El Paso Eastwood vs. El Paso El Dorado
Both teams are fresh off a bye week and it will be interesting to see how they respond. Eastwood is coming off a 56-34 loss to Permian, while El Dorado is coming off a 62-35 win against Midland Lee. I like El Dorado to keep things going.
El Paso El Dorado
Cibolo Steele vs. Converse Judson
This has all the makings to be a great game. Both teams are powerhouses in the state of Texas. But for now, I think Judson holds the slight advantage.
Converse Judson
Nacogdoches vs. Gilmer
I predict a lot of points from this one. Gilmer has scored 70, 61 and 61 in their three wins this season, but I’m going with my gut and picking Nacogdoches.
Nacogdoches
Dickinson vs. Friendswood
This has huge district implications, not to mention, both teams are undefeated. I like how Dickinson has started this season with a win against a very good George Ranch team. So I’ll go with Dickinson.
Dickinson
Texas A&M vs. Arkansas
Classic SWC matchup? Sure, why not. This ought to be an exciting game as both teams are coming into it playing great football. I’ll pick the team who’s first to 30.
Texas A&M
Baylor vs. Oklahoma State
I think the real big question for Baylor fans is: will Art Briles be in attendance? It seemed to work for their 38-10 win in Houston last week against Rice. If he is, I’ll go with the Bears.
Baylor
El Paso Eastwood vs. El Paso El Dorado
This one’s going to be a lot of fun as two high-powered offenses meet to start District 1-6A play. Eastwood won last year’s matchup 62-35. I think we’ll get close to that final point total again, but I think Cedarious Barfield will be too much for the Troopers to contain.
El Dorado
Cibolo Steele vs. Converse Judson
Two of the very best from the San Antonio area square off in this one. Expect dual-threat quarterbacks Julon Williams of Judson and Xavier Martin of Steele to put up a lot of fireworks. Judson is also coming off of a win against Lake Travis and they’ll ride that momentum into a win on the road.
Converse Judson
Nacogdoches vs. Gilmer
The Gilmer Buckeyes will throw, throw, and throw some more in this one. We’ll see if the 5A Nacogdoches Dragons can stop it. Both teams are off to good 3-1 starts, but I think the Buckeyes will be able to pull out a win.
Gilmer
Dickinson vs. Friendswood
In this matchup of two of 24-6A’s very best, this is shaping up to be a big game. Friendswood is considered the favorite, but the Dickinson Gators are looking to prove people wrong and announce themselves as a contender in the Houston area. In a pretty even matchup, I’ll go with my guy and take the home team.
Dickinson
Texas A&M vs. Arkansas
Heading into this week’s showdown in Jerry World, not many people expected these two to enter the game undefeated. But here we are, and now the Aggies and Razorbacks take on a national stage. The last two matchups have gone into overtime with A&M winning both times and Kevin Sumlin has yet to lose to Arkansas. Texas A&M didn’t let me down last week, so I’ll take the Aggies in a close one.
Texas A&M
Baylor vs. Oklahoma State
Lots of offense in this one. Again, pick your favorite quarterback-wide receiver combo. Mason Rudolph and James Washington for the Cowboys vs. Seth Russell and K.D. Cannon for the Bears. These two teams can score, but can they stop anybody? We’ll find out Saturday, and I think the Bears will come out with a hard-fought win after this one’s over, which will probably be close to midnight.
Baylor
El Paso Eastwood vs. El Paso El Dorado
I’m never high on teams that don’t have their quarterback situation figured out. For Eastwood, starter Seth Ochoa is a game-time decision following an injury against Odessa Permian. Both teams are coming off a bye, and should be fresh for Friday night action. The Aztecs’ quarterback Cedarious Barfield has such a glut of talent surrounding him on the offense, I can see them giving the solid Troopers’ defense a headache, especially after accounting for 511 yards through the air last week against Midland Lee.
El Paso El Dorado
Cibolo Steele vs. Converse Judson
The Knights are riding a 35-game district winning streak against a program that hasn’t beaten them in a while. However, Judson is positioned higher than Steele in the AP rankings, and is ranked nationally by two outlets. The Rockets have a dynamic offense that will run the ball down opponents throats; stud running back Mi’Kel Jackson leads the backfield with 8.47 yards per carry. It’s going to be a close one, but I love that Judson ground-and-pound; the explosive offense has at least 54 points in each game this season.
