Background. Whether native bred, transferred in or a distant admirer, most observers will argue that much of the best high school football in America is annually contested in Central and South Texas. While another season stands waiting at the doorstep, it seems worthwhile to examine the prospects of some local schools and their 2021 gridiron outlooks. Named below are four among the strongest, as reckoned by at least one panel of veteran analysts:
- Duncanville Panthers, An easy 12-mile drive South from Dallas along US 67 rests Duncanville. Nothing seems especially easy about its 2021 Varsity Football edition, however, as Head Coach Richard Samples prepares his Division 6A charges for the task ahead. It features an Aug. 27 season opening host of famed and current National #1 ranked California Santa Ana Mater Dei. Those Monarchs will carry a 45-3 recent five year record onto the field, while Duncanville rightly boasts its own 50-5 mark over the same span. A stud to watch along the line of scrimmage will be Panther Senior OT Cameron Williams. Filling his space at an imposing 6’5” 360 lbs., Williams gathered no fewer than 33 scholarship offers from all the familiar collegiate powerhouses, ultimately choosing the Oregon Ducks as his next station. We can all be sure that a large number of college scouts will be on hand for the Duncanville-Mater Dei Season Opener.
- Westlake High’s Chaparrals ply their craft in the state capital of Austin, reached by way of a 195 mile ride along I-35 South from Dallas. The unit’s claim to 2020 Texas Division 6A State honors was staked on the playing field, a 52-34 blockbuster in which opposing head coaches were also father and son. Entering 2021 the elder, Todd Dodge, brings his polished group and 88-11 lifetime record to the fields. Returning Senior QB Cabe Kludnik — a Clemson sign-on — rates to again steer a potent attack. Lost on no one of interest is that he out-dueled Southlake Carroll’s highly touted Quinn Ewars in last year’s state championship finale.
- Down toward Houston, the North Shore Mustangs are again on the prowl. Entering now his eighth season, head coach John Kay and his charges will give it every reasonable effort to carry things a step or two further along in 2021 — the Mustangs were toppled 24-21 in last year’s regional finals by Westlake, named immediately above as eventual State Champion. A veteran and talented defensive group returns for North Shore, most spotlights trained on 6’1 180# CB Denver Harris. A replacement for graduated QB Dematrius Davis will be needed leading to the Aug. 27 season opener, an away game at Shadow Creek High in Pearland, 20 miles to the South along the Sam Houston expressway.
- Additionally in the greater Houston area is a town and its high school, both named But there is much about which to be certain of its Tigers football program, as its 15-1 2020 season record attests. Returning strength is enough to land Katy the #2 Lone Star rank as the 2021 campaign now unfolds. Spotlights will be trained on Inside Linebacker Ty Kana, a 6’2’ 210# sculpture who passed on numerous collegiate offers — Baylor and SMU among them — before giving the USC Trojans his verbal commitment. The Tigers Aug. 27 home and season opener pits them against Clear Springs.
