It is no secret as to who the top two teams in the region are. Southlake Carroll and Euless Trinity are not only near the top of the statewide polls, they are also in the big picture from a national view too. Players such as Kenny Hill, Sam Tevi, Tanner Jacobson and Gaius Vaenuku are the Dragons and Trojans top stars. That being said, 5A Region I has a history of seeing teams come off the radar and fly into the big picture. This season is no exception to that rule. Teams such as Abilene, Arlington Martin, Hebron and Mansfield are just a good few that could make the move up the ladder as the darkhorse.
Plenty of the teams in 5A Region I will be battle-tested by the time district play comes around and there will be a good number of games on the slate for many of these teams that has that big wow factor. Euless Trinity, DeSoto and Cedar Hill lead the season off with a gauntlet of teams. The Trojans will be opening the season on the road in Seattle against nationally-ranked Bellevue then face Oklahoma power Tulsa Union a week later before wrapping non-district play against DeSoto. The DeSoto Eagles have their own taste of challenges with Arlington Martin in Week 0 and Jenks in Week 1. Cedar Hill counters with Denton Guyer and Allen before facing Florida power and nationally-ranked Miami Booker T. Washington in Week 2.
For DeSoto and Cedar Hill, momentum will be key as they will be facing one another right out of the gate in district play in Week 3 at DeSoto. The district races across the region has its fair share of intriguing match ups from within just like the Cedar Hill-DeSoto contest. Week 7 has a solid contest in 5-5A with Hebron travelling to Denton Ryan in what could decidde the district title. Hewitt-Waco Midway makes the jump into 5A and clase out the regular season at home against Belton. Abilene Cooper and Abilene, considered as the favorites in 2-5A, will do battle in Week 5.
There is no shortage of talent to keep an eye on for the 2012 Texas HS Football Season. Both offensively and defensively, the region has its crop of high level national recruits and its crop of relitively unknown but rising star talents. Key players on the offensive side of the ball to watch include QB Evin Abbe of Abilene and WR Eric Rivers of Arlington Bowie. Both are relatively unknown and very good athletes being overshadowed by a crowded field of talent within the region. The sucess of their respective teams offensively could be riding on how they perform on a week in, week out basis.
Over on the defensive side of the ball, LB Ryan Stinson of Belton and LB David Freeman of EP Franklin both had stellar junior seasons in 2011. A very big senior campaign for the two could result in a solid performance in turn for their respective team's defenses and could help the two of them gain some exposure that could give them a shot to play at the next level. The 5A Region I defensive scene has a strong crop of juniors that looks to make a major impact in 2012. Mansfield Timberview's Edward Paris and Hebron's Jamal Adams will be among those that makes that big step forward and will be critical to their team's playoff chances. |
1 |
Southlake Carroll |
2 |
Euless Trinity |
3 |
Abilene |
4 |
Arlington Martin |
5 |
DeSoto |
6 |
Hebron |
7 |
Copperas Cove |
8 |
Hewitt-Waco Midway |
9 |
Cedar Hill |
10 |
Denton Ryan |
11 |
Colleyville Heritage |
12 |
Abilene Cooper |
13 |
Mansfield |
14 |
Belton |
15 |
Mansfield Timberview |
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