NOTE: Rankings courtesy of Dave Campbell's Texas Football
GAMES OF THE WEEK:
5AD2 #6 SOUTH OAK CLIFF (7-1, 6-0) at DALLAS KIMBALL (6-1, 6-0) - 7:30 p.m. Friday
If you want to see one of the biggest games of the year in North Texas, head on over to Kincaide Stadium Friday night. SOC and Kimball have been on a collision course all year. The Golden Bears of SOC have won their last seven, including last week's 63-0 victory over Adamson. State-ranked SOC's only loss is to 6A Duncanville, and they are allowing 4.0 ppg in district play. Kimball edged Hillcrest last week, 26-24, for their sixth consecutive win. Their only loss is to 8-0 6A Garland. Kimball still has to travel to third-place Mesquite Poteet next week. The Pirates are 5-1 in district play, and that lone loss was 77-3 dismantling by South Oak Cliff. Dallas Hillcrest currently holds the fourth spot in 6-5A-2, but Seagoville and Spruce are lurking just a half-game back.
5AD2 #4 ENNIS (8-0, 5-0) at ROYSE CITY (8-0, 5-0) - 7:30 p.m. Friday
District 8-5A-2 is the area's only district with two remaining unbeaten teams, and after this week, only one will be left unscathed. Ennis has been state-ranked all year. They were impressive last week in handing Forney its first district loss, 31-7. RB Dee Johnson is among several offensive weapons the Lions can unleash. He ran for 114 yards and a TD against Forney. Ennis has had only one truly close call this year, and that was the 22-21 OT win over 6A rival Waxahachie on Sept. 10. Unranked Royse City has somewhat quietly rolled to eight consecutive wins, although they nearly stumbled in last week's 65-63 win over Crandall. WR Jonah Roberson had ten receptions for 255 yards and 4 TDs in the victory. Royse City did allow 717 yards of total offense last week, so they will need to tighten up against Ennis.
THE REST OF THE BEST:
6A #10 ALLEN (7-1, 4-0) at PROSPER (5-3, 2-2) - 7 p.m. Friday
Allen has won six straight after last week's 35-14 victory over McKinney. The Eagles hold a one-game lead over Denton Guyer and have locked up the district's top seed in the 6AD1 playoff bracket. Allen showed its backfield depth last week, as RB Devyn Turner filled in for Jaylen Jenkins with 211 rushing yards and 2 TDs. Prosper, which got 211 receiving yards and two scores from WR Houston Hawkins, picked up a big 38-17 win over Denton Braswell last week. That leaves Prosper in a third-place tie with McKinney Boyd. Those two lead fifth-place Braswell by a half-game. If the standings hold, Prosper and Denton Guyer would go to the 6AD2 bracket and McKinney Boyd would join Allen in 6AD1. Remember, once the top four teams in a district are set, the two with the largest enrollment numbers go to 6AD1, while the other two go to 6AD2. Denton Braswell is off this week and still has a game at Allen to close out the regular season.
6A #19 LEWISVILLE (8-0, 5-0) at FLOWER MOUND MARCUS (6-2, 4-1) - 7 p.m. Friday
This annual game is known as the "Battle of the Axe." Dating back to 1986, the rivalry was dominated by Lewisville in the early years, but the script has flipped. Marcus goes into this year's game with two consecutive wins - and 15 of 18 - over the Fighting Farmers. The Marauders have added incentive this time, as Lewisville comes in state-ranked and undefeated. Lewisville rolled to a 38-15 win over Coppell last week, as RB Damien Martinez returned from an injured ankle to run for 116 yards and 3 TDs. Lewisville sits atop the 6-6A standings by one game over FM Marcus and Hebron, which fell to Marcus last week, 28-14. RB Gabe Espinoza ran for three scores. We know that Lewisville will go to the 6AD1 bracket, while Marcus is headed for 6AD2. Meanwhile, Flower Mound and Coppell are currently tied for the fourth playoff spot, and they meet at Flower Mound next week. If Coppell gets the final spot, Hebron would go to 6AD2. But if Flower Mound makes the playoffs, Hebron - thanks to a larger enrollment number - would get bumped up to 6AD1.
6A #15 ARLINGTON MARTIN (6-2, 4-0) at GRAND PRAIRIE (6-3, 5-0) - 7 p.m. Friday
The outright 8-6A district title is on the line in this big game. Martin comes in off a bye week, and they've won four straight. Regardless of this week's outcome, the Warriors will participate in the 6AD1 playoff bracket. After making the playoffs just once in the last decade, Grand Prairie's Gophers have a chance to cruise into the postseason as district champions. Grand Prairie held off Arlington Bowie last week, 42-40, for its fifth consecutive win. RB Drew Damper ran for 254 yards and 3 TDs. This game features what may be my favorite factoid of the entire season. Grand Prairie has won its five district games by a TOTAL of 32 points, or a margin of 6.4 ppg. Arlington Martin has outscored FOUR district opponents by 185 points, a gap of 46.3 ppg. We'll see if that will be a factor this week. Grand Prairie is headed to the 6AD2 bracket.
