GAMES
RANKINGS
THE POWER RANKINGS: Cedar Park joins top teams with clutch win
It’s getting awfully crowded at the top.
For years, the two (mostly) undisputed kings of the Austin area high school football scene were Lake Travis and Westlake (with Cedar Park and Liberty Hill recognized as the top dawgs in the 4A and/or 5A classification.) Then Dripping Springs and Vandegrift emerged as legitimate powers, able to go blow-for-blow with the Lakes. Now it looks like we’ve gotta add a couple more teams to the mix, at least for 2026.
Cedar Ridge started the power expansion with a gutsy win over Lake Travis two weeks ago (10/9). The Raiders remain in this week’s runner-up spot after their Bye, one spot behind Westlake, who cruised to an easy win, and just ahead of Dripping Springs who crushed a good Bowie team. Round Rock eased past Westwood to settle at #4. Cedar Park, meanwhile, in its first season as a 6A squad, knocked off arch-rival Vandegrift on the road and rounds out the Top 5.
#6 Lake Travis and #7 Hutto both notched solid bounce-back wins to move past the Vipers. Weiss secured a solid road win over Georgetown to move up to #9 and remain the highest ranked 5A squad, ahead of Bowie who rounds out the Top 10.
Anderson knocked off arch-rival McCallum to head up the second tier at #11, followed by idle Rouse and Liberty Hill. #14 Wimberley remains the top 4A school after an easy win, just ahead of 4A rival Lago Vista.
Georgetown remains at #16 after a quality loss, barely holding off newcomer Legacy Ranch. Hendrickson remains precariously perched at #18 with 4A Taylor on their heels. Improving Bastrop reenters the rankings for the first time since early in the season as the Bears look to make a late surge.
But back at the top, everything that’s old is new again with old foes Westlake travelling to the newly renovated Cavalier Stadium to take on Lake Travis in the annual “Battle of the Lakes.” And waiting to meet the Chaps the following week? One of the new kids on the block, Cedar Ridge.
Yep, it’s awfully crowded at the top of the mountain.
VYPE Austin Top 20 Combined Class 4A-6A
*Last parenthesis indicates most recent game result
1. (1) Westlake Chaparrals (6A) 6-1 (W 70-6 vs. McNeil)
2. (2) Cedar Ridge Raiders (6A) 7-0 (BYE)
3. (4) Dripping Springs Tigers (6A) 6-1 (W 56-14 vs. #8 Bowie)
4. (3) Round Rock Dragons (6A) 5-2 (W 49-21 vs. Westwood)
5. (6) Cedar Park Timberwolves (6A) 8-0 (W 23-10 @ #5 Vandegrift)
6. (7) Lake Travis Cavaliers (6A) 3-2-1 (W 47-0 @ Stony Point)
7. (9) Hutto Hippos (6A) 6-2 (W 54-0 vs. Leander)
8. (5) Vandegrift Vipers (6A) 4-3 (L 23-10 vs. #6 Cedar Park)
9. (10) Weiss Wolves (5A-1) 5-2 (W 28-21 @ #16 Georgetown)
10. (8) Bowie Bulldogs (6A) 5-2 (L 56-14 @ #4 Dripping Springs)
11. (11) Anderson Trojans (5A-1) 5-2 (W 21-9 vs. McCallum)
12. (12) Rouse Raiders (6A) 4-3 (BYE)
13. (13) Liberty Hill Panthers (5A-2) 4-4 (L 49-7 vs. Boerne)
14. (15) Wimberley Texans (4A-2) 5-0 (W 77-0 vs. Austin Achieve)
15. (17) Lago Vista Vikings (4A-2) 6-1 (W 41-27 @ New Tech)
16. (16) Georgetown Eagles (5A-2) 4-4 (L 28-21 vs. #10 Weiss)
17. (19) Legacy Ranch Wranglers (5A-2) 5-2 (W 15-9 vs. New Braunfels)
18. (18) Hendrickson Hawks (5A-1) 4-3 (L 46-3 vs. College Station)
19. (20) Taylor Ducks (4A-1) 5-2 (W 30-19 vs. Austin LBJ)
20. (NR) Bastrop Bears (5A-2) 3-4 (W 30-25 vs. Pflugerville)
On the Radar: Elgin (3-4), Lockhart (3-4), Pflugerville (3-4)
VYPE Austin Top 5 Private Schools
*Last parenthesis indicates most recent game result
1. (1) Regents Knights (TAPPS D2) 7-1 (W 40-0 @ Brownsville St. Joseph’s)
2. (2) St. Michael’s Warriors (TAPPS D1) 6-2 (BYE)
3. (3) Hyde Park Panthers (TAPPS D2) 5-3 (W 48-13 @ San Antonio Christian)
4. (4) Hill Country Christian Knights (TAPPS FL) 5-3 (W 59-6 vs. Texas Legacy Football Academy)
5. (5) Brentwood Christian (TAPPS FL) 6-2 (W 41-40 vs John Paul II)
On the Radar: St. Andrew’s (4-3)
Arlington Martin quarterback Chase Devoll has led his team to a 7-0 start.