Converse Judson
Nacogdoches vs. Gilmer
When you look over the scores of the past four Gilmer contests, they resemble something you’d see at basketball games. The Buckeyes have averaged 57.3 points per game this season.
The Dragons are renowned for ripping off the Mortal Kombat logo and using drones to give them a competitive advantage. Regardless of who wins, everyone is a champion after watching this video.
Nacogdoches
Dickinson vs. Friendswood
The Gators lost the brunt of their offensive starters from last year, but are undefeated this season. Friendswood has torched the competition with over 50 points per game, allowing only 20 earned. Dickinson had a strong win over George Ranch, but I still think Friendswood takes this one.
Friendswood
Texas A&M vs. Arkansas
After a lame duck week of college games, the competition gets back on the right track this weekend with three ranked SEC match-ups. Arkansas and Texas A&M have been better than originally predicted. Coach Sumlin hasn’t lost to the Razorbacks in four years, and with that defensive front, I don’t see his streak ending during this outing. The defensive front prevails, limiting running back Rawleigh Williams III from having another big game.
Texas A&M
Baylor vs. Oklahoma State
The Bears played the weakest non-conference schedule in the Big 12 and probably all of the FBS. They get a tough test against an Oklahoma State Cowboys team whose undefeated record was botched by officials mistakes during Week 2. Baylor’s defense has been solid, limiting a bunch of lousy teams to ten points, but there’s no way they’ve faced a challenge like Cowboys quarterback Mason Rudolph. A traditional pocket passer, Rudolph has already hurled 1,000 yards of passing, and boasts a 152.8 passer rating. Baylor’s offense is notoriously slow at getting on the board early — they failed to tally points in the first quarter against Rice last Friday. Oklahoma State will get it going early, and drain the confidence out of the Bears as the game wears on.
Oklahoma State
El Paso Eastwood vs El Paso El Dorado
This game will be quite the shootout as both teams have had games where they’ve put up 50 or more points. However, on the other side, each team has also had a clunker of a game where they’ve allowed 40 or more points. Eastwood is coming in after getting their doors blown off by Permian while El Dorado just boat raced Midland Lee. Give me the team that is riding high after putting up 60.
Cibolo Steele vs. Converse Judson
Judson hasn’t had any trouble through their first four games in 2016. They got by Lake Travis by one score in Week One, 35-28. But after that victory they’ve been embarrassing schools to the tune of 173-46. Sorry ’bout your luck, Steele, this week your fans are in store for a game that should be over by half time.
Nacogdoches vs. Gilmer
In two home games for Gilmer they’ve scored 61 and 70 points. That’s 131 points in only eight quarters of play on their home field. That is an insane point total to run up on opposing teams. This week, against a team that I want to choose just for their name alone, they are back at home, so it is extremely hard to overlook those numbers above.
Dickinson vs. Friendswood
These two teams could not be the polar opposite of each other. Dickinson wants to grind out the game putting up no more than 28 points. Friendswood wants to blow you out, scoring over 50 in each of their contests. It will be interesting to see which one overcomes the other. So that being said, give me offense before defense. I full expect the Mustangs to force Dickinson to play catch up.
Texas A&M vs. Arkansas
Ah, amateur sports being played at an NFL stadium in front of over 100 thousand people with a ton of corporate sponsors surrounding the game. That is the pure form of what the NCAA is about, right? Any way, this “neutral” site game favors the Aggies as Kenny Hill has proven that he can play very well in big games. Texas A&M will need him, again, to carry this offense if they hope to stay with Alabama and LSU at the top of the SEC West.
Baylor vs. Oklahoma State
Personally, I am a University of Pitt homer. I was watching the Cowboys closely last week when they hosted my Panthers, And, I will say that Baylor has a chance to put up 60 on this Oklahoma State defense this week. While that may happen, the Ok. State offense could match the Bears. So, buyer beware is what I’m trying to say if you’re looking at following these picks.
