The Texas 20, No. 9: Can anyone stop Canadian and Refugio?

[caption id="attachment_17967" align="alignleft" width="300"]Photos by Matt Garnett and Mike McNabb Photos by Matt Garnett and Mike McNabb[/caption] This is the Texas 20, DCTF’s countdown of the 20 biggest storylines heading into the 2015 football season.No. 20: Is there a college sleeper in Texas?No. 19: Which Texas high school football records will be broken? No. 18: State title games headed to Houston No. 17: Will anyone play defense this season? No. 16: Can Allen keep dominating without Kyler Murray? No. 15: Cameron Yoe’s chase for a fourth straight title No. 14: New coaches at SMU and HoustonNo. 13: Can DeSoto finally get over the hump?No. 12: What will be the best region in the state? No. 11: Is anyone on the college coaching hot seat? No. 10: Are Rice or UTEP ready for the national spotlight?Today, we’ve reached No. 9: Can anyone stop Canadian and Refugio? Texas high school football is notoriously unpredictable, but if there’s one place in the vast state that we feel like we have a good handle on things, it’s in Class 2A Division I, where there look like two teams destined to be on a collision course in Houston: Canadian and Refugio. Canadian is the defending champ, and boast one of the most dangerous passing attacks in the state, triggered by quarterback Tanner Schafer. If the defense, led by DB Sawyer Cook, can hold up its end of the bargain, the Wildcats will be tough to top. They’re a big favorite to come out of Region I. Meanwhile, across the state (both geographically and regionally), Region IV has a headliner in Refugio. The 2011 state champs are chomping at the bit to get back to the title game, and with QB Jaylon Mascorro and RB Isaiah Perez back in the fold, the Bobcats are going to be tough as nails. It seems — here, on August 21 — that anything other than a Canadian vs. Refugio state championship game would be an upset. But who has a chance to crash the party? Here are the three best bets to stop them. Stratford Canadian’s biggest challenge in Region I may come from within its own district, as archrival Stratford brings back a loaded squad from last year’s regional semifinalist team. If QB Jack McBryde and RB Gage Brooks get cooking, they’re a significant challenge to Canadian in the regional final. Mason If someone’s knocking off Refugio in Region IV, it’s almost certainly Mason. The Punchers came up just short last year in the state title game, and coach Kade Burns’ team is hungry. QB Seth Hudson will move from RB to QB, and that could provide a spark, especially if the defense, led by LB Riley Pape, is as advertised. They could be the Bobcats’ worst nightmare in the regional final. Alto Hey, what about Region III? Paul Gould’s Yellowjackets lost a lot from last year’s 11-1 team, but what they didn’t lose was superstar QB Keenen Johnson. He has the ability to single-handedly take over the entire bracket and mess up everything.