With three weeks to go in the high school football regular season, there are plenty of Dallas-area teams in the playoff hunt. The top four teams in each district will make the postseason, but for some, mid-November football would mean a little bit more.
Here are the schools that are in position to make the playoffs after finishing fifth in their district last year.
Crowley
Crowley (5-3, 4-0 3-6A) went 4-3 in district 3-6A last year, but lost a tiebreaker to Boswell for the final playoff spot. Top-four finishers Euless Trinity and Hurst LD Bell moved to district 4-6A in UIL realignment, and Crowley has taken advantage this year, already matching its district win total from last season. The Eagles play Mansfield Legacy on Friday before a rivalry game with North Crowley in the final week of the regular season.
Mansfield
Another team that has benefitted from UIL realignment, Mansfield (7-1, 3-1 3-6A) moved from 11-6A, the Dallas-area’s “District of Doom” that includes top-ranked DeSoto and Duncanville, to 3-6A this year. The Tigers went 3-4 in district play in 2023, but are in third place this year. They play North Crowley this week and finish the season with Weatherford.
Flower Mound
One of The Dallas Morning News’ surprise teams halfway through the season, Flower Mound finished one spot behind rival Marcus for the final postseason spot in 6-6A last year. Both teams are now in 5-6A and play this Friday night. Flower Mound (5-2, 2-2 5-6A) is in fifth place in the district and likely needs to win its final regular season game against Hebron to make the playoffs for the first time since 2021.
Richardson Pearce
Pearce (5-2, 3-1 7-6A) is primed for its first postseason berth since 2020. The Mustangs are second in their district with their toughest opponents behind them. Jarrett Lambert’s team needs to win two of its final three games against Irving MacArthur, Irving Nimitz and Richardson Berkner to avenge last season’s playoff miss.
Garland Lakeview Centennial
Lakeview (3-5, 3-3 9-6A) is hoping to grab the final playoff spot in 9-6A behind Sachse, Wylie East and Wylie. With Wylie looming in the final week of the season, a victory against Garland on Friday could really help the Patriots’ postseason push.
Samuell
After going 3-7 overall and 1-4 in its district in 2023, Samuell is one of the Dallas area’s most improved teams in 2024. The Spartans (6-1, 3-1 5-5AII) are in fourth place in their district, and while they play top teams Woodrow Wilson and South Oak Cliff in the next two weeks, they finish the regular season with Spruce (0-7, 0-4), a game they might need to win to make the playoffs for the first time since 2017.
Crandall
Last year, Crandall got blown out by Lovejoy and Melissa in its district and missed the playoffs by one game. Both of those teams moved up to 5AI this year, while Crandall remains in 5AII. The Pirates (6-1, 3-1 6-5AII) play Terrell and Greenville, two teams they beat last year, in the final two weeks of the regular season.
Pinkston
Pinkston (2-5, 2-2 8-4AI) has been good enough this year for third place in its district. There’s a glut of 2-2 teams behind the Vikings in the standings, but they have a pair of winnable games remaining against Roosevelt and Conrad, respectively.
Find more high school sports coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
