GAMES
RANKINGS
WHO IS COMING OUT OF THE 281?
BRACKET BREAKDOWN: Who is representing the 281 in State Semis?
After looking at the public school football playoff bracket, here are the projections to get out the Region and into the State Final Four.
COULD NORTH SHORE BE IN TROUBLE?
Could the North Shore Mustangs have the toughest path out of the Region? The ‘Stangs face Deer Park in the bi-district round. The Deer are not bad. Coach Austin Flynn has a pretty dynamic offense and scrappy defense. They will put up a fight. Then you have Ridge Point in Round 2, led by one of the best QBs in the city in Austin Carlisle. He can do it with his arm and legs. The UH-commit can really run and that could be problematic for North Shore’s defense. The Panthers’ defense will need to really come to play, however. Then they would be on a collision course against Katy… the Katy Tigers, who have a great running game with a dual-headed backfield. Then they would have a rematch with Atascocita, who took them to the wire in the regular season. If it’s not Atascocita, it will be Fulshear, who is as physical as it gets. That is a murderer’s row of playoff opponents. Fasten your seatbelts.
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CHECK OUT THE “ON MY WHISTLE” Podcast where Matt Malatesta and Jackson DiPasquale talk the playoffs.
WHO COMES OUT OF CLASS 6A DII?
Summer Creek reached the State Final a year ago. Who can beat them this year? Anyone? I’m waiting. QB Blake Thomas is a solid dual-threat QB with great a football IQ. He’s played a ton of meaningful high school football. The defense is salty with Chad Woodfork leading the way. Does Hightower have enough offense? Is Jordan physical enough? Is Shadow Creek healthy enough? No, no and no. It might be district-mate Kingwood who has the best chance, but coach Kenny Harrison should return to the State Final Four come December.
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WILLIS, BRIDGELAND CARRY BANNER FOR REGION II
It all comes down to Duncanville and DeSoto. Can anyone give them a game? Houston’s best representatives would be the Willis Wildkats in Class 6A DII and Bridgeland in DI. Willis fell to DeSoto in Round III and will likely meet again this year. They might be better prepared this season with a stingy defense and a well-balanced offense. Jermaine Bishop Jr. is a game-breaker along with Jalen Mickens, Romel Stevens, Terri Lawrence and Daylion Robinson, but can they dominate the trenches on both sides of the ball? That is the difference. Bridgeland can get to the Region Final but won’t be able to match Duncanville. No shame in that.
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RANDLE IS RUMBLING
The Lions have a tough trip to State in Class 5A DII Region III, much like North Shore. Randle will meet either Brenham or Liberty Hill (in State last year) in the third round and will face Iowa Colony in the Regional Final. The Lions are wildly talented with Landen Williams-Callis running the ball and a stingy defense. Coach Brian Randle has one of the best staffs in the state, so let’s see if they can make school history after opening just a few years ago.
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UP FOR GRABS
A&M Consolidated is the favorite to come out of Class 5A DI Region III, so who can challenge the Tigers? Maybe Galveston Ball if Jonah Williams is healthy. Maybe College Station or Lufkin, but it’s looking like A&M Consolidated is simply too explosive and will return to the State Final Four and beyond.
VYPE Austin PxP Pick ‘em: Week Five
Happy Autumn! Jack Farrell (Manor PxP) went 6-1 last week to close out summer and pull into a tie with yours truly (Vandegrift) after Week Four of our “VYPE PxP Pick ‘em” competition. In all, the top half of the pack remains bunched within five games of each other, and no one is truly out of the running…yet.
Bryan Reed (East View) went 7-0 last week to log the first perfect slate of the year while Michael Rose (Hutto) and Josh Blanch (St. Stephen’s) joined Farrell at 6-1 for the week.
The only team everyone picked was Liberty Hill, who cruised to an impressive win over Connally
We’ve got some intriguing district matchups to highlight Week 5 and our “experts” picks were all over the map. See how we all picked below, right after the current standings heading into Week Five.
Standings after Week FoutJack Farrell (6-1, 28-11)
Merle Bertrand (5-2, 28-11)
Matt Lorenz (4-3, 26-13)
Bryan Reed (7-0, 25-14)
Michael Rose (6-1, 25-14)
Melvin Jones (5-2, 25-14)
Josh Willard (5-2, 23-16)
Josh Blanch (6-1, 21-18)
Cecil Coconougher (5-2, 21-18)
David Roy (3-4, 21-18)
Tyler Ulses (5-2, 20-19)
Jeff Goen (4-3, 20-19)
Adam Neuberger (4-3, 18-21)
Here are the Week Five picks!
