(Editor's note: This was originally published November 16, 2017.)
I've covered a lot of high school football playoff games over the years, even though I'm obviously still very young (bah-da-bing!), and I've learned to expect the unexpected. So many things can happen in a game, and no matter how uneven teams appear on paper, we're talking about high school kids.
It makes the playoffs more fun.
But not for Allen in 2007, and South Oak Cliff in 2010, and other favorites who were taken down by underdogs in the first round of the UIL playoffs. The big dogs usually win, as shown by Allen's record over the years, but the Eagles are also on the list of four big first-round upsets from the last 15 seasons.
There are more than just four, of course. But these come to mind for me as I start cover the UIL football playoffs for the 15th straight year. (And, because someone will ask, I know that South Grand Prairie beat undefeated Euless Trinity in the first round in 2015. But I actually expected that to be a close game because SGP had played a monster schedule).
2005: South Garland 14, Longview 13
South Garland entered the game 7-3 and Longview was 10-0 and No. 3 in the 5A state rankings (5A was the largest at the time). South Garland's defense slowed down Longview and the Lobos missed a field goal late.
"We just hung in there and hung in there,'' said Mickey Moss, who was then South Garland's coach and is now at Rockwall-Heath. "It's like a prizefighter. If you let him hang around for 12 rounds he's always got a chance to throw a knockout punch."
2010: Conrad 30, South Oak Cliff 23
Conrad barely got into the playoffs with a 3-3 district record and was 5-5 overall. South Oak Cliff entered the game 10-0, and early on against Conrad, SOC took a 16-0 lead. But give Conrad a lot of credit for not getting dispirited. The game-clincher came with 1:47 remaining when Conrad's LaDarius Valentine returned a blocked field goal 85 yards for a touchdown.
2016: West Mesquite 30, Texarkana Texas High 27
West Mesquite entered the game with a 7-3 record, while Texarkana was 10-0 and No. 8 in the 5A state rankings. Texarkana had also won all of its games by double digits. But West Mesquite running back Curtis Williams broke Texarkana's back. Williams rushed for 202 yards and four touchdowns, including the 3-yard game-winner with 3:41 left.
2007: Rowlett 37, Allen 32
Yeah, high school football is unpredictable, but I didn't see this one coming at all. Rowlett was 5-5 entering the game and Allen was 10-0 and No. 3 in the 5A rankings. The Eagles looked like they had a chance for their first state title -- (they now have four: 2008, 2012-14.)
What was most stunning about this game was how it unfolded. Rowlett was a solid team, but Allen was completely out of sorts and fell behind 30-0 in the first half. Rowlett led 37-6 at halftime before Allen, which averaged more than 40 points per game that season, woke up and nearly rallied for the win.
Rowlett's physical running attack wiped out the final six minutes of the game, keeping Allen's offense off the field. With five minutes left on a third-and-2 for Rowlett, Allen got an offsides penalty that gave Rowlett a first down.
Twitter: @mattwixon