Friday night's must-see Texas high school football games for Week 3

As the Texas high school football season progresses into Week 3, the number of quality games takes a step up this week as well. There are state-ranked clashes all across the state – here are the five 11-man games I would attend. 6A: Temple (2-0) vs. Hewitt Midway (2-0) The No. 3 team in Class 5A (Temple) taking on the No. 18 team in Class 6A (Midway) is one of the most intriguing matchups of the season to date. Temple is coming off a state championship loss to Highland Park last season and has responded by knocking off Belton and Round Rock to open the year. Meanwhile, Midway is turning heads after its two wins over Cedar Park and Cedar Ridge in consecutive weeks. For the Panthers to continue their hot start, Oklahoma quarterback commit Tanner Mordecai (479 yards, 6 TDs) will have to play lights out yet again against a top-notch defense. Running back James Fullbright (381 yards, 4 TDs) has been equally as impressive and should take some of the pressure off the Panthers’ star quarterback. Temple has spread the ball out to a variety of weapons early in the season, but quarterback TJ Rumfield (589 yards, 7 TDs) likes to go to veteran WRs D’Yonte Heckstall (185 yards, 2 TDs) and Xavier Johnson (232 yards, 4 TDs). These are two high-powered offenses that will be going at it in an exciting central Texas showdown. 5A: Aledo (2-0) vs. Mansfield Legacy (2-0) If Temple-Midway wasn’t enough, here is another top 25 matchup that should grab some attention. Aledo, coming off its seventh state championship, has logged wins over Colleyville Heritage and Aguilas Blancas IPN (Mexico City) entering this week. Mansfield Legacy had a commanding win over Wichita Falls Rider in Week 1 before narrowly edging Crowley 10-7 last week. After last season’s game between these two schools produced a combined 100 points in a 59-41 win for Aledo, it’s safe to expect another thrilling game this time around. Legacy will have to find a way to slowdown the sophomore tandem of quarterback Jake Bishop (345 yards, 3 TDs) and running back Jase McClellan (131 yards) to have a chance in the game. Running back Grant Johnson (285 yards, 3 TDs) needs to have another big game on the ground for the Broncos, as Legacy looks to make a statement against one of the state’s top teams. 4A: Celina (1-1) vs. Argyle (2-0) In yet another state-ranked matchup, No. 3 Argyle will travel to take on No. 10 Celina in the latest edition of the traditional powerhouses’ rivalry series. The Eagles have been rolling early in the season and look unstoppable, with dominant wins over Lovejoy (42-21) and La Grange (70-0). Celina on the other hand has struggled, first barely edging by Princeton (34-26) before running into all sorts of offensive issues in a 10-9 loss to Liberty Christian last week. The Bobcats will have to slow down Argyle’s dynamic quarterback, senior Jon Copeland (556 yards, 8 TDs), who is completing almost 70 percent of his passes through two games. Celina’s defense has been impressive but the Eagles’ offensive attack, which is averaging 56 points per game, is a whole new animal. The Bobcats will have to take care of the ball and control the clock to have a shot at avenging last season’s 43-14 loss to Argyle. 3A: Elysian Fields (2-0) vs. Jefferson (2-0) No. 7 Elysian Fields escaped with a 28-20 win over Winona last week to remain unbeaten while Jefferson recorded a 42-16 blowout victory over Pewitt. Elysian Fields would appear to have the edge on paper, but last season’s game was a 30-25 nail biter that the Yellowjackets didn’t secure until late. Elysian Fields has won the last two games between the schools and the Bulldogs will be looking to snap that streak. In order to do so, they’ll have to contain sophomore running back Christavian Smith (187 yards, 3 TDs) and force senior quarterback Garrett Mcintosh (457 yards, 3 TDs) to make a few mistakes. Jefferson may have the most explosive duo on the field in junior quarterback Trey Hodge (467 total yards, 8 TDs) and WR T.Q. Jackson (188 yards, 2 TDs), so getting those two going will be key to pulling off the upset. 2A: Roscoe (2-0) vs. Albany (2-0) Rounding out this week’s list of cant-miss games, No. 7 Roscoe and No. 3 Albany will meet in a top 10 showdown looking to secure a statement win in non-district play. Roscoe escaped with a tight 20-13 win over Early last week while Albany enters with a lot of momentum coming off a 61-21 blowout of Dublin. The Lions dominated Roscoe 48-7 last season, giving the Plowboys a lot to play for this time around. Albany does most of its damage by way of quarterback Brian Hamilton (520 yards, 8 TDs), but junior running back Cutter Edgar (185 yards, 3 TDs) provides some balance for the offense. WR’s Dax Neece and Adam Faith have combined to catch 24 passes for 414 yards and 6 TDs, so the Roscoe secondary will have to step up to slow that duo down.

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