allowed per game). On offense, Waxahachie quarterback Jerry Meyer III has thrown for 2,465 yards with 22 touchdowns and seven interceptions.

Riddle: Rockwall vs. Sachse. Five-star wide receiver Kaliq Lockett, committed to Texas, and Boise State-bound running back Brendon Haygood (1,500 yards, 17 touchdowns rushing) are a prolific duo for a 9-1 Sachse team that averages 37.1 points. Rockwall’s offense has been even better, averaging 41.7 points as Brent Rickert has 36 touchdown passes and Triston Gooch and Camron Marsh have combined for 108 catches for 1,792 yards and 29 touchdowns.

Capece: Sachse vs. Rockwall. The Mustangs steamrolled everyone in 9-6A on the ground this season with running back and Boise State commit Brendon Haygood, and Texas-bound Kaliq Lockett gives them an elite home-run threat at wide receiver. Rockwall had a down year after winning 9 regular season games last season, but they still boast a top-five rusher in Jamir Wilson. Sachse is ranked 11th in The News’ final regular season rankings, and Rockwall is ranked 19th.

6A Division II Region I

Best first-round matchup

Taylor: Prosper Rock Hill vs. Hebron. Both teams snuck into the playoffs this season, with Rock Hill qualifying for the postseason for the first time in program history. Hebron made the playoffs for the first time since 2021.

Harrod: McKinney vs. Denton Guyer. McKinney ranks fifth in area 6A rushing defense, allowing 94 yards per game, while Denton Guyer is 12th, giving up 119.2 yards. Both teams lean on strong front sevens, with Denton Guyer’s Xavier Ukponu ranked as the No. 2 defensive lineman and McKinney’s Riley Pettijohn the top-rated defensive recruit in the Dallas area.

Riddle: McKinney vs. Denton Guyer. Guyer four-star Oklahoma pledge Kevin Sperry is the No. 2-ranked quarterback in the Dallas area. McKinney four-star linebacker Riley Pettijohn, committed to Ohio State, is the No. 1-rated defensive recruit in D-FW.

Capece: Guyer vs. McKinney. The Wildcats enter the bi-district round with some momentum after taking care of business against Denton Braswell, while the Lions suffered a surprising loss to Prosper Rock Hill. Denton Guyer quarterback and Oklahoma commit Kevin Sperry will look to stay hot after throwing for 255 yards last week, but McKinney’s defense is among the 6A leaders in passing yards per game. Guyer is ranked 13th in the most recent rankings, and McKinney is not ranked.

6A Division II Region II

Best first-round matchup

Taylor: Forney vs. Wylie East. Forney secured a playoff berth last week with its 56-46 come-from-behind win over Rockwall-Heath. A newcomer to Class 6A, Forney was a Class 5A Division I state semifinalist last season. One-loss Wylie East was the District 9-6A runner-up in 2024.

Harrod: Forney vs. Wylie East. Wylie East’s Michael Henderson, a Texas Tech commit, faces off against a Forney defense led by Texas A&M commit Kelvion Riggins. Henderson has rushed for 972 yards and 10 touchdowns on 104 carries. Forney’s defense has held two opponents under 20 points this season.

Riddle: Forney vs. Wylie East. Forney is just 5-5 and had to rally from a 26-7 third-quarter deficit to beat Rockwall-Heath 56-46 in the regular-season finale to make the playoffs. But after reaching the state semifinals in 5A Division I last year, and with an offense led by four-star running back Javian Osborne (21 rushing touchdowns this year), don’t be surprised if Forney beats 9-1 Wylie East.

Capece: Wylie East vs. Forney. The Raiders were the runner-ups to Sachse in 9-6A, which means they’ll meet a talented Forney team that snuck into the playoffs in the last week of the regular season by beating Rockwall-Heath. Forney was a 5A Division I state semifinalist last year and is dangerous on the ground with four-star prospect Javian Osborne.