5 Things We Learned From Week 8 of Football Around the Metroplex
The Texas high school football season gets closer and closer to the postseason. Week 8 of UIL football and Week 9 for the private schools helped bring some district playoff photos into clearer view.
Here’s a look at five storylines that stood out during the week of games played Oct. 15-17.
District 3-6A
Arlington James Martin High School is sitting in first place in District 3-6A play.
At 7-0 overall and 4-0 in district games, the Warriors are closely followed by Weatherford and Aledo, both at 3-1. However, the Warriors have already beaten both of those teams.
Chase Devoll threw three touchdowns, and Javian Jones-Priest accounted for five touchdowns in a 45-20 win over Bowie.
Six of the eight teams in the district are still in the playoff hunt for one of the four berths — with a logjam of 2-2 teams in Arlington, Arlington Mirabeau B. Lamar, and Arlington James Bowie with 2-2 marks. Martin will face Lamar this week in a rivalry showdown that Lamar won last year.
The Warriors will close out facing Arlington and Granbury.
Anna standing alone
Looking ahead a little bit, the Anna vs. Celina showdown on Oct. 30 looked as though it could be a battle of unbeatens.
The winner would claim the District 4-5A Division II title.
Frisco knocked off No. 10-ranked Celina, 33-20, on Friday to force a tie with the Bobcats at 3-1 in district play.
The Raccoons, at one point, held a 19-point lead over Celina. However, Frisco lost to Anna earlier this season, so the Raccoons would need help to share the district title.
The No. 6-ranked Coyotes will face Denison, Celina and Prosper Richland.
Another upset
Perhaps the most shocking result in 6A football this past week was Lake Highland beating No. 9-ranked Coppell, 27-19.
The Wildcats were down 10-0 and later trailed 16-7, but rallied behind two touchdowns from John Cothern. The first was a touchdown run by the quarterback to give his team a 20-19 lead. Then, he had a touchdown pass to Conrad Ince.
Ince had three catches for 14 yards, but scored twice.
Lake Highland, part of Richardson ISD, is now in first place in District 7-6A with a 4-0 mark. Coppell and Plano East are now tied for second at 3-1.
Plano West, Richardson Berkner and Plano are all part of a tie for 4th with 2-2 district marks.
Backup coaches at Cedar Hill
Cedar Hill head coach Nichols Ward was placed on leave on Oct. 9 and news came out before the Longhorns’ game against Mansfield Legacy on Friday.
According to WFAA, Ward is under investigation for something, but what exactly was not reported by the television station.
Coaches Brice Musgrove and Chason Virgil shared co-head coaching duties in a 39-23 win over Mansfield Legacy.
The win moves Cedar Hill to 2-2 in District 8-5A Division I play. They are part of a tie for third place with three other teams for the final playoff berth with Burleson Centennial, Midlothian, Mansfield Summit and the Longhorns.
Defending state champion DeSoto is atop the district standings with a 4-0 mark.
Rose Strong
This weekend also came the news that Fort Worth Chisholm Trail quarterback Keaton Rose is battling leukemia.
The senior threw for 905 yards and 7 touchdowns and ran for another school record in 4 games this year. Gabriel Webster has been the starting quarterback since Rose’s exit.
A GoFundMe has been created to help his family and a T-shirt sale is also underway.
Chisholm Trail, part of Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD, is 4-3 overall and 2-1 in District 3-5A Division I. Denton Ryan is leading with a 4-0 mark, with Denton, Azle and Chisholm Trail with two wins and right now sitting in one of the four playoff spots.