The must-see games in every 11-man bracket of the area round

[caption id="attachment_27356" align="alignright" width="350"]Denton Guyer RB Noah Cain (Photo by Gary Sanderson) Denton Guyer RB Noah Cain (Photo by Gary Sanderson)[/caption] The area round of the state playoffs begins Thursday and carries on through Saturday. Here are must-watch games in each bracket. Class 6A Division I: Converse Judson vs. Austin Westlake Both teams were hopeful this matchup wouldn’t occur. Westlake had a shot at a Division II berth when the season started, meaning an easier road to the playoffs out of Region IV. Instead, the Chaparrals take on fellow state title contender Converse Judson in the area round of the Division I playoffs. Westlake came into the season with high expectations built around quarterback and Longhorn commit Sam Ehlinger. Injuries kept the senior out for the much of the season, yet Todd Dodge’s program enters this game only losing to Lake Travis since Sep. 2. Westlake has outscored its last four opponents 188-9. Judson started the season off with an impressive win over Lake Travis. The Rockets limped into the playoffs however, losing to Smithson Valley in Week 10. Class 6A Division II: Denton Guyer vs. Cedar Hill Talent won’t be in short supply. These two programs produce FBS talent on a yearly basis and the amount of future college football players on the field at one time will be worth the price of admission. There might not be a single bracket in Texas high school football chalked with as much pure athleticism as Region I in Class 6A Division II. Southlake Carroll and DeSoto square off in the top half of this same bracket. Cedar Hill has a way of rallying in the playoffs, while Denton Guyer is on a roll. The only defeats the Wildcats suffered this season were to DeSoto and Allen. Class 5A Division I: Dripping Springs vs. Angleton Can I interest you in some offense? Dripping Springs and Angleton combined to score 136 points in the bi-district round. Angleton won 73-0 against an overmatched San Antonio Lanier team. Dripping Springs cruised to a 63-14 victory over Austin High. The Tigers were one of the surprise teams in the greater Austin Area. A five-point district loss to Boerne Champion is the only blemish on Dripping Springs’ record. Angleton lost in Week 2 to El Campo and then in district play to state-ranked Richmond Foster. The victor in this game becomes the likely opponent for Foster to decide Region IV in two weeks. Class 5A Division II: Fort Bend Marshall vs. Crosby Crosby was an overtime loss to Porter away from claiming an outright district championship. The other loss was in Week 1 to title contender Manvel. The Cougars didn’t dominate the district schedule like many anticipated before the season, but that doesn’t mean Jeff Riordan’s program doesn’t remain one of the teams to beat in Region III with Cedar Park, Temple and Manvel up a division. Marshall is another program that fell victim to Manvel during the regular season. The Buffaloes also lost a two-overtime thriller against Fort Bend Elkins. Class 4A Division I: Kennedale vs. Terrell A rematch from a Week 1 game Kennedale won 21-20. Kennedale didn’t carry much momentum from the win, losing three of the next four contests. Once district play began, the Wildcats found their stride. Defensively, Kennedale is led by five-star recruit Baron Browning. The linebacker can do it all and will be worth the trip. He’s led a defense that’s shutout five of its last six opponents. A district loss to Kaufman in September is the last time Terrell tasted defeat. Class 4A Division II: Krum vs. Sweetwater Two top 10 teams battle to decide the favorite in Region I. Krum enters as the favorite. The Bobcats' only loss was a low-scoring contest to Sanger on Sep. 9. Krum spent the next eight weeks scoring at least 41 points until Life Waxahachie held the Bobcats to 35 points in the bi-district round of the state playoffs. Sweetwater is considered the underdog, but not by much. The Mustangs lost a chance at a district title in a three-point loss to Monahans. A win over Krum sets up an eventual rematch against Monahans for the Region I title. Class 3A Division I: Woodville vs. Cameron Yoe Cameron Yoe is attempting to reach another state championship game after falling in the final game of the year to Brock in 2015. The Yoemen dominated this classification for years and are playing good football at the right time of the year. Losses to China Spring and Rockdale are the only blemishes for Yoe this season. Woodville has a chance to shock the state. The Eagles haven’t lost since Week 4 against Liberty. Woodville doesn’t have the state experience of its opponent, but the talent is there to pull a mild upset. Class 3A Division II: Boling vs. Dilley Boling finished the regular season on a down note, falling to East Bernard in the final game of the year. It cost Boling a district title and a No. 1 seed in the state playoffs. This set up a tougher road through the area round. Dilley is a quality program capable of shaking up Region IV. The Wolves are only 6-5 on the season, but have won five of their last six games heading into this contest with state-ranked Boling. Class 2A Division I: Mason vs. Shiner Anyone familiar with small school football in the state of Texas knows why this game is the must-watch game of the week in Class 2A. Each of these programs contends on a yearly basis and at least one of these teams usually has a chance to help decide the outcome of Region IV. Mason started 2-2 with non-district losses to Goldthwaite and Iraan before settling in and running the table through district play. Shiner, led by running back Dadrian Taylor, lost to Refugio by 35 points in district play. Class 2A Division II: Albany vs. Electra Few Class 2A programs in this state hold a shot at knocking off Bremond in the state title game. Albany is one of the programs capable of stopping Bremond’s reign. To do it, Albany must first advance past Region II. That likely means winning the rematch next week against Iraan and Albany must beat a battle-tested Electra squad to set up that game. Electra advanced past Lindsay in the bi-district round of the state playoffs.

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