Who doesn’t love regional bragging rights?

We’ll have to wait and see which region in Texas can stake claim as the best until the end of the state championships, but for now, we can track the round-to-round progress as teams work their way through the post-season en route to Arlington.

Unsurprisingly, both the DFW (65-54) and Houston area (35-37) have the most teams remaining, but that tends to happen when they’re the most populated areas in the state and are more likely to produce the most playoff teams. But which region had the most successful bi-district weekend when you adjust records for percentage?



Coastal Bend, take a bow.

The schools along the coast went 24-8 this past weekend leaving them with 75 percent of their schools still in the postseason. That’s far beyond the Brazos Valley in second place who went 10-5 (66.7 percent).

Looking a little closer at last weekend, there were some cross-regional matchups that drew statewide attention:

Rockwall (DFW) over The Woodlands (Houston)
In the timeless DFW vs. Houston Texas high school football debate, Rockwall knocking off The Woodlands, last year’s 6A D1 runner-up, 23-7 in the first round was a big feather in the cap of the Metroplex. The Yellow Jackets’ wise game of keep-away worked as Rockwall rushed for just 155 yards, but had nearly 50 rushing attempts to do so controlling much of the game clock. Just like that, one of Houston’s heavy-hitters is out.

Panhandle (Panhandle) over Abernathy (South Plains)
In our last computer rankings of the regular season, Panhandle came into its bi-district game against No. 13 Abernathy ranked 28th and only beat one team with a winning record during the regular season. Abernathy, riding marquee wins over Sundown and Post, looked to be a near-lock for the 2A Division 1 Region 1 finals before falling to the Panthers, 30-21.

Looking ahead to the area round, there will undoubtedly be some big-time cross-regional clashes this weekend:

Lake Travis, 9-2 (Austin) vs Converse Judson, 10-1 (San Antonio) Saturday 2:00pm at Austin’s DKR Memorial Stadium
This is a state championship-caliber matchup and we’re spoiled enough to get it in area. Appropriately enough, it’ll be inside DKR Memorial Stadium in Austin. Whoever comes out of this one has to be the frontrunner in 6A Division 1 Region 4.

Odessa Permian, 9-1 (Permian Basin) vs Arlington Martin, 10-1 (DFW) Friday 3:30pm at Arlington’s Maverick Stadium
Two of the top 10 teams in 6A Division 1 Region 1 square off in Arlington. The last time Odessa Permian played a team from the DFW was in 2015 when it knocked off Arlington Bowie in the bi-district round, 49-12. The Warriors are 5-0 in their last five matchups with schools from the Permian Basin, all coming in the postseason.

Mount Vernon, 11-0 (East Texas) vs Kemp, 10-1 (DFW) Friday 2:00pm at Mesquite’s Hanby Stadium
In a game that could decide who challenges Jefferson and Grandview for the 3A Division 1 Region 2 crown, Kemp looks to complete its rebuild under third-year head coach Brandon Hankins with a signature playoff win in the area round over a Mount Vernon team who we pegged at No. 6 in 3A Division I at the end of the regular season.