Coke or Dr Pepper? Aggies or Longhorns? Nike or Adidas? Houston or Dallas?

Since time immemorial — or, at least since the start of the modern era of the sport — the great Texas high school football debate across the Lone Star State has centered around the two largest metro areas in the state. Sure, Austin and San Antonio have occasionally poked their head into the conversation. And yes, East Texas can lay claim as well. West Texas has had their moments. But in the long arc of the sport’s history, the question each year is whether Dallas-Fort Worth or Houston has the superior collection of high school football teams.

This is borne out by the recruiting numbers, where the two major metro areas lap the field as far as production. This is borne out at the top of the largest classifications rankings — right now, of the 15 teams that comprise the Top 5s in 6A, 5A DI and 5A DII, nine of them are from Houston or DFW. Heck, we even put the Houston vs. Dallas rivalry on the gatefold cover of our magazine a few years ago.

But what if I were to tell you that in 2024, the premier hotbed of Texas high school football teams…is in greater College Station?

Now, don’t scoff. The Brazos Valley may not have the size of the other mega-regions, but pound-for-pound, there is no greater collection of Texas high school football teams in 2024 than in Aggieland.

Here at Dave Campbell’s Texas Football, in order to keep the more-than-1,500 teams straight, we divide them into 21 geographic regions. Some of them are pretty clear cut — El Paso, the Rio Grande Valley, San Antonio, etc. Others are more nebulous — where does the Concho Valley end and the Hill Country begin, for example? It’s not perfect, and there are always edge cases, but it’s a good way of organizing things.

And the Brazos Valley — that is, greater Bryan-College Station — is the smallest of our regions, comprised of just 22 schools. Compared to Dallas-Fort Worth’s monstrous 210-school reach, it’s a dwarf.

But for such a small region, the Brazos Valley packs quite a punch.

Of the 22 schools, a whopping 10 of them rank in the top 25 of their classification’s DCTF computer rankings — more than 45 percent of the schools. That laps the field, with the Piney Woods (35%) and the Big Country (30%) taking the other two spots on the podium.

DFW? Just 19%. Houston? 14%.

The Brazos Valley has no shortage of headliners. You have Franklin, which has appeared in the last four state championship games. You have College Station, which has established itself as a perennial power (and state champion) in their still-young existence. You have A&M Consolidated, which looks poised for a return to glory. You have Bremond, themselves a multiple-time state champion that could be in for an historic season. And that’s not to mention teams like Brenham, Centerville, Oakwood, Burton and Madisonville, each of them with legit contention aspirations.

Did you notice something about the teams I mentioned? They span a variety of classifications. From 5A to six-man football (the region only has one 6A team, Bryan), the Brazos Valley has a team in the top 25 of our computer rankings in every classification…a claim no other region can make.

Oh, and if you’re looking for prospects? No shortage here. From Franklin’s freight train running back Jayden Jackson to College Station’s star defensive back Braylen Wortham to Bryan’s sleeper receiver Terrence Lewis (and others I’m sure I’m leaving out), the Brazos Valley is teeming with talent.

This isn’t to say that Dallas-Fort Worth or Houston aren’t outstanding (or Austin, or San Antonio, or east Texas, or anywhere for that matter). But if you’re looking for Texas high school football’s hottest region pound-for-pound, head to Aggieland.