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Texas high school football is back, and programs in the Dallas-area will begin taking the field this week.
Here are 10 Dallas-area players to watch during Week 1 of the 2024 Texas high school football season.
McKinney at Frisco Emerson, 7 p.m. Thursday at the Ford Center at The Star
The five-star Ohio State pledge is the No. 2-ranked linebacker in Texas and had an extraordinary 125 tackles as a junior to go with eight sacks. He will be facing an Emerson team that averaged 51.9 points per game — best among area 5A schools — and 450.8 yards of total offense during a run to the Class 5A Division II state semifinals.
Sachse at Coppell, 7 p.m. Friday
The Baylor pledge threw for 288 yards and five touchdowns in last year’s 44-41 win over Sachse, and he had four touchdown passes in the second half. This could be another high-scoring affair, as Sachse ranked fifth among area 6A teams in passing (271.6 yards per game) and returns five-star Texas pledge Kaliq Lockett, the nation’s No. 3-ranked wide receiver who had five catches for 154 yards and a touchdown against Coppell last year.
Lake Highlands at Forney, 7 p.m. Friday at City Bank Stadium
The four-star junior is rated the fourth-best running back in the nation in the Class of 2026 after he ran for 2,204 yards and 38 touchdowns as Forney reached its first state semifinal since 2002. Forney has moved up to Class 6A in realignment, and its first game in the new classification will be against a Lake Highlands team that is coming off a 9-3 season — the third time in four years that it has won at least nine games.
Argyle at Frisco Lone Star, 7 p.m. Friday at the Ford Center at The Star
Lone Star four-star running back Davian Groce gets a ton of attention, and rightfully so after he had a combined 1,796 yards and 22 touchdowns rushing and receiving as a sophomore last year. But Jones, a four-star Texas Tech pledge, is rated the 12th-best wide receiver in Texas and had 64 catches for 1,092 yards and 15 touchdowns in an offense that ranked fourth among area 5A teams in passing yards per game (244.8).
Red Oak at Colleyville Heritage, 7 p.m. Friday at Mustang-Panther Stadium
The four-star Baylor pledge had six 100-yard games en route to amassing 80 catches for 1,251 yards and 14 touchdowns. There should be plenty of fireworks in the passing game, as Colleyville Heritage ranked second in passing yards per game and Red Oak was third among area 5A teams last year.
Ennis at Waxahachie, 7 p.m. Friday
Going into the 103rd meeting between these teams, the all-time series is tied 50-50-2 in the “Battle of 287.” Harris, an Oklahoma pledge who is the fifth-ranked wide receiver in the Dallas area, will try to help Ennis end a two-game losing streak in the series.
Aledo at Denton Guyer, 7:30 p.m. Friday at C.H. Collins Complex
The four-star Oklahoma pledge makes his Guyer debut after transferring from Carl Albert (Okla.), where he accounted for 42 touchdowns for Oklahoma’s Class 5A state champion. He will face an Aledo team that has won back-to-back Class 5A Division I state titles and beat Guyer 48-45 last year on a field goal on the last play of the game.
South Oak Cliff at Galena Park North Shore, 7:30 p.m. Friday
Phillips had 95 tackles, 22 tackles for loss and 14 sacks as a sophomore and has picked up offers from Ohio State, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas A&M, among others. He will look to slow down a prolific North Shore offense led by star quarterback Kaleb Bailey, who accounted for 52 touchdowns and 4,244 yards of total offense for last year’s Class 6A Division I state runner-up.
North Crowley vs. Lancaster, 2 p.m. Saturday at the Ford Center at The Star
The North Texas pledge is one of the state’s most dangerous dual-threat quarterbacks, as he showed last year when he threw for 3,092 yards and 40 touchdowns and ran for 1,105 yards and 12 touchdowns to lead North Crowley to its first state semifinal since 2003. Jimerson accounted for at least three touchdowns in 11 of North Crowley’s 15 games, and he had one game with seven touchdown passes and two other games in which he accounted for six touchdowns.
Creekside (Ga.) at DeSoto, 5 p.m. Saturday
The four-star Texas A&M pledge has had back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons despite missing five games and getting only 137 carries last season during an injury plagued junior year. He is healthy now and makes DeSoto’s offense even more explosive than a year ago, when it averaged 53.4 points and 516.2 yards of total offense while winning its second straight Class 6A Division II state title.
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The wealthy Texas housewife accused of plowing into and killing a man on a first date while drunk and high claims her expensive high heels got stuck on the gas pedal of her Porsche 911 Carrera.
