Category: Texas Statewide

Subhead: The record looks ordinary. The schedule was anything but. Friday in Ellis County, one 3-1 team grabs the inside lane behind North Crowley, and the other starts scrambling.

By T-Rohn

Judging Duncanville by its record is like judging a gumbo by the color of the pot. You’ve got to taste what’s inside.

No. 7 Duncanville (4-3) visits No. 8 Waxahachie (6-1) in UIL Week 9 at 7 p.m. Friday at Stuart B. Lumpkins Stadium, per Waxahachie’s schedule. Rankings and records come from MaxPreps. Both teams are 3-1 in District 11-6A, and HS Football Nation says the winner holds the inside track to second place behind North Crowley.

Why 4-3 isn’t really 4-3

Duncanville’s losses came against Allen (26-7) and North Crowley (47-30), HSFN’s top two teams, plus a 21-20 heartbreaker to rival DeSoto on Sept. 12 at the Cotton Bowl, where DeSoto blocked the tying extra point late, per MaxPreps and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Last week the Panthers beat Crowley 28-15.

HSFN calls Friday a must-win. Per HSFN, a loss would leave Duncanville two games back of North Crowley and stuck in a scramble with Red Oak and Lake Ridge for the last playoff berths.

Two games back in November is a long drive. Like I-35 at 5 p.m.: you’ll get there eventually, but you won’t enjoy a single mile.

Waxahachie’s comeback tour

Waxahachie entered October No. 1 in several statewide polls, HSFN noted, before a 42-17 loss to North Crowley. Since then, the Indians beat Coppell 27-24 and routed Red Oak 48-3.

HSFN’s analysis is that North Crowley exposed Waxahachie’s interior run defense, and Friday is the best test of whether that fix holds.

Same opponent, two different lessons

Both teams have already met North Crowley. Duncanville gave up 293 rushing yards in its 47-30 loss, but the Panthers moved the ball early, piling up 209 first-half yards before North Crowley held them to 73 yards and two points after halftime, per HSFN.

Waxahachie was 5-0 and ranked No. 1 in the state when North Crowley won 42-17 at Lumpkins Stadium, The Dallas Morning News and MaxPreps reported. The Indians answered by hanging 48 on Red Oak.

One team got bruised and kept swinging. The other got rattled and came back hot. Both answers count. Friday decides which one counts more.

The computer has opinions

MaxPreps gives Duncanville a 52.1 strength rating, the third-highest among its Texas top 10, three losses and all. Waxahachie sits at 47.0. That’s the computer’s way of saying the Panthers’ record and their real strength are two different stories.

Three losses and the computer still likes you. That’s the most Texas thing a calculator has ever done.

Don’t forget the hardware, either. Duncanville has three state titles: 1998, per UIL records, plus 2022 (28-21 over Galena Park North Shore, per the UIL box score) and 2023 (49-33, again over North Shore, per High School On SI’s game report). Last December, the Panthers came up one fourth-down stop short of title No. 4, falling 10-7 to North Shore, The Dallas Morning News reported. And with Lake Ridge (4-3, 2-2) tied for fourth in 11-6A, Friday’s loser won’t be lonely in the scramble.

The Gumbo Pick (for fun only)

Duncanville 27, Waxahachie 24. That brutal schedule turned the Panthers into battle-tested stew meat, and stew meat travels well.

Like we said up top: taste what’s inside. This one’s got some kick.

Sources

• MaxPreps, Texas UIL Week 9 schedule, rankings and stat leaders (Eric Frantz, Oct. 20, 2026): https://www.maxpreps.com/news/eJkCOPFmTE2ahbQL1OMlxQ/texas-high-school-football-uil-week-9-schedule%2C-live-broadcasts%2C-scores%2C-state-rankings-and-statewide-statistical-leaders.htm
• Waxahachie HS football schedule: https://www.hachiesports.org/sport/football/boys/?tab=schedule
• UIL state championship archive, 1998: https://www.uiltexas.org/historical-archives/athletics/archives/football/playoff_text/98at_bfb.html
• UIL box score, 2022 6A D-I final (Dec. 17, 2022): https://www.uiltexas.org/files/athletics/state-football/boxscores/22FB6AD1.HTM
• High School On SI, 2023 6A D-I final (Dec. 16, 2023): https://www.si.com/high-school/texas/2023/12/16/duncanville-vs-north-shore-live-score-updates-of-texas-high-school-football-championship-12-16-2023
• The Dallas Morning News, 2025 6A D-I final (Dec. 20, 2025): https://www.dallasnews.com/high-school-sports/football/2025/12/20/duncanville-galena-park-north-shore-6a-di-uil-texas-state-championship/
• The Dallas Morning News, “Five thoughts from Week 7” (Myah Taylor, Oct. 10, 2026): https://www.dallasnews.com/high-school-sports/football/article/five-thoughts-week-7-blowouts-shocking-history-22469433.php
• MaxPreps, North Crowley 42, Waxahachie 17 (Aaron Williams, Oct. 9, 2026): https://www.maxpreps.com/news/LDZK-6EcoESPwc9k3OB4JA/high-school-football-no-18-north-crowley-runs-over-waxahachie-42-17-in-the-maxpreps-game-of-the-week-presented-by-t-mobile.htm
• HS Football Nation, Texas Week 9 Power Rankings (John Miller, Oct. 19, 2026): https://hsfootballnation.com/texas-high-school-football-week-9-power-rankings-2026/

Subhead: The unbeaten Mustangs already won a road trip to Lafayette. Now Sheldon King comes calling, and whoever wins Friday takes the wheel in District 17-6A.

