PRESEASON PREDICTIONS
North Shore Mustangs
Summer Creek Bulldogs
Atascocita Eagles
C .E . King Panthers
Kingwood Mustangs
Channelview Falcons
Humble Wildcats
Goose Creek Memorial Patriots
(Bold Denotes Playoffs)
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VYPE'S PRESEASON AWARDS
MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Kaleb Bailey, North Shore
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Tory Blaylock, Atascocita
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Devin Sanchez, North Shore
BREAKOUT PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Blake Thomas , Summer Creek
ON THE CUSP: Kingwood Mustangs
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Summer Creek Bulldogs
Bradley C. Collier (VYPE)
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Atascocita Eagles
Bradley C. Collier (VYPE)
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In the realm of Houston-area high school football, no team in recent memory is more accomplished than North Shore, evidenced by their fifth UIL State appearance over the last six seasons. First-year head coach Willie Gaston directed the Mustangs to a 15-0 start to the season, before they fell to bitter rival Duncanville in the final game of the year, which should embolden North Shore to flip the script this Fall. Kaleb Bailey returns as the signal-caller for the #Eastside and will look to lead them back to their 2021 State title-form in the final campaign of his high school career. Rice-commit D’Andre Hardeman Jr. will get the lion’s share of touches in the backfield, after putting up over 1,500 yards and 21 scores on the ground last Fall, which earned him first-team, all-district honors. Following the departure of Christopher Barnes (Washington State) and Terrence Guillory II over the offseason, it will now be up to The Woodlands-transfer Quanell Farrakhan Jr. (Colorado), as well as seniors Deion DeBlanc and Cameron Smith to lead the North Shore receiving crew. The OL will be anchored by Jakoby Isom (UL-L-commit) and Jordan Fields (Pitt-commit). On the defensive side, five-star DB Devin Sanchez (Ohio State) will command a relentless secondary, while district second-teamers LSU-commit Charles Ross (Sr. LB), Morris Taylor (Sr. DB), and Cedric Henderson (Sr. DL) will aim to have bigger roles, while Chace Calicut (Jr. DB) and Shadow Creek-transfer Nigel Pringle (Arkansas-commit) look to make lasting impressions on coach Gaston’s stingy defense.
After finishing second in the district, Summer Creek proceeded to advance all the way to the UIL-6A DII State Final to finish with a remarkable record of 14-2. Defense was undoubtedly the strong-suit for the Bulldogs, as they allowed just under 17 points per game, which included a total of 29 turnovers forced. That trend is likely to remain intact, as coach Kenny Harrison will be bringing back the talents of first-team, all-district honorees Josiah Pratt (Washington State-commit) and Brandon Jones (Sr. DB), as well as second-teamers Qwest Simmons (Sr. LB), Chad Woodfork (TCU-commit) and Texas-commit (Baseball) William Hill (Sr. DB). While there are a few question marks surrounding the Summer Creek offense, given that several key players have since graduated, they should be in capable hands with dual-threat senior Blake Thomas under center.
Atascocita advanced four rounds deep into the postseason a year ago under the direction of head coach Craig Stump, where they narrowly fell 34-28 against district counterpart North Shore in the Class 6A-DI State Quarterfinals. Despite that fact, the Eagles should remain on everyone’s watch-list, as the program consistently finds ways to optimize talent on an annual basis. AHS will feature a one-two punch at the running back position, with senior Tory Blaylock (Oklahoma-commit) and the co-District 21-6A Newcomer of the Year Cardae Mack (Jr.) leading the offensive charge. Second-team, all-district selection Kyran Pate (Sr. WR) will look to lead the new-look receiving corps, after racking up nearly 500 yards through the air in 2023. Per usual, Atascocita’s O-Line will be essential as sophomore Isaiah Rasheed takes the reins of the QB-spot. Meanwhile, all-district, first-teamer Chris Minor (Sr. DL) headlines the defense, alongside fellow seniors Jordan Johnson (LB) and Brandon Washington(DB), who were second-team selections.
In coach George Young’s second year with the program, C.E. King went 9-4, which included a trip to the Regional round of the playoffs. They’ll look to build on that standard in 2024, with their running game likely being the emphasis on offense. All-district, second-teamer Dionne CF Sims (Jr. RB) will command the backfield after putting up some impressive numbers (1,121 all-purpose yards, 10 total TDs) during his sophomore year. Following the departure of Darius Clark-James, someone will need to step up in the quarterback spot, but theO-Line should continue tobe formidable with first-team selection Denathius Harris in the fold. Defensively, the Panthers are still fairly young, so it will be up to senior DB Zarion Hogg to guide the budding group.
Kingwood narrowly missed out on the postseason a year ago, but there is still cause for optimism for this rejuvenated roster. Senior RB Marquez Davis rushed for over 900 yards in 2023, which included nine scores to earn himself first-team, all-district honors. He’ll intend to improve on that mark, as the focal point of coach Cale Melton’s offense. Additionally, the passing game will rely on the performance of senior QB Holland Hargrave, looking to his top-two receivers, Stone Singletery and Jailen Monegan. Expect 2023 district first-teamers Casen McDonald (Sr. DL), Sam Malone (Sr. LB) and Cade Haug (So. LB) to continue wreaking havoc on defense, alongside Braden Fuentes (Sr. LB), Adeolu Dada (Sr. DL), Josh Arroyo (Sr. DB), Trace Taylor (Sr, DB) and junior corner Johnny Ankutse.
Channelview moves over from District 22-6A, where they finished third prior to making an appearance in the playoffs to end the year at 5-6. While they may not be quite the juggernaut they were when Jalen Hurts (Philadelphia Eagles) was behind center, this bunch still has plenty of fight among their ranks. Senior RB Traveon Jackson is coming off a stellar campaign as he racked up nearly 1,100 all-purpose yards and 15 touchdowns, which garnered him a first-team, all-district nod. Others to watch on offense include Jason Wheelock, Josh Wiggins and Nehemiah Jordan. The Falcons’ defense may need some fine-tuning with several starters having since graduated, but first-teamer Shelton Cavitt (Jr. DB) should continue to be a star in the secondary.
There were some growing pains experienced by Humble last Fall, as they went 4-7 to finish sixth in the district. However, that could easily change this season if they play their cards right. Just as it was in 2023, defense will be the Wildcats’ bread-and-butter, as first-team, all-district selections Demoy Carr (Sr. LB), Dontavius Mathes (Sr. DL) and honorable mention Tymir Askew (Sr. DL) return to lead the pack. Offensively, there are still some details that need to be ironed out, but Tristen Bernard (Sr. QB), McArthur Baker (Sr. RB), Tharren Hill (Sr. RB) and Robert Fields (Sr. WR) should remain bright spots for coach Robert Murphy and company.
Goose Creek Memorial moves up from District 8-5A-DI in 2024, which doesn’t exactly make things easier for a team that experienced its fair share of ups and downs a year ago. Despite that, the Patriots will aim to make a worthy introduction in their new division, under the direction of coach Daniel Ragsdale. Joshua Babin will likely be the lead signal-caller for GCM, given his dual-threat capability that earned him second-team, all-district honors last Fall. Furthermore, Jalen Green (Sr. RB) is back to as the lead-horse in the backfield, which should be the focal point for the offense. The Patriots defense could use some work, but there is still hope for this group as they enter the regular season.