5A Division I Region I

Best first-round matchup

Taylor: Richland vs. Fort Worth Arlington Heights. Richland went three rounds deep in the postseason last year and should be on pace to make another long run, which starts against 9–1 Arlington Heights. Senior quarterback Drew Kates has accounted for 37 all-purpose touchdowns for Richland this season and is the team’s leading rusher.

Harrod: Denton Ryan vs. Fort Worth Paschal. Denton Ryan is one of the most balanced 5A teams in the Dallas area, ranking No. 8 in total offense with 424.6 yards per game and No. 6 in scoring at 46.4 points per game. Defensively, they are No. 5 in total defense, allowing just 87.1 yards per game, and No. 6 in scoring defense, giving up 17.7 points per game.

Riddle: Richland vs. Fort Worth Arlington Heights. These teams are a combined 17-3, but expect Richland to dominate behind quarterback Drew Kates, who has accounted for 37 touchdowns and is the team’s leading rusher.

Capece: Richland vs. Fort Worth Arlington Heights. Richland enters the bi-district round having lost two of its last four, but the Royals are never out of any game with quarterback Drew Kates. The senior is second in class 5A in passing yards and has also stepped up to lead his team in rushing, after an early-season injury to four-star Baylor commit Michael Turner. Richland is looking to improve on its playoff success from last season, when it reached the regional round.

5A Division I Region II

Best first-round matchup

Taylor: West Mesquite vs. McKinney North. After finishing 3–7 last season, West Mesquite is undefeated entering the playoffs. A McKinney North team that went 5–3 in District 5-5AI — with Frisco Lone Star, Frisco Reedy and Frisco Wakeland — should be a test for the resurgent program.

Harrod: Frisco Reedy vs. Carrollton Creekview. This matchup features one of the top passing teams against one of the top rushing teams in the area. Frisco Reedy quarterback Jake Ferner has completed 114 of 193 passes for 1,987 yards, tallying 22 touchdowns and three interceptions. Carrollton Creekview’s DeAndre Richardson has rushed for 964 yards and 15 touchdowns on 124 carries.

Riddle: Leander Rouse vs. Highland Park. This region includes three teams ranked among the top 10 in the state – No. 4 Highland Park, No. 8 Frisco Lone Star and No. 10 Georgetown. Six-time state champion Highland Park opens the playoffs against a Rouse team that has won its playoff opener four years in a row and went three rounds deep in 2020 and 2021.

Capece: Frisco Lone Star vs. White. Lone Star has been the best Frisco school all season long. After an upset loss to Wakeland in Week 9, it has won back-to-back games and looks primed to make a run at a state title. They face a tough test in the bi-district round against W.T. White, but don’t expect the Rangers to stumble.

5A Division II Region I

Best first-round matchup

Taylor: Colleyville Heritage vs. Anna. The 2023 4A Division I state champion, Anna lost its first two district games this season but ran the table to clinch District 4-5AII’s third seed. Colleyville Heritage was a regional finalist in 2023 and was the District 3-5AII runner-up behind Argyle this season.

Riddle: Frisco Emerson vs. Argyle. Emerson reached the state semifinals last year in its second season of varsity football, then followed that up with a 7-3 regular season in arguably the toughest 5A district in the state. Its reward is a first-round matchup against Argyle, ranked No. 4 in the state this year and a state semifinalist two years ago.

Capece: Anna vs. Colleyville Heritage. The loser of this first-round game will likely feel like it could have accomplished a whole lot more this year. In 2023, Anna won the 4A Division I state title, and Colleyville Heritage was a 5A regional finalist. Both teams are ranked in the top-15 of the most recent 5A poll.

5A Division II Region II

Best first-round matchup

Taylor: Hillcrest vs. Kaufman. Hillcrest finished second in District 5-5AII behind South Oak Cliff and Kaufman went 5–2 in District 6-5AII.