By T-Rohn

Y’all, North Shore crossed the Sabine this season, beat John Curtis in Lafayette, and drove home happy. Friday’s job is bigger, and it’s at home.

Plenty of Texans cross the Sabine for boudin. North Shore went for a win, which keeps better in the cooler.

No. 4 King (6-1) visits No. 3 North Shore (7-0) in UIL Week 9 at 7 p.m. Friday at Galena Park ISD Stadium, per MaxPreps’ game page. Rankings come from MaxPreps’ Texas Week 9 page. Both are 4-0 in District 17-6A, and HS Football Nation says it’s the only meeting this week between two teams in its top 10. The winner takes control of the district with two weeks left.

The Louisiana angle

North Shore beat John Curtis 27-17 in Lafayette, HSFN reported. Curtis is 2-5 this season, per MaxPreps. That’s a rare rough year for the Patriots, so the win may not shine quite as bright in December. Still, winning in Acadiana is never a small thing.

The résumés

North Shore is the defending Class 6A Division I state champion. It beat Duncanville 10-7 last December for its sixth title, the Houston Chronicle reported. HSFN lists a tough path so far: a 23-21 road win at South Oak Cliff, a 28-27 escape against Humble Summer Creek, and 35-0 shutouts of Lancaster and Atascocita.

King has a title-game memory of its own. The Panthers reached their first state final last season in Class 6A Division II, Houston Public Media reported, and fell 55-27 to DeSoto, per the Star-Telegram. HPM also noted that North Shore beat King during last year’s regular season and that King coach Cory Laxen was a longtime North Shore assistant, so these sidelines know each other well.

King’s only loss was 31-28 to Cypress Ranch in Week 2. Since then, the Panthers won 42-14 at Atascocita and posted six sacks and four takeaways against Crosby, per HSFN.

HSFN’s scouting view is that North Shore’s defensive front is the best in Greater Houston at collapsing interior gaps. That’s an opinion, but it’s an informed one.

The calendar is talking

After Friday, two regular-season weeks remain, and the UIL playoffs open Nov. 12-14, per the UIL football calendar. That makes Friday’s loser a passenger in the district race, needing help just to catch up.

Two weeks isn’t much runway. In Houston traffic, that’s barely enough time to get from the Loop to the Beltway.

The computer has opinions

MaxPreps rates North Shore at 49.7 and King at 43.4, and both held their spots this week. Six points of computer math is like the gap between your mama’s gumbo and your auntie’s. It’s real, but nobody’s saying it out loud at the table.

Friday, the scoreboard settles it for one night. The auntie still won’t concede.

The Gumbo Pick (for fun only)

North Shore 24, King 21. Beating the champs on their own field is a heavy pot to lift, and this King team looks strong enough to try. We’ll say the Mustangs hang on, barely.

Pack a lawn chair, a cooler and a second lawn chair. This one could go long.

Sources

• MaxPreps, Texas UIL Week 9 schedule, rankings and stat leaders (Eric Frantz, Oct. 20, 2026): https://www.maxpreps.com/news/eJkCOPFmTE2ahbQL1OMlxQ/texas-high-school-football-uil-week-9-schedule%2C-live-broadcasts%2C-scores%2C-state-rankings-and-statewide-statistical-leaders.htm
• MaxPreps game page, King at North Shore (venue and kickoff): https://www.maxpreps.com/tx/football/game/king-houston-vs-north-shore-houston/10-23-2026/?c=705fa9d8-7760-4d81-b4f5-64fd611d3d39
• Houston Chronicle, 2025 6A D-I final: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/sports/high-school/football/article/north-shore-duncanville-uil-state-championship-21246283.php
• Houston Public Media (Dec. 15, 2025): https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/sports/2025/12/15/538722/high-school-football-championships-texas-uil-houston/
• Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2025 state finals roundup: https://www.star-telegram.com/sports/dfwvarsity/article313858772.html
• UIL football dates 2026-27: https://www.uiltexas.org/football
• HS Football Nation, Texas Week 9 Power Rankings (John Miller, Oct. 19, 2026): https://hsfootballnation.com/texas-high-school-football-week-9-power-rankings-2026/
• MaxPreps, LHSAA Week 8 page (John Curtis record): https://www.maxpreps.com/news/WfkBez8LF0-mNBlCgK0-WQ/louisiana-high-school-football-lhsaa-week-8-schedule%2C-live-broadcasts%2C-scores%2C-state-rankings-and-statewide-statistical-leaders.htm