Post by CC_Varmints on Feb 24, 2015 14:01:39 GMT -6
District dynamos
2015-02-24 11:30:00
What were the toughest districts in Texas high school football in 2014?
By Greg Tepper
DCTF Managing Editor
It’s a great debate every year: what is the strongest district in Texas high school football? There are arguments for many, but these look like they were the toughest districts in Texas in 2014.
Class 6A: District 8-6A
Division II state champ Cedar Hill leads the pack here, but don’t forget that DeSoto was within an eyelash of knocking off Division I state champ Allen in the area round. And when you consider that Mansfield lost to Southlake Carroll and South Grand Prairie very nearly upset Euless Trinity in the bi-district round, you see this district’s top-to-bottom strength.
Honorable Mention: District 15-6A, District 3-6A, District 6-6A
Class 5A: District 25-5A
We sang its praises all year long, and this Austin-area district was certainly worthy of the hype. We can talk about how Georgetown didn’t even make the playoffs (because the district was so deep) or how every game was a dogfight, but perhaps this fact is most astounding: 5A Division II state runner-up Cedar Park didn’t even win their own district outright. That's how tough it was.
Honorable Mention: District 24-5A, District 16-5A, District 14-5A
Class 4A: District 3-4A DI
The top three in this group were arguably as strong as you’ll find anywhere in Texas. Abilene Wylie, the district champ, was a fearsome foe for any team in driving to the regional semifinals; same goes for Big Spring, which had to get knocked out by district bunkmate Stephenville, who was super-strong. The bugaboo for this district was Graham; the Steers eliminated three of the four playoff teams from this district (Wylie, Stephenville and Brownwood).
Honorable Mention: District 15-4A DII, District 6-4A DII, District 9-4A DI
Class 3A: District 10-3A DI
This pick is largely buoyed by three-time defending champ Cameron Yoe and Rockdale, both of which made the district as fearsome at the top as any in Texas. But don’t forget about Little River Academy, which gave East Chambers all it wanted in the area round, or perennial fly-in-the-ointment Lago Vista.
Honorable Mention: District 5-3A DI, District 9-3A DI, District 11-3A DII
Class 2A: District 15-2A DI
I don’t think there will be many arguments against this, as 15-2A DII contained arguably two of the four strongest teams in Division I in Refugio and Shiner. And it’s not like third-place Weimar was any pushover, either. For a district that didn’t put anyone in the state title game, it was as salty as they come.
Honorable Mention: District 1-2A DI, District 8-2A DI, District 14-2A DII
Class 1A: District 7-1A DI
True, District 8-1A DI had by far the best six-man team in the state in Crowell, but its bi-district bunkmate was stronger throughout, with all four teams winning at least five games. The bellcow was Ira, which drove into the state quarterfinals, but this district was a dogfight every week.
Honorable Mention: District 8-1A DI, District 4-1A DI, District 9-1A DII
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Greg Tepper is the managing editor of Dave Campbell's Texas Football and TexasFootball.com.