Harrod: South Oak Cliff vs. Terrell. After falling to Port Neches-Groves in the 5A Division II state championship, South Oak Cliff has bounced back with eight straight wins against 5A opponents. South Oak Cliff boasts the top-ranked defense among area 5A teams, allowing just 121.2 yards per game. Terrell, which finished fourth in its district, features the ninth-ranked rushing attack in the area, averaging 231.6 yards per game.

Riddle: Nederland vs. Texarkana Texas High. Texas High, 10-0 and ranked No. 3 in the state, opens the playoffs against a Nederland team that beat defending 5A Division II state champion Port Neches-Groves.

4A Division I Region II

Capece: Kimball vs. Aubrey. Two teams ranked in the top-5 in the most recent 4A poll will meet in this first round game. Kimball won District 8-4AI, while Aubrey finished fourth in District 7-4AI. Kimball moved from Division 5A Division II to 4A Division I this year.

4A Division II Region II

Capece: Sunnyvale vs. Caddo Mills. Sunnyvale is ranked fifth in the most recent 4A poll and is looking to go further in the playoffs this year. It won its bi-district game last season, but lost to eventual state champion Gilmer in the next round.

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Johnny Manziel Replaced by a Different Texas A&M Great As ‘College GameDay’ Guest Picker

Published

8 hours ago

December 20, 2025

Press Room

Johnny Manziel Replaced by a Different Texas A&M Great As ‘College GameDay’ Guest Picker

ESPN’s College GameDay is pulling double duty this weekend for the College Football Playoff, airing ahead of last night’s Alabama win at Oklahoma and again this morning in College Station, Texas for Texas A&M’s opening-round game against Miami.

A pair of notorious college football legends were set to represent for their schools as guest pickers. Brian Bosworth was on hand in Norman, Okla. for Friday night’s show, while Heisman winner Johnny Manziel was set to serve as guest picker on Saturday. Evidently there’s been a change of plans with Johnny Football, as moments ago host Rece Davis former Aggies basketball star and two-time NBA champion Alex Caruso was announced as the show’s guest picker.

College GameDay has not announced a reason for the change, and has not announced it on social media.

Manziel has not comented about the change either. He shared a number of Instagram stories on Friday night from the Anthony Joshua-Jake Paul boxing match, which took place at the Kaseya Center in Miami.

Bleacher Report also promoted that Manziel was to appear on the outlet’s pregame show from Kyle Field, which livestreamed on YouTube at 10 a.m. ET. Manziel shared Bleacher Report’s Instagram post about his appearance to his stories on Friday night, but he did not appear on the Saturday show alongside Mike Golic Jr. and Ray G.

Manziel previously served as guest picker for the Aggies’ Week 1 game against Notre Dame. Caruso will be making his College GameDay debut.

Caruso is a College Station native who stayed home to star for the Aggiest basketball program from 2012 to ‘16, earning SEC All-Defensive Team and second-team All-SEC honors during his impressive college career. He left college as the program leader in assists and steals, and was the centerpiece of the 2015–16 team that made a run to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament.

Caruso has gone on to become a valuable role player in the NBA. After going undrafted and beginning his career in the G League, Caruso played for the Lakers from 2017 to ‘21, winning the 2020 NBA Finals. He played in 21 playoff games, making one start during that title run, and averaged 6.5 points, 2.8 assists and 1.1 steals per game.

He continued his career with the Bulls from 2021 to ‘24, scoring a career high 10.1 points per game in his final season with Chicago. Following the 2023–24 season, he was traded to the Thunder, and was a crucial piece to the dominant 2024–25 Oklahoma City title team, averaging 7.1 points per game through the regular season and playing some of his best ball in the playoffs, with 9.2 points and two steals per game during the title run.

Caruso did not score 20 points once during the regular season for OKC, but did it twice in the Thunder’s Finals win over the Pacers, making NBA history in the process.

Oklahoma City made clear how valuable he is after the season, signing Caruso to a guaranteed four-year, $81 million contract extension.

This is a developing story. Check back for more updates.

