Region III has been shaken up a bit after UIL Realignment as regional champion Smithson Valley and the rest of the San Antonio metro teams who were in Region III have moved back to Region IV so a third Houston area district that was in Region II moves back to their traditional home in Region III, so we will have a new regional champion in 2024.

Much of this district moves back to Region III after being in Region II a year ago, Port Arthur Memorial gets the edge in this district with their loaded group of young players and playoff experience returning. Lufkin, who won a UIL Realignment appeal to get into this district could really benefit from the reduced travel and a fresh start after battling the last two years in one of the state’s toughest districts. Barbers Hill has become a playoff regular and should be right in contention for the district crown as well. The real intrigue will be the battle for the four seed, where a battle royale will take place featuring Galveston Ball who is jumping into a much tougher district, the two Beaumont ISD schools dropping from 6A and Baytown Sterling.

The Houston ISD heavy District 10-5A Division I won’t offer any state title contenders, but this district offers a lot of intrigue internally as Galveston Ball moves out to District 9 and a couple of newcomers from Class 6A adds some mystery with Westbury and Spring Woods. Galena Park moves into this group as well and expects to challenge with Sterling, Waltrip and Madison for the playoff spots.

There’s not a ton of rhyme or reason to the alignment in 11-5A Division I, in essence its really an outer loop “leftover” district in the Houston area. La Porte was a district champion a year ago and is primed to make some major noise in 2024 with seventeen starters returning, they’ll get a push from Angleton and Friendswood, but the Bulldogs are the clear favorite. Kingwood Park, who was a tough luck fifth place team a year ago despite finishing 7-3 should get the edge for fourth over what looks to be a much-improved Crosby squad.

The lone non-Houston district in Region III should provide a ton of intrigue as the top three teams in 12-5A Division I are all capable of winning the region. A&M Consolidated went four rounds deep in Coach Schmidt’s first year at the helm and with a veteran offense they could be even better. Weiss was a district champion in 6A a year ago, the Wolves are loaded with talent and could be primed for making some major waves. Underestimate College Station at your own risk as the Cougars are always a force. Austin Anderson is also dropping from 6A and the Trojans feature some outstanding offensive talent, but the question for AHS will be in the trenches.

DISTRICT PREDICTIONS

District 9-5A Division I

1. Port Arthur Memorial
2. Lufkin
3. Barbers Hill
4. Galveston Ball
5. Beaumont United
6. Beaumont West Brook
7. Baytown Sterling

District 10-5A Division I

1. Houston Westbury
2. Houston Sterling
3. Houston Spring Woods
4. Houston Waltrip
5. Houston Madison
6. Galena Park
7. Houston Milby
8. Houston Austin
9. Houston Sharpstown

District 11-5A Division I

1. La Porte
2. Angleton
3. Friendswood
4. Humble Kingwood Park
5. Crosby
6. New Caney Porter
7. Fort Bend Kempner
8. Pasadena

District 12-5A Division I

1. College Station A&M Consolidated
2. Pflugerville Weiss
3. College Station
4. Austin Anderson
5. Buda Hays Consolidated
6. Lockhart
7. Pflugerville Weiss
8. Kyle Lehman
9. Bastrop Cedar Creek

PROJECTED BI-DISTRICT MATCHUPS

W9 Port Arthur Memorial vs F10 Houston Waltrip

R12 Pflugerville Weiss vs T11 Friendswood

W10 Houston Westbury vs F9 Galveston Ball

R11 Angleton vs T12 College Station

W11 La Porte vs F12 Austin Anderson

R10 Houston Sterling vs T9 Barbers Hill

W12 College Station A&M Consolidated vs F11 Humble Kingwood Park

R9 Lufkin vs T10 Houston Spring Woods

REGIONAL CHAMPION

College Station A&M Consolidated over Port Arthur Memorial