HS Football: District 13-6A Week Eight Recap

THE WOODLANDS, TX -- The teams at the top of 13-6A remained hot after another week of high school football action. Some teams exited their games with hype at a fever pitch, while others left with head-scratching questions that need to be addressed if their hopes of a playoff run want to stay alive.

Oak Ridge vs. Cleveland

In the Thursday night matchup, the War Eagles got to work against the winless Cleveland Indians.

The War Eagles’ game plan of going run-heavy paid off as the Oak Ridge running backs were able to gash the Indian defense for big yards in the open field. It took little time for the lead to swell out of control, even with the War Eagles switching their quarterbacks throughout the game. A halftime lead of 52-0 was more than enough for the backups to come in and finish out the game for Oak Ridge, who won 61-6 by only giving up a late touchdown.

The win situates the War Eagles in third place after the conclusion of other games around the district.

The Woodlands vs. College Park

The 2023 War of the Woods took place on Friday, with the Highlanders dominating the home side of Woodforest Bank Stadium.

The game got off to a rough start for the Cavaliers, who, despite starting the game on the offensive end, failed to get on the scoreboard. The Woodlands team dominated on the defensive end with multiple turnovers forced that set up the offense in fantastic field position. Mabrey Mettauer feasted on the opportunities, connecting with his receivers efficiently for scores that were never reciprocated by College Park. The final whistle sounded with the Woodlands taking home a shutout 49-0 win against their rivals.

The Highlander victory keeps the team unbeaten in district, with only Willis ahead of them in the standings.

Willis vs. Caney Creek

The dominant force of the Willis Wildkats went against the Caney Creek Panthers in a bid to continue perfection on the season.

D.J. Lagway and the Willis offense gave up a turnover on the team’s first drive, but the Wildkat defense was able to pick up the pieces and give possession back to their playmakers. After the hiccup, the Wildkats did not miss a beat. Willis’ receivers found themselves in open space due to expert play design, and it set the team up with easy scores. A 35-0 lead at halftime was all that Willis needed to comfortably win the game, but Caney Creek fought to get scores. A field goal and touchdown in the second half made the game respectable, with a 63-9 score when the game finally ended.

Willis will be undefeated going into the bye week before they face the Woodlands Highlanders on Thursday 26th.

New Caney vs. Grand Oaks

A defensive battle was in store between the Eagles and Grizzlies as the teams entered Randall Reed Stadium.

Grand Oaks found the endzone in the first quarter on a passing touchdown, establishing a lead that they would never fully surrender. The pillar of hard-nosed defense benefited the Grizzlies, who managed to keep the one-possession lead intact through the entire first half. New Caney failed to get the offense in sync and mustered zero points in through two quarters. The Eagles finally found the endzone but did not take the lead due to the second missed extra point of the game, tying the teams at six. Tension mounted as the defenses were called upon to continually make stops late in the game. The dam finally burst when a last-minute field goal from Grand Oaks broke the deadlock and secured the team’s second win in district play.