Remember that part where the Power Rankings are supposed to get clearer the further into the season we go? We were wrong. The Rankings are as clear as a ref announcing a penalty in Swahili as we pass through the halfway mark of the regular season.
Let’s start at the top where Lake Travis’ very impressive rout of a good Bowie squad was enough to allow the Cavs to slip back in front of an idle Westlake. (Let’s be honest; Lake Travis, Westlake and #3 ranked Dripping Springs are gonna settle this on the field in district play, with Vandegrift ready to pounce.)
Next, you could pretty much throw a blanket over Teams #4-8, all of whom notched impressive wins to hold serve. Vista Ridge also stayed put at #9 after battling Vandegrift to a close loss while surging Liberty Hill climbs into the Top 10, helped by Rouse’s upset defeat. (Yes, we know #11 Rouse beat the Panthers, but that was a month ago.)
Whie the top half of the Rankings is (relatively) stable, the bottom half is a jumbled mess. Hutto moved up after their Bye, along with McNeil and Pflugerville after wins; LBJ, Bowie, and Hendrickson all slid down after losses. And note that Cedar Park and a suddenly resurgent Round Rock have reappeared in this week’s rankings. (And again, we know Round Rock handily defeated McNeil just last week – but they also have three losses overall. We’ll check back in a week or two.)
With the district races heating up, the matchups become more intriguing. In theory, that should bring some clarity to our Power Rankings next weeks.
But don’t bet on it.
VYPE Austin Top 20 Combined Class 4A-6A
*Last parentheses indicates most recent game result
1. (2) Lake Travis Cavaliers (6A) – 5-0 (W 63-21 vs. #13 Bowie)
2. (1) Westlake Chaparrals (6A) – 3-1 (BYE)
3. (3) Dripping Springs Tigers (6A) -- 5-0 (W 63-0 vs. # 20 Akins)
4. (4) Vandegrift Vipers (6A) - 3-1 (W 21-10 @ #9 Vista Ridge)
5. (5) Bastrop Bears (5A-2) – 5-0 (W 69-7 vs. McCallum)
6. (6) Anderson Trojans (5A-1) – 4-0 (W 42-40, 6-OT @ A&M Consolidated)
7. (7) Weiss Wolves (5A-1) – 4-1 (W 41-21 @ #16 Hendrickson)
8. (8) Georgetown Eagles (5A-1) – 3-1 (W 58-27 vs. Leander)
9. (9) Vista Ridge Rangers (6A) – 4-1 (L 21-10 vs. #4 Vandegrift)
10. (11) Liberty Hill (5A-2) – 3-2 (W 64-0 vs. Navarro)
11. (10) Rouse (5A-1) – 2-2 (L 49-38 @ Lake Belton)
12. (14) Hutto Hippos (6A) – 3-1 (BYE)
13. (15) McNeil Mavericks (6A) – 3-2 (W 56-21 vs. Stony Point)
14. (12) LBJ Austin Jaguars (4A-1) - 2-2 (L 37-21 @ Cornerstone Christian)
15. (13) Bowie Bulldogs (6A) – 3-2 (L 63-21 @ #2 Lake Travis)
16. (17) Pflugerville (5A-1) – 4-1 (W 55-20 vs. Elgin)
17. (16) Hendrickson Hawks (5A-2) – 3-2 (L 41-21 @ #7 Weiss)
18. (NR) Round Rock (6A) – 2-3 (W 40-12 @ #18 Cedar Ridge)
19. (NR) Cedar Park (5A-1) – 2-2 (W 57-14 vs. Killeen Chaparral)
20. (19) Hays Hawks (5A-1) – 3-1 (BYE)
Sr. RB Dionne Sims (SFA-commit) celebrates a game-sealing score against Atascocita, alongside sophomore Dillon MitchellPhoto taken by: Matthew Ogle (VYPE)
