Here are five Dallas-area storylines to follow in Week 7 of the Texas high school football regular season.
Which undefeated teams will come out on top?
There are two matchups between undefeated teams this week, as Southlake Carroll takes on Keller and Argyle takes on Lake Dallas. Southlake Carroll and Keller both sit atop District 4-6A at 5-0 overall and 2-0 in district play. Carroll has won every game it’s played by at least 31 points while Keller hasn’t been fazed yet either, though it’ll have to overcome its toughest opponent of the year to remain undefeated.
Argyle (5-0, 1-0) and Lake Dallas (6-0, 2-0) are two of the four undefeated teams remaining in District 3-5AII. Lake Dallas hasn’t won seven games since 2018 but is off to its best start since 2007. Argyle remains the area’s top ranked 5A team after a bye week and has defeated three ranked teams already this season.
Can Waxahachie come away with a win in its tough stretch?
Waxahachie was fortunate to have a bye in Week 6, but having No. 4 DeSoto and No. 2 Duncanville as consecutive opponents wasn’t an easy draw for a team that ranked 10th among area 6A teams ahead of the DeSoto matchup.
Waxahachie fell 42-24 to DeSoto and now has to face state title contender Duncanville (4-0, 2-0), which it lost to 52-3 last season. Whether or not Waxahachie can keep up with Duncanville, its schedule only gets easier from here on out.
Denton Ryan faces first test since season opener
Since its one-point loss to New Braunfels in Week 1, Denton Ryan (4-1, 4-0) has demolished every opponent it’s played, outscoring its last four 193-24. Though Ryan has handled the four bottom-feeders of its district, it’ll now have to face District 3-5AI’s last remaining undefeated team, Burleson Centennial, which sits at 5-0 and 3-0 in district play.
Centennial has destroyed its opponents in a similar fashion to Ryan, also posting two dominant shutout wins. The question remains whether Ryan will be able to bring that same power against a team that has shown promise in the first half of the season.
Marquee matchups in TAPPS
Four area-ranked private school programs will go head-to-head in Week 7, so a shakeup in the rankings can be expected. Argyle Liberty Christian (5-1) takes on Fort Worth Christian (5-0), which is coming off a huge upset over No. 2 Dallas Christian to maintain its perfect start to the season. Argyle Liberty Christian’s only loss came to ranked Episcopal School of Dallas.
Dallas Christian and Dallas Covenant will also face off. Dallas Covenant newly joined the rankings as of last week, as it sits at 5-0. Dallas Christian faced its first loss last week but remains toward the top of TAPPS 2-III at 5-1.
Top teams look to stay sharp against easier slate ahead
With many of the top matchups of the season behind them, some of the area’s top teams have already established themselves as the clear district frontrunner. In 10-6A, Rockwall distanced itself with back-to-back wins over Rockwall-Heath and Mesquite Horn. In 7-6A, Highland Park cleared its road to the district title after taking down Jesuit and Lake Highlands. And in 4-5AII, Grapevine’s win over Colleyville Heritage in the Battle of the Red Rail leaves its destiny in its own hands, as it only has Fort Worth ISD teams left to play.
For these teams, while the talent of their opponents may drop off starting this week, they look to keep the intensity and strength of play in the week leading up to the playoffs. Highland Park takes on Richardson Berkner, Grapevine has Fort Worth Polytechnic and Rockwall has Tyler Legacy — none of which are above .500.
Even though they may be the heavy favorites to claim their respective titles, anything can happen on any given Friday.
On Twitter: @Lassimak
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