Five trends we've learned about this season

Stellar area offenses, quality at the tailback position and more thoughts

Henrietta’s Cruse Coleman is one of several young running backs who’ve made a name for themselves this season. Photo by Kael Duncan

There are still so many unknowns about this high school football season. Who will win each district? Which teams will make the playoffs or play go past Thanksgiving?

That’s one of the reasons this sport is so much fun – unexpectedness abounds.

But five weeks is long enough to realize certain trends about the area football scene. Here are five I came up with at the midway point.

1) There’s no dominant team, at least at the 11-man level. We have some really good teams in this area, a few strong enough to make the postseason special. But there’s no Graham from 2024 or Jacksboro from 2023. I posted my midseason Top 10 poll a couple days ago so you can see how I rank the schools now. There isn’t a regional favorite in the bunch. Benjamin has proven to be our best pound-for-pound program so far, but even the Mustangs aren’t expected to win their region because No. 1 Jayton will be favored in a third-round showdown. If Paradise is the Region I-3A Division I favorite, then Vernon is right in the mix, but I wouldn’t call the Lions dominant. Gunter looms for our 6-3A Division II schools, and Windthorst is certainly capable of winning Region II-2A Division II, but so is Muenster, Lindsay, Collinsville, Albany and Wellington. Every area 11-man school has suffered at least one loss so far.