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Kentucky vs. Texas A&M: Time, TV channel, preview for DI women’s volleyball championship

Published

21 hours ago

December 20, 2025

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Kentucky vs. Texas A&M: Time, TV channel, preview for DI women’s volleyball championship

From the 64 teams selected to compete in the NCAA DI women’s volleyball tournament, just No. 1 Kentucky and No. 3 Texas A&M remain. Reaching the national championship is no small feat, from Dec. 4 all the way to Dec. 18, these two programs have battled to etch their names into history.

Let’s take a look on how the Wildcats and the Aggies punched their tickets to the national final.

No. 1 Kentucky	ROUND	NO. 3 TEXAS A&M
Def. Wofford, 3-0	First	Def. Campbell, 3-0
Def. UCLA, 3-1	Second	Def. No. 6 TCU, 3-0
Def. Cal Poly, 3-0	Regional semifinals	Def. No. 2 Louisville, 3-2
Def. No. 3 Creighton, 3-0	Regional finals	Def. No. 1 Nebraska, 3-2
Def. No. 3 Wisconsin, 3-2	National semifinals	Def. No. 1 Pitt, 3-0

👉 Check out the full schedule, scores from the 2025 women’s volleyball tournament

No. 1 Kentucky (30-2)

Big Blue fought for a dramatic five-setter victory over No. 3 Wisconsin to earn its second ever national championship appearance and first since their 2021 national title. The Badgers seemed to have all control after a Set 1 25-12 victory, but Kentucky wouldn’t be denied. Eva Hudson was on fire, accruing 29 kills on .455 hitting, while Molly Tuozzo’s back-court defense—with 17 critical digs—fought off a career night from Mimi Colyer.

No. 3 Texas A&M (28-4)

The Aggies knocked off No. 1 Pitt in three straight sets, continuing their historic season by earning the program’s first-ever national championship appearance. Kyndal Stowers powered the Maroon and White with 16 kills on .433 hitting while setter Maddie Waak orchestrated her balanced offense to an impressive .382 clip, with four different Aggies earning at least eight put-aways.

Both programs are heating up at just the right time, priming Sunday’s matchup to be an intense face-off between SEC foes. Make sure to follow the action here on NCAA.com at 3:30 p.m. ET.

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Next Up – Texas Tech In NYC

Published

1 day ago

December 19, 2025

Press Room

Date 12/20 || Time 8:00 || Venue Madison Square Garden || Video ESPN

With the exception of Michigan on February 21st, Duke will finish off non-conference play on Saturday with Texas Tech in Madison Square Garden.

Why the Garden? Well, first because Duke has a lot of alum in the area. They call it Cameron North for a reason. And second, playing in MSG always draws a lot of attention. Duke could play in United Center – and in fact did, facing off against Arkansas there on November 27th – and it doesn’t draw the sort of attention that MSG does.

Years ago, Texas Tech was an afterthought. Then Chris Beard made the Red Raiders a major power and now Grant McCasland has done very well there too. He has an interesting history.

Other than two-year stints at Northeastern JUCO as an assistant and Arkansas State as a head coach, McCasland’s career has been entirely in the Lone Star state. He’s also been at Midland College, Midwestern State, Baylor as an assistant, North Texas and now Texas Tech.

And he’s won everywhere. And this is really important to understand: it’s really hard to win at places like Midland, Midwestern State, Arkansas State and North Texas. His NCAA record is 263-109 (.707) and 142-32 (.816).

For perspective, Mike Krzyzewski’s career winning percentage at Duke is .766. We’re the last people to take anything from Coach K, but even he’d probably admit it’s easier to succeed at Duke than it is at the places McCasland has coached.

Texas Tech finished 28-9 last season (McCasland’s Texas Tech record: 55-21. Winning percentage .724) and so far this season, is 8-3. The losses have come against Illinois (81-77), Purdue (86-56) and Arkansas (93-86).

Arkansas is the only common opponent but Texas Tech also played Wake Forest, so presumably that video will be a two-for-one for scouting purposes.

