TXHSFB 303: How Texas fared vs. out-of-state teams

[caption id="attachment_28293" align="aligncenter" width="700"]Photo by John Hamilton Photo by John Hamilton[/caption] Over the course of January, TexasFootball.com presents The TXHSFB 303, a deep dive into the hidden storylines in the 2016 Texas high school football season. Have an idea for an angle? E-mail DCTF managing editor Greg Tepper.Today: How Texas high school football teams fared against teams from out of state You may have noticed around these parts that Texas takes a lot of pride in its high school football. “We’re the biggest, we’re the baddest and we’re the best” may as well be the state motto, and who are we to disagree? And what better way to test that hypothesis than playing teams from outside of Texas? Interstate games have become an emerging trend in Texas high school football over the past decade or so, ranging from high-profile made-for-TV matchups (like DFW-area power Allen taking on nationally ranked Hoover [AL]) to games based on geographic convenience (like far-West Texas stalwart Clint taking on relative neighbor Chaparral [NM]). In total, there were 71 games in 2016 that pitted Texas high school football teams against foes from outside the Lone Star State border, ranging from Oklahoma and Louisiana to New York and Mexico. The bottom line: Texas teams went 44-27 against teams from outside the Lone Star State — about a 62% winning percentage. That tends to fall in line with recent trends: Texas won 62% of games against outsiders in 2015, 56% in 2014 and 63% in 2013. Unsurprisingly, Texas teams played the most games against its neighbors — 21 games against New Mexico, 17 games against Oklahoma, eight games against Louisiana, six games against Mexico and four games against Arkansas. And in sum, Texas teams had a winning record against every outsider state it played except three: Nevada (1-2), Maryland (0-1) and Tennessee (0-1). Here are the numbers of Texas teams playing outsiders, by state/country: