HOUSTON—Who are these Cinco Ranch Cougars?

Gifted with a talented passing game, thanks to junior quarterback Gavin Rutherford and a slew of playmaking receivers in Seth Salverino, Noah Abboud, Fischer Reed and Grayson Williams, the Cougars are proving to be anything but the one-trick pony they've been thought to be, running the ball this postseason as well as they have in a long time. And after struggling to stop anyone over the last few years, Cinco Ranch has turned into a defensive savant—takeaways, sacks, tackles for loss. The whole thing.

And how about this: after one win last season, and just four total over the previous three seasons, the Cougars are 8-4 and headed to the regional semifinals after a thorough, all-around 48-13 rout of Memorial in their Class 6A-Division II area playoff game Saturday afternoon at Tully Stadium.