Preview: UIL Texas state football championships

Video: Xcellent 25 Football Rankings presented by the Army National Guard - Dec. 12
Several Texas teams playing in the UIL state championship dot this week's Xcellent 25 rankings.

The 24 Texas high school football teams that emerged from weeks of playoff elimination games have reached their destination: AT&T Stadium in Arlington.

The road began for these 24 and hundreds of others in the heat of August.

The UIL will crown 12 state champions over a four-day stretch beginning Wednesday.

Schools are divided into six classifications based on enrollment. In an effort to further level the playing field, each classification is divided into two divisions.



The four-day extravaganza begins with six-man football on Wednesday and concludes on Saturday with the largest classification, 6A.

Here's a look at the match-ups:

WEDNESDAY
Class 1A-DII: Balmorhea 14-0 vs. Richland Springs 13-0, 4 p.m.
Players to watch: Kyle Garcia rushed for 269 yards in Balmorhea's state semifinal victory over Turkey Valley; Marco Martinez threw for 159 yards in that same game. ... Walker Tippie rushed for six TD, threw for one and caught one in Richland Springs' state semifinal victory over Crowell; Jordan Burkhart threw for two scores and ran for another.
Trends: Under coach Vance Jones, Balmorhea has won 24 of its last 26 games. ... Richland Springs has captured seven state titles in the last 12 years and one more win would give the Coyotes eight undefeated seasons since 2004.
History: Balmorhea is in its first state title game. Richland Springs is defending state champion.

Class 1A-DI: Borden (Gail) 13-1 vs. Jonesboro 14-0, 7 p.m.
Players to watch: Senior Hunter Jones has thrown for 1,376 yards and 24 TD for Borden; Corbin Sumners has rushed for 1,859 yards and 31 scores. ... Josh Barnes has rushed for 1,241 yards and 24 TD for Jonesboro; Wyatt Young, a junior, has thrown for 458 yards and nine scores.
Trends: Counting a 2-0 forfeit win over Tioga, Borden put together a midseason streak of five consecutive shutouts. ... Jonesboro has lost no more than one game in six of its last seven seasons.
History: Borden won back-to-back state titles in 2008-09. Jonesboro is in its first state title game.

THURSDAY
Class 2A-DII: Iraan 15-0 vs. Bremond 15-0, 10 a.m.
Players to watch: Iraan running back Daryel Lozoya has rushed for 1,952 yards and 28 touchdowns in the regular season; Offensive lineman Steven Garlock opens holes up front. ... Last year's title game MVP Roshauud Paul is a dual-threat QB accounting for 73 touchdowns (50 rushing) and 4,764 total yards for Bremond; J.R. Rocha leads the defense with 127 tackles and five sacks.
Trends: With 18 starters back from a 13-1 team, big things were expected from Iraan this season and the Braves have delivered.  ... Bremond owns a 46-game winning streak dating to the final game of the 2013 season and has won 58 of its last 59 games.
History: Iraan won a state title in 1996. Bremond is shooting for its third consecutive state championship.

Class 2A-DI: Crawford 14-1 vs. Refugio 14-1, 1 p.m.
Players to watch: Crawford wide receiver Jeff Ward scored three touchdowns in last week's semifinal victory; linebacker Lucas Steinkamp leads a stingy defense that allows 11.9 points per game. ... Refugio linebacker Kobie Herring averaged 13 tackles on the way to Class 2A defensive player of the year honors; Jaylon Mascorro shifted from QB to RB this season, but still gets a chance to pass on occasion.
Trends: Crawford's motto is "Small town, big dreams.'' Since losing its opener, the Pirates' dreams have gotten bigger with each of its 14 wins. ... Refugio is playing in its fourth state final in the last six years. Its last two appearances in 2013 and again last year, were unsuccessful.
History: Crawford's last state title came in 2004. Refugio last wore the crown in 2011.



Class 3A-DII: Gunter 15-0 vs. Boling 13-2, 5 p.m.
Players to watch: Gunter quarterback Trey Carr runs the triple-option attack and in a state semifinal victory over Canadian, ran for two scores and threw for another; fullback Colson Stovall rushed for 134 yards and two scores on 27 carries in the same game in the same game. ... Boling senior running back Ronald Krushall carried 15 times for 97 yards and a TD in a 19-18 state semifinal victory over Arp; quarterback Vernon Jackson was 0 for 2 passing, but contributed 66 rushing yards and a score.
Trends: Since Jake Fieszel became head coach in 2007, Gunter has reached double digits in wins seven times with the previous high being 12. ... The win total has increased to 25 over the last two seasons for Boling coach Stephen Dorr in a program that went 2-8 as recently as 2013.
History: Boling won a state title in 1972. Gunter is playing for a title for the first time.

Class 3A-DI: Mineola 13-2 vs. Yoakum 11-4, 8 p.m.
Players to watch: QB Jeremiah Crawford rushed for 262 yards and four touchdowns in a Mineola's 50-8 state semifinal victory over Wall; running back Chantz Perkins contributed 139 yards and three scores to advance the Yellow Jackets to the title game. ... Yoakum running back Henry Enoch rushed for 172 yards and a TD in a semifinal win over Malakoff; Jordan Moore, a versatile junior, contributes with big plays on offense and defense.
Trends: After allowing 82 points in an 0-2 start, the Mineola defense has allowed 10.6 per game in its 13-game winning streak. ... Yoakum rebounded from a 2-4 start to make the playoffs and in the last three rounds, squeezed out wins by margins of two, four and four points.
History: Mineola lost in the 2014 title game. Yoakum finished as a state runner-up in 1952. FRIDAY
Class 4A-DII: Sweetwater 13-1 vs. West Orange-Stark (Orange) 15-0, noon
Players to watch: Junior QB Chris Thompson is the trigger man for Sweetwater's passing attack. Another junior, Jacoby Hunt, has already rushed for over 1,000 yards. ... West Orange-Stark's senior QB Jackson Dallas threw for 163 yards and three TD in a state semifinal victory over Navarro (Geronimo); WR Keion Hancock is a favorite target and hauled in two of the scoring throws.
Trends: The Sweetwater pass defense allowed 354 passing yards, but intercepted four passes in a state semifinal victory over Gilmer. ... West Orange-Stark has outscored opponents 787-63. In five playoff games, opponents have combined to score four touchdowns.
History: Sweetwater won a state title in 1985. West Orange-Stark is defending state champion.

Class 4A-DI: Wylie (Abilene) 12-1 vs. Carthage 12-2, 4 p.m.
Players to watch: QB Zach Smith successfully made the position switch from CB this season for Wylie; RB Brooks Pepper has rushed for over 1,400 yards this season and is a threat as a receiver. ... Carthage junior running back Keaontay Ingram has rushed for 2,045 and 29 touchdowns; QB Kason Davis has thrown for 2,887 yards and 29 scores.
Trends: Wylie cleared a big hurdle in the third playoff round when it defeated nemesis Argyle. ... Carthage finished tied for third in its district behind Kilgore and Henderson, but caught fire in the playoffs.
History: Wylie won a state title in 2004. Carthage won three consecutive state titles beginning in 2008 and added another in 2013.

Class 5A-DII: Aledo 15-0 vs. Calallen (Corpus Christi) 14-1, 8 p.m.
Players to watch: Aledo quarterback Dillon Davis has thrown for 3,695 yards and 45 scores. Freshman RB Jase McClellan has rushed for 1,430 yards and 19 scores for the Bearcats. ... Calallen QB Gaige Lamb, in the state semifinal victory over College Station, rushed for 160 yards and three TDs; Sophomore RB Alec Brown is a workhorse, carrying 33 times for 141 yards last week.
Trends: Although the Aledo defense gets less fanfare than the offense, it has racked up 51 sacks and 20 interceptions so far. ... Calallen legendary coach Phil Danaher this season broke G.A. Moore's state record for most career victories. Danaher now has 432-107-4 record in 43 seasons.
History: Aledo won five state titles in a six-year span from 2009-14. Calallen lost in a 2005 title game.

SATURDAY
Class 5A-DI: Highland Park (Dallas) 13-2 vs. Temple 12-3, noon
Players to watch: QB John Stephen Jones, grandson of Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, has thrown 3,017 yards and 30 TDs for Highland Park; defensive lineman Luke Blanton averages team-best 15 tackles. ... Temple QB Reid Hesse has thrown for 3,626 yards and 23 TDs; linebacker Rogers Franklin is the leading tackler, averaging 11.2 per game and has five of the team's 53 sacks.
Trends: Because of injuries to Highland Park's top two running backs, junior Paxton Alexander came on to score four touchdowns and produce 203 total yards in a state semifinal victory over Ryan (Denton). ... Temple eliminated unbeaten teams each of the last two rounds, Manvel (24-23) in a quarterfinal and Foster (Richmond) 31-24 last week.
History: Highland Park, which last week became the first school in the state to reach 800 career wins, won its most recent state title in 2005. Temple's last title came in 1992.

Class 6A-DII: DeSoto 15-0 vs. Steele (Cibolo) 14-1, 4 p.m.
Players to watch: DeSoto quarterback Shawn Robinson, a TCU pledge, is responsible for 44 touchdowns (26 passing) and 4,436 yards (1,242 rushing); WR KD Nixon, a Colorado pledge, has 62 catches for 1,085 yards. ... Steele's Brenden Brady has rushed for 1,561 yards and 19 TDs; Safety Caden Sterns, an LSU pledge, has four interceptions.
Trends: Seven DeSoto players in addition to Robinson and Nixon have made college commitments including three offensive linemen. ... In its last four playoff games, Steele has allowed a total of 21 points.
History: Steele won a state title in 2010 and was a state finalist the next season. DeSoto is in its first state title game.

Class 6A-DI: The Woodlands 15-0 vs. Lake Travis (Austin) 14-1, 8 p.m.
Players to watch: The Woodlands' quarterback Eric Schmid, verbally committed to Sam Houston State, is the son of Highlanders head coach Mark Schmid; defensive lineman Michael Purcell is a run stopper and provides big pass rush. ... Lake Travis quarterback Charlie Brewer, an SMU pledge, has thrown for 3,562 yards with a touchdown/interception ratio of 50/2; running back Maleek Barkley has rushed 1,303 yards and 17 TDs.
Trends: Lake Travis, 14-0 since dropping its season opener, has scored at least 50 points in eight of its last nine games. ... The Woodlands has dedicated its season to LB Grant Milton who suffered a serious head injury in a playoff win over Bowie (Austin) two weeks ago.
History: The Woodlands' previous state final appearance ended in a 23-7 loss to North Shore (Houston) in 2003. Lake Travis captured five consecutive Class 4A state titles from 2007-2011.