2A Realignment Thoughts

ByDennis Hall/Texas FootballMuleshoe, Bushland in same district: Two of West Texas’ top Class 2A programs were placed in the same district when 2008 state champ Muleshoe was put in the same district with Bushland. Both are in the mighty District 1-2A-DI, which means the fight for the district title will be a good one. And don’t forget about Amarillo River Road, another district foe and the team that knocked Muleshoe out of the 2009 playoffs with a stunning first-round upset. It’s an eight-team district and only the top two make the playoffs. That’s almost not fair when you consider that four teams make the playoffs in some six-team districts in higher classifications. Breckenridge drops down: Breckenridge, a six-time state champion whose most recent title came in 1959, struggled mightily in 2009 with a 1-9 record and an offense that only averaged 7.9 points per game. The Buckaroos also went 1-9 in 2008. But realignment might give Breckenridge a fighting chance now that the school is dropping from Class 3A to 2A. Not only will Breckenridge be competing against smaller schools, it also will be getting away from the very difficult district it was in the past two seasons. Instead of competing against powerhouse teams like Abilene Wylie, Graham and Brownwood, now Breckenridge is in a district with only one dominant team, Godley. We’re not saying Breckenridge is a playoff team, but the road to the playoffs is a heck of a lot easier to see from here than it was the past two years. Watch out, because Tatum’s back in 2A: Tatum was a solid Class 3A team in 2009 with a 6-4 record and a second-place district finish behind state champ Gilmer. Now that Tatum has dropped to 2A-DI, could the Eagles again return to state title contender status? Tatum was a 2A state champ in 2006 and a runner-up in 2007 before getting moved up to 3A the past two seasons. Tatum is immediately the favorite in District 9-2A-I, and you have to put the Eagles and Newton among the early favorites to win Region III. Daingerfield stays in 2A: We heard rumors that Daingerfield might drop down to Class 1A, but those obviously weren’t close to true because the Tigers ended up in 2A-Division I. Either way, Daingerfield was going to be a state title favorite, and there’s nothing in the realignment lists that would make you think otherwise. It’s never easy to win a state championship, but Daingerfield will be a heavy favorite in every game it plays in 2010 (except perhaps for a non-district game against 3A Gilmer). Daingerfield’s top two challengers in 2A-I Region II would appear to be Callisburg and Grandview. Newton picks up new district foes: Newton has to feel fortunate that 2009 district rival Kirbyville has moved up to Class 3A, but Newton picked up a couple of tough district rivals in the tradeoff. With Buna and Anahuac, as well as Newton, District 10-2A-I will be a tough district to crack if you hope to make the playoffs. All three of those teams made the playoffs in 2009 – in fact, Newton knocked off Buna in the second round. The district also includes 2009 playoff qualifiers East Chambers and Woodville, which means five of the district’s eight teams were in the playoffs last year. Tom Moore switches classes, regions: A total of 14 schools dropped down from 3A to 2A. Ingram Tom Moore not only changed classifications, but also switched regions. Tom Moore was in 3A-Region I but now will be in 2A-I-Region IV. One of its district rivals in District 13-2A-DI will be Luling, which also is dropping to 3A. Here are the other schools dropping from 3A to 2A: Breckenridge, Cameron Yoe, Crockett, Edna, Eustace, Falfurrias, Marion, Mineola, New Boston, Tatum, Tornillo, Whitney. District 14-2A-DI will be a tough one: One of the toughest districts in Class 2A-DI will be District 14, which includes Altair Rice, Edna and Vanderbilt Industrial, all of which had strong seasons in 2009. Rice and Industrial both went three rounds deep in the 2A-DII playoffs last season, while Edna reached the second round of the 3A-DII playoffs. Only two of those three can advance to the playoffs, and there are some other tough teams in that district, which includes Hallettsville, Hempstead, Hitchcock and Van Vleck. Refugio looks strong in 2A-DII: Refugio had an excellent playoff run in 2009 before running into Daingerfield in the state semifinals. That won’t be a concern in 2010 because those teams will be in different brackets. While Daingerfield moves into Division I, Refugio looks like an early favorite for the Division II title. Refugio is one of only two teams in 2A-DII that finished in the top 10 in last season’s TexasFootball.com Class 2A rankings. Refugio (14-1) ended the season ranked No. 5, and Arp was No. 8. Refugio’s toughest competition in District 16-2A-DII could come from Hebbronville, which won its district title last year.