Kristina Chambers, 34, went on trial Friday for manslaughter in connection with the April 2023 crash that killed 33-year-old Joseph McMullin as he and his date were leaving a Voodoo Doughnut shop in Houston.
Prosecutors allege Chambers had been bar-hopping with friends that night, was four times over the legal alcohol limit, and had small baggies of cocaine in her car and purse, according to the Houston Chronicle.
But her attorney, Mark Thiessen, argued her designer shoes caused the fatal crash.
Thiessen claims his clients expensive Christian Louboutin heels had gotten stuck on the gas pedal of her Porsche as she drover down “one of Houston’s most dangerous curves.”
However, prosecutors Andrew Figliuzzi refuted the argument to the jury — believing Chambers was “itching to show off her sports car” to her two friends inside the Porsche at the time of the fatal wreck.
About an hour after the crash, Chambers registered a blood alcohol level of .301, nearly four times the legal limit, the Houston Chronicle reported, citing medical records.
Audio tech Briana Iturrino, who was on a date with McMullin that night, told the court they’d just left Voodoo Doughnuts around 2:25 a.m. when she saw blinding headlights barreling straight at them.
Iturrino testified that she realized the speedy sports car — estimated to be traveling over 70 mph at the time of impact — was about to make a sharp turn directly toward them.
In the blink of an eye, the Porsche whipped past, missing Iturrino by inches — and when she turned to shout a warning to McMullin, he had vanished.
“I thought he had gotten out of the way, because I couldn’t find him,” Iturrino said.
Iturrino said she felt something brush against her hip, which she first thought was the car, but later realized was McMullin being thrown about 30 feet as Chambers drove on and slammed into a pole.
She then called 911 and a dispatcher instructed her to perform CPR until paramedics arrived, but McMullin died at the scene.
Chambers and her two passengers were injured in the wreck.
The general manager of the nearby Slick Willie’s pool hall, Alfredo Ponce, also testified, telling the court he heard the crash and ran outside to help, the outlet reported.
“I’ve seen so many accidents on that road,” Ponce said. “Every time, I get out and help whoever needs help and is injured.”
Ponce testified that the crash was one of the worst he had seen and said when he reached the sports car to help those inside he remembered it reeked of alcohol.
Chambers was charged with manslaughter in McMullin’s death. She has pleaded not guilty, with prosecutors alleging she was driving at an excessive speed and lost control of her vehicle.
In the two years since her arrest, Chambers’ case has seen a string of legal battles.
A wrongful death lawsuit filed by McMullin’s parents against Chambers in June 2023 remains pending.
The suit also partly blames Chambers’ former partner — hedge fund manager, Xuan Si, who filed for divorce from her just days after she was released on bail — for purchasing the luxury sports car just months before the fatal crash.
However, Si has denied purchasing the sports car for his ex-wife, claiming instead that she bought the car herself using cash from their joint account.
Si also denied that his wife had a drinking problem, and said he had never seen her consume drugs or drive drunk.
Sebastian Lopez — a close friend who was riding with Chambers the night of the fatal crash — described her as an “alcoholic” in his deposition and claimed Si knew she regularly drank and did drugs.
He added that she’d driven drunk “a handful” of times, even after getting the luxury Porsche.
McMullins grieving parents are seeking over $1 million in compensation for their son’s death.
Lawyers in Chambers’ criminal trial have been forbidden from mentioning the explosive claims in the civil lawsuit, which is slated for an April court date.
Welcome to our guide to the commodities powering the global economy. Today, Will Wade looks at how soaring energy demand is making Texas excited about nuclear power.
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There’s not many undefeated teams left at the top of the college football rankings, but Texas A&M is one of them. LSU will be looking for redemption when the Aggies roll into town, after losing to Vanderbilt and dropping nine spots in the USA Today Coaches Poll.
Vanderbilt defeated LSU, nearly dropping the Tigers to sub-20 ranking. On the other hand, the Aggies have only faced one ranked opponent, squeaking by Notre Dame earlier in the season. Texas A&M is coming off a close win over the Arkansas Razorbacks.
Don’t miss this top-20 SEC matchup, tickets are available now.
Here’s everything you need to know to buy LSU vs. Texas A&M tickets:
The LSU Tigers will host the Texas A&M Aggies at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, La. on Saturday, Oct. 25 at 7:30 p.m. ET.
Tickets are available now, starting at $117. For a slightly better view, tickets on the east or west sides are starting at $327.
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