Duncanville quarterback Maximus The Great Denson (1) runs the ball as Allen linebacker Raiden Johnson (15) and linebacker Hova Wilford (8) try to tackle him during the first half of a nondistrict football game at Eagle Stadium on Friday, Aug. 28, 2026, in Allen.
Elías Valverde II/The Dallas Morning News
Here are five storylines to watch during Week 2 of the Texas high school football season.
Bounce backs for top programs
Quite a few state contenders took big losses on the opening weekend of Texas high school football.
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Duncanville, DeSoto, Argyle, South Oak Cliff and Highland Park all suffered defeats in Week 1 and, if you want to expand just beyond The Dallas Morning News’ coverage area, you could also include Aledo as another contender taking a loss.
Of course, with them being non-district, a lot of those high-profile games won’t matter when it comes to determining who will and won’t be playing football past Thanksgiving, but they are a good indicator on which teams hit the ground running immediately. This week, all but South Oak Cliff (more on them in a bit) have a chance to rebound and get back on track.
In 2025, only three of those teams, DeSoto, Argyle and Highland Park, lost their opening game of the season.
New coaches clash
For the D-FW area, the most high-profile game has to be Southlake Carroll vs. North Crowley. Both are led by new head coaches, in Lee Munn and DeMarcus Harris, and both are coming off statement-making performances in Week 1. Southlake Carroll overcame a 27-point deficit to beat Jenks (Okla.) while North Crowley handed Aledo its first shutout loss in over 20 years.
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It’s clear that even under new leadership, both programs still have the makings of powerhouses, so which one will win out? North Crowley’s talented defense against Southlake Carroll’s offense, especially after Brody Knowles’ game on Thursday, will be one of the best matchups of the season.
Class 6A vs. Class 5A
This week is also one of the best weekends for cross-classification games. Some of the biggest games between Class 6A and Class 5A programs this week are: Denton Guyer vs. Melissa, DeSoto vs Allen, Cedar Hill vs. Duncanville and Highland Park vs. Rockwall-Heath.
DeSoto, Highland Park and Duncanville all suffered losses and will be looking to rebound. After an impressive win over Duncanville, Allen aims to knock off another one of the powers south of Highway I-20 in DeSoto in a rematch of last year’s 6A Division I state semifinal.
Dominant Waxahachie
There’s a new top team in the Dallas area after Waxahachie’s dismantling of Ennis, 72-14. Lawrence Williams’ team put in work in nearly every phase of the game with over 570 yards of offense and 29 points in the first quarter.
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They also held Ennis to just 2.12 yards per carry. This week, Waxahachie faces perhaps the best quarterback it’ll see all season in Coppell’s Carter Zingelmann. Coppell is fresh off a 40-10 win over Hebron. Another dominant win for Waxahachie could see the hype train completely take off.
South Oak Cliff’s much-needed open week
No one’s more disappointed in their opening week performance than South Oak Cliff. Sure, they played Richmond Randle to a one-possession loss, but any time a team generates five turnovers, they’re going to expect to win.
Under new defensive coordinator Dominic Spencer, the SOC defense looked just as good as ever, consistently putting the offense is good position. But offensively, five first downs, 24 yards rushing and just 89 yards passing won’t cut it by the three-time state champions’ standards.
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South Oak Cliff hosts reigning 6A Division I state champion Galena Park North Shore on September 12 at the Cotton Bowl, so head coach Jason Todd and the staff will no doubt use this week’s open date to make necessary adjustments ahead of that game.