Impressively, he’s not coaching the same way at Texas Tech as he did at North Texas. With the Mean Green, with less talent, he played a more deliberate style. In Lubbock, he’s opened things up a bit. His offense is a little freer or maybe less structured is a better way to put it, or maybe less deliberate. He has more room for error with Texas Tech.

The unquestioned star for Texas Tech is JT Toppin, a 6-9/230 lb. junior who is a legitimate Player of the Year candidate. Toppin is putting up 21.9 ppg, 10.6 rebounds and 2.0 assists. He’s got a 7-0+ wingspan and is also an excellent defender. He needs to work on his outside game but is widely seen as a future pro. He’ll almost certainly guard Duke’s star Cameron Boozer.

McCaslin also has a solid backcourt with Chris Anderson and Donovan Atwell. Anderson, a 6-3 sophomore from Atlanta, is getting 19.3 ppg, 3.5 apg and an impressive 7.5 assists.

Atwell, a 6-5 senior, is putting up 11.3 ppg, 3 rebounds, a half an assist and 1.3 steals.

LeJuan Watts, a 6-6 junior, averages 14 ppg, 5.9 rebounds and 2.6 assists.

Jaylen Petty is a 6-1 freshman who is getting 26 mpg, so obviously McCaslin trusts him. He’s putting up 7.4 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.9 assists.

Tyeree Bryan is a 6-5 senior who is getting 5.6 ppg and 3.4 rebounds.

The last guy in the rotation, Luke Bamgboye, is 6-11/220 but he is injured and most likely won’t play Saturday.

McCaslin, clearly, is a brilliant coach, but he has had some issues this year, not least of all defense.

Texas Tech has struggled on the defensive end, which is one thing against Purdue or Illinois, but it was a problem against Northern Colorado (the Rockies UNC), where the Bears scored 90 points on the Red Raiders, shooting 44% on threes and 56% overall.

The Lubbock Avalanche-Journal said this about the game against Northern Colorado: “McCasland hasn’t gotten what he needs defensively from, really, anybody else on the team. He pointed to the team’s lack of ability to guard 1-on-1, in the post, covering switches and working through screens. After a solid defensive showing against LSU and a close game against Arkansas, McCasland said the team took ‘a big step back’ on the defensive end.”

That’s a tough assessment from the hometown paper.

Our guess though is that McCasland will figure out some of his issues between Tuesday’s win over the Bears and Saturday’s trip to New York.

And if Duke plays as poorly as it did in the first half against Lipscomb, Texas Tech won’t have to play great defense. They’ll just pick off balls like the Bisons did with Duke’s 16 first-half turnovers.

Part of that is down to exam/holidays and a lack of continuity, and indeed, that could be the case for Texas Tech’s tough game against Northern Colorado (by the way, we forgot to mention that the Bears were missing their best player, Quinn Denker).

Duke has tended to start slow this year and make it up in the second half and at times they may have been to reliant on Cam Boozer.

But we’ve seen signs of change.

Caleb Foster is turning into a solid presence and a guy who can do things when they need to be done. He’s reliable, in other words. Isaiah Evans hasn’t been shooting that well, but he’s due for a big game that might come in New York. And if not, he’s defending well, rebounding well and even blocking shots. He’s been terrific.

So has Patrick Ngongba, who has sort of snuck up on people. Last year he became a reliable presence off the bench but this year, he looks much more like a warrior. He’s really come on. Then there’s Nik Khamenia, who is as tough a player as we’ve seen in Duke blue for a while.

Maliq Brown is, well, Maliq Brown. He’s just a great asset, especially on defense. We’d like to see Dame Sarr take a step up, along with Darren Harris and Cayden Boozer. All three are very capable of playing better and Duke will go up a level when they do.

New York is a funny place to play. The Garden has such an aura that it can intimidate some players. There are other players who thrive there under the bright lights. It’ll be interesting to see who does this time.

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