Friday night's must-see Texas high school football games for Week 2

[caption id="attachment_32577" align="alignright" width="350"] Photo by Russell Wilburn[/caption] There is no shortage of massive games Friday night in Week 2, as a combination of rivalry matchups and state-ranked showdowns standout on the schedule to offer plenty of options across Texas. Here are the 11-man games I would attend in each classification. 6A: Cibolo Steele vs. Lake Travis It’s hard to pass up the showdown between Hewitt Midway and Cedar Ridge, but the chance to see two defending state finalists gives this game a slight edge. Lake Travis-Steele was an absolute thriller in Austin last year when the Cavaliers were able to pull off a 59-56 overtime win in the second week of the season. Of course, both teams went on to make it to the season’s final weekend – Steele fell to DeSoto in the 6A DII final while Lake Travis dominated The Woodlands in the 6A DI championship. The rematch is just as intriguing, especially after the results of Week 1. The Cavaliers got walloped 65-45 by Judson, as Julon Williams and company put on a show. Steele took care of SA Madison handedly as expected and the Knights proved they once again have a lot of speed offensively. If Lake Travis isn’t careful, it could be looking at a 0-2 start just a few months after winning the program’s sixth state title. 5A: Denton Ryan vs. Mesquite Poteet Spencer Sanders may very well be the best quarterback in the state, and the firepower he brings to the table alone is enough to make Denton Ryan an exciting team every week. Sanders had a ridiculous stat line last week that would be hard to replicate even in a video game – 487 total yards and six touchdowns against a good Lancaster team. With the weapons he has on the outside in Gabe Douglas and Tauskie Dove, the Raiders’ offense is just too fun to watch. That’s not even mentioning the fact that this is a matchup between two top 15 teams in Class 5A. The Raiders rank No. 8 on our list while Mesquite Poteet comes in at No. 11. And while Sanders is the main draw, Poteet is pretty explosive offensively too. But with star RB Seth McGowan likely out tonight with a hamstring injury, per the DMN’s Michael Florek, the Pirates will rely more on WR DaMichael Smith as a playmaker in the passing game. If you like offense, C.H. Collins is the place to be. 4A: Cuero vs. Yoakum The Cuero-Yoakum rivalry ranked as the No. 8 rivalry in Texas during our countdown late this summer, and it’s easy to see why. The teams have been playing since 1911, and there is no love lost between the programs. Yoakum, which advanced to the Class 3A DI state final, is looking to avenge three straight losses to the Gobblers, who went all the way to the 4A DII quarterfinals last season. The Bulldogs will have a slight edge in having played a game last week while Cuero is opening its season after having its first game cancelled due to Hurricane Harvey. Yoakum’s defense looked good in a 33-0 shutout against Hondo, and the Moore brothers will need to have a big game on both sides of the ball if the Bulldogs are going to knock off Bralen Taylor, Jordan Whittington and the Gobblers. 3A: Cisco vs. Wall As good as Wall looked last year on its way to an appearance in the state semifinals, the Hawks set the bar pretty high for this season with a 50-13 blowout win over Monahans. Keep in mind Wall lost to Monahans 46-20 in the opener last year before going on to have a big year, so last week’s win could be the first step towards a lot of success for the Hawks. But they have their work cut out for them in a matchup on the road against Cisco. As our own Matt Stepp said in his Week 2 preview, the Loboes have lost just one game at home in the last eight years – and that was to Wall in 2015. Last year, Wall scraped by with a 19-18 win. It should be another close one this season as the Hawks’ explosive rushing attack led by Casey Braden (197 yards, 3 TDs) and Brock Rosenquist (132 yards, 2 TDs) looks to outmatch the Cisco offense led by RB Dathan Harding (17 carries, 131 yards and 2 TDs). 2A: Mart vs. West Mart has an 0-1 record entering this game, but don’t let last week’s loss fool you. The Panthers went up in classification and gave Lexington, the No. 1 ranked team in Class 3A DII, everything it could handle. That’s why Mart is still atop the 2A DI rankings heading into a matchup against West. A bounce back game would be a quality win for the Panthers as West is hovering outside the top 10 in 3A DI after a big 42-24 win over Rockdale last week. Mart knocked off the Trojans 26-13 last year but will have to travel to West this time around. West will put its balanced offensive attack in the hands of QB Nathan Gerik (136 yards, 3 TDs) and RB Paeton Mcfarlin (166 yards, 1 TD) while the Panthers will lean heavily on RB Tyrek Horne (277 yards, 3 TDs) and QB Jace Terry (234 yards, 2 TDs).

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