Video: WeNext Garrett Wilson Lake Travis star Ohio State's next great pass-catcher.
We've heard it before, Texas is king when it comes to high school football.
High school football isn't a sport in Texas, it's a religion.
Or as Pulitzer Prize-winning author Buzz Bissinger wrote in "Friday Night Lights:"
Gazing into that stadium, looking up into those rows that can seat 20,000, you wonder what it must be like on a Friday night, when the lights are on and the heart and soul of the town pours out over that field, across those endless plains.
The 2018 football season begins in Texas on this Friday night. Here are 10 questions soon to be answered:
Allen 5-star receiver Theo Wease hopes to lead his team to a second straight 6A-1 title.
File photo by Neil Fonville
The defending Class 6A-Division I state champs return plenty
from last year's squad that finished 16-0 and ranked No. 3 nationally by MaxPreps.
Grant Tisdale,
Theo Wease,
EJ Ndoma-Ogar and
Jayden Jernigan all are back this season as they go for the school's sixth state title since 2008.
Already the all-time leading private school passer in Texas history, the Arizona pledge is going after top marks in completions (Gunnell has 730, record is 1,047), attempts (1,043 to 1,677), yards (11,356 to 14,408) and touchdowns (142 to 186). Last year he completed 361-of-507 for 4,936 yards and 61 touchdowns.
3. What will Highland Park (Dallas) do now that John Stephen Jones has graduated? The grandson of Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones led Highland Park to back-to-back state titles, but with legendary coach Randy Allen in place and impressive
Chandler Morris to replace Jones, the Scots have a shot to three-peat, albeit a long one.
4. Who will emerge as the most productive receiver in the state? The list of blue chip recruits is long, leading with Ohio State-bound
Garrett Wilson, who had 96 catches for 1,764 yards and 26 touchdowns last season for
Lake Travis (Austin). He's regarded as the No. 14 overall prospect in the nation by 247Sports. Here are other Top 100 senior national recruits who play receiver in Texas: No. 16, Oklahoma-bound Wease of Allen; No. 45, Texas commit
Jordan Whittington of
Cuero; No. 63, also bound for Oklahoma,
Trejan Bridges of
Hebron (Carrollton); No. 77, yet a third to Oklahoma,
Arjei Henderson, of
Fort Bend Travis (Richmond); No. 81, Texas A&M commit,
Dylan Wright, of
West Mesquite (Mesquite); No. 85,
Elijah Higgins of
Bowie (Austin).
Deondrick Glass, Katy
File photo by Ken Murray
All three are tied at the top with eight state titles. Katy, ranked No. 14 nationally, has gone back-to-back years without a crown but have four-year starting running back
Deondrick Glass. After 11 seasons, Carroll has a new coach in Riley Dodge, replacing Hal Wasson, who led the Dragons to their last state crown in 2011. Celina, coached by Colin Miller, last won it in 2015.
Four teams currently are in the Top 25: No. 3 Allen; No. 9 Lake Travis; No. 14 Katy and No. 23
Duncanville.
But consider these others who started in the Top 100 — No. 44
North Shore (Houston), No. 46
Westlake (Austin); No. 50 Carroll (Southlake); No. 53
Aledo; No. 58
DeSoto; No. 66
Judson (Converse); No. 77
Mansfield Legacy (Mansfield); No. 79
Klein Collins (Spring); No. 91
Trinity (Euless); No. 95
Steele (Cibolo) and No. 96
Longview.
7. Will Duncanville finally break through? It's been 20 years since Duncanville won its last state title. Is this the team to do it? Coach Reginald Samples has a couple of four-star recruits in quarterback
Ja'Quinden Jackson and defensive back
Chris Thompson Jr.
EJ Smith (22) will not be a decoy often in 2018.
File photo by Robbie Rakestraw
Being the son of the NFL's career rushing leader carries a big burden. Thus far, the 6-foot, 197-pound Smith has handled it just fine for
Dallas Jesuit (Dallas). He accounted for 1,717 yards and 31 touchdowns as a sophomore. Young Smith is considered the No. 2 all-purpose back in the country's junior class and No. 88 recruit overall, according to 247Sports. Evans, meanwhile, is regarded as the top running back nationally from the class and No. 2 recruit overall. The 5-11, 203-pounder from North Shore is a blur and strong too.
9. How high will North Shore climb?With Evans leading the way, the Mustangs are on the rise with so much young talent. With the sophomore passing combination of quarterback
Dematrius Davis Jr. to
Shadrach Banks and defensive senior stars
Keeyon Stewart and
Tony Bradford Jr., a pair of Texas Tech, commits, the Mustangs are a state title contender. They'll find out just where they stand, opening up with Katy on Friday.
10. Will Deion Sanders and sons lead Trinity Christian (Cedar Hill) to repeat? As chronicled throughout the 2017 season in
Learning from Legends, the NFL Hall of Famer will lead the Tigers toward another state crown. His sophomore son
Shedeur Sanders is one of the top sophomore quarterbacks in the state.
Shedeur Sanders led Trinity Christian to a state title as a freshman quarterback.
File photo by Jim Taylor
