REGIONAL OUTLOOK

While the other regions in Class 6A seem to have a clear favorite in at least one of the two divisions, that is not the case in Region I, which may be more up for grabs than it has ever been heading into 2023.

We start out west in the Sun City where 1-6A has been as competitive as any district in the state. There does appear to be a clear favorite in El Paso Pebble Hills. The Spartans were 10-2 a year ago and pushed North Crowley in the area playoffs before falling by a touchdown. They could be even more explosive on offense in 2023. If their young defense matures, expect the Spartans to be a real tough out in the playoffs. Eastwood gets the edge over Franklin for the second spot, while a senor-laden Americas squad should hold off stiff challenges from El Dorado, Montwood, Eastlake and Coronado.

Out in the Little Southwest Conference, the Midland Legacy Rebels start the year as the big favorite to win the district and they could be West Texas’ best hope for a deep playoff push after losing a heartbreaker in the area playoffs a year ago. The Rebels return 15 starters, several of whom are three-year starters for Clint Hartman’s squad. Frenship’s got one of the most explosive offensive attacks in the region and will again be in the mix. Things get really murky for spots three to six; any combination of the final four teams have a legitimate case for a playoff spot.

After a surprise run to a 12-1 record a year ago, North Crowley enters the season with the target on iits back as a big favorite to repeat and challenge for a regional title. The big question for the Panthers is do they go Division I or Division II? Last year they went Division I and I think this year with the improvement of Trinity and Bell, that could push the Panthers into Division II. Weatherford could be in the playoff mix as well. Crowley and Boswell, two playoff teams from a year ago, are both in a transition in 2023 with new coaches and young teams.

Southlake Carroll is again the heavy favorite in 4-6A and there doesn’t appear to be nearly as much of a question on where they’ll end up come playoff time as the Dragons almost certainly expect to go to Division II. Byron Nelson took some heavy losses on offense, but the Bobcats have a defense that returns all 11 starters from a year ago. They get the edge over Haslet Eaton for the second spot. The battle for fourth will be a real Keller ISD dogfight between Timber Creek and Keller.

There are a lot more questions in 5-6A than answers at the moment as much of the district enters 2023 in flux due to transfers, heavy graduation losses and new coaches. Denton Guyer gets the nod over McKinney to open up the season, but the gap is quite small; McKinney looks loaded after a three-round playoff run, while Guyer has to replace a loaded senior class after going 14-1 a year ago. Prosper has a new coach and some big losses due to graduation after it made the state semifinals in Division I. Allen had a rough 2022 season under first-year head coach Lee Wiginton. The Eagles have a good group of young players, but they have big questions at QB. Rock Hill had its star QB transfer out of state in June and Braswell hired a new head coach this season.

Lewisville has the look of a regional champion based on the what’s returning on the offensive side of the ball from a 12-2 squad. The big question for the Fighting Farmers is how will a young defensive front seven mature through the course of the season. Coppell posted nine wins in its debut season under head coach Antonio Wiley and the Cowboys appear to be even better in 2023. There are a lot of questions after the top two teams in the district as parity is a big player for spots three through eight.

Highland Park is almost automatic at this point as the projected favorite to win 7-6A. The Scots only bring back two starters on both sides of the ball, but that’s never an issue for Randy Allen’s squads, which always reloads. The real interesting battle will be for the second spot where the gap between Jesuit and Richardson ISD is closing and fast.

Arlington Martin has had the run of Arlington ISD in recent year and the Warriors will open up as the favorites in 8-6A. But the gap between Martin, who is under a new coach, and the rest of the district has closed. South Grand Prairie is battle tested and will always be a tough out, while Arlington High and Arlington Bowie return a ton from teams that made the playoffs a year ago.

DISTRICT PREDICTIONS

District 1-6A

1. El Paso Pebble Hills
2. El Paso Eastwood
3. El Paso Franklin
4. El Paso Americas
5. El Paso Eastlake
6. El Paso Coronado
7. El Paso El Dorado
8. El Paso Montwood
9. El Paso Socorro

District 2-6A

1. Midland Legacy
2. Wolfforth Frenship
3. Odessa Permian
4. Midland
5. San Angelo Central
6. Odessa

District 3-6A

1. North Crowley
2. Euless Trinity
3. Weatherford
4. Hurst Bell
5. Crowley
6. Saginaw Boswell
7. Saginaw Chisholm Trail
8. Fort Worth Paschal

District 4-6A

1. Southlake Carroll
2. Trophy Club Nelson
3. Haslet Eaton
4. Keller Timber Creek
5. Keller
6. Keller Central
7. Keller Fossil Ridge
8. Haltom

District 5-6A

1. Denton Guyer
2. McKinney
3. Prosper
4. Allen
5. Denton Braswell
6. McKinney Boyd
7. Prosper Rock Hill
8. Little Elm

District 6-6A

1. Lewisville
2. Coppell
3. Lewisville Hebron
4. Plano
5. Flower Mound Marcus
6. Plano East
7. Flower Mound
8. Plano West

District 7-6A

1. Highland Park
2. Dallas Jesuit
3. Richardson Berkner
4. Richardson Lake Highlands
5. Irving MacArthur
6. Richardson Pearce
7. Richardson
8. Irving Nimitz
9. Irving

District 8-6A

1. Arlington Martin
2. South Grand Prairie
3. Arlington Bowie
4. Arlington
5. Arlington Lamar
6. Grand Prairie
7. Arlington Sam Houston

PROJECTED BI-DISTRICT MATCHUPS

Division I

W1 El Paso Pebble Hills vs R2 Odessa Permian

W3 Euless Trinity vs R4 Keller Timber Creek

W5 Prosper vs R6 Plano

W7 Richardson Berkner vs W8 South Grand Prairie

W2 Midland Legacy vs R1 El Paso Franklin

W4 Haslet Eaton vs R3 Hurst Bell

W6 Lewisville vs R5 Allen

W8 Arlington Martin vs R7 Richardson Lake Highlands

Division II

W1 El Paso Eastwood vs R2 Midland

W3 North Crowley vs R4 Trophy Club Nelson

W5 Denton Guyer vs R6 Lewisville Hebron

W7 Highland Park vs R8 Arlington

W2 Wolfforth Frenship vs R1 El Paso Americas

W4 Southlake Carroll vs R3 Weatherford

W6 Coppell vs R5 McKinney

W8 Arlington Bowie vs R7 Dallas Jesuit

REGIONAL CHAMPIONS

Division I

Lewisville over Prosper

Division II

Southlake Carroll over North Crowley