ROWLETT (2-6, 2-3) at GARLAND (8-0, 5-0) - 7 p.m. Friday
This is an extremely important game for Rowlett, which sits one game behind Wylie for the fourth spot after last week's 28-13 loss to Garland Naaman Forest. The Eagles need wins and help to get into the postseason, especially with Wylie holding the head-to-head tiebreaker. Meanwhile, there are three remaining unbeaten 6A teams in the DFW area. Garland joins Southlake Carroll and Lewisville in that exclusive club. There is no doubt QB Cergio Perez has been the MVP for Garland High this season. In last week's 61-24 win over North Garland, Perez was 29 of 37 for 414 yards and 8 TDs. For the season, he has 42 touchdown passes and only four interceptions. Garland currently holds a one-game lead over Sachse and Naaman Forest in 9-6A. The Owls will head for the 6AD2 playoff bracket.
TYLER LEGACY (5-3, 3-1) at 6A #6 ROCKWALL-HEATH (7-1, 4-0) - 7:30 p.m. Friday
The 10-6A district championship and the top 6AD2 playoff seed hinge on this one. Tyler Legacy trails Rockwall-Heath by one game after last week's 42-20 win over North Mesquite. The Legacy offense is led by RBs Jamarion Miller, who had 124 rushing yards and 3 TDs last week, and Bryson Donnell. Both are Division One quality backs who are part of Tyler Legacy's strong senior leadership. Rockwall-Heath is a one-point loss away from replacing Southlake Carroll in the local 6A undefeateds club. The Hawks dropped a 36-35 decision to Carroll on Sept. 2, and those two could meet again in the playoffs. Rockwall-Heath defeated Mesquite last week, 42-21, for its sixth consecutive win. RB Zach Evans ran for 263 yards and a TD. They also have Sr. QB Josh Hoover, who has thrown for 25 TDs with only three interceptions this season.
JUSTIN NORTHWEST (6-2, 5-0) at FORT WORTH BREWER (7-1, 5-0) - 7 p.m. Friday
This one should determine the outright champion in 3-5A-1. Justin Northwest got three TD passes from QB Jake Strong in last week's 66-14 win over Granbury. It was their fifth straight victory. It has been a magical season for the Brewer Bears, who kinda remind me of Grand Prairie, as both have greatly exceeded expectations this year and are now playing for district titles. FW Brewer is on a six-game win streak after taking down playoff contender Azle last week, 42-27. RB Montrail Cushionberry ran for 290 yards and two scores. Azle now sits a game back of the leaders, and the Hornets are at Justin Northwest next week to close out the regular season, so a three-way tie for the title is still possible.
5AD1 #9 LONGVIEW (6-2, 3-1) at McKINNEY NORTH (4-5, 3-2) - 7 p.m. Thursday
With Highland Park sitting on top of the 7-5A-1 standings, there is still a lot that could happen below the Scots. Longview, which is coming off its bye week, is currently tied with Tyler for second place. Longview will host Tyler next week. Depending on the next two weeks, Longview could fall anywhere from the second seed to the fourth seed in the postseason. McKinney North has a firm grip on the fourth spot currently after last week's big 50-28 win over Sherman. RB Jadan Smith rushed for 167 yards and 2 TDs. A McKinney North win over Longview would elevate them to no worse than a tie for second, and they would hold the tiebreaker over Longview. By the way, Tyler holds the head-to-head tiebreaker over McKinney North.
3AD1 #6 WEST (8-0, 4-0) at 3AD1 #7 GRANDVIEW (8-1, 5-0) - 7:30 p.m. Friday
West may be best known for those delicious kolaches down at the Czech Stop, but their football team has been making a lot of noise this year. They've scored 40+ in six of their eight wins, hitting 60 in district games against Dallas Madison and Dallas A+ Academy. West was off last week, and did struggle in their last game against 3-5 Whitney on Oct. 15. That final was 14-10. Grandview is favored in this matchup. Two of their seven victories are over 4A opponents, and the Zebras' only loss this season came to 8-1 4A Glen Rose on Sept. 17. Grandview has shut out three of its five district opponents, including a 49-0 win over 5-2 Maypearl on Sept. 24. The Zebras also have homefield advantage in this very important matchup with West, which finishes the season at home vs. Maypearl next week.
