Woodlands Online Football Pre-District Rankings and Predictions

With district play starting this week, the chase for the district champion title begins, with many teams entering, but with only one being the victor. Today we will check in on some of these teams, answer some questions, and see who I think has the strongest chance to make an impact this season.

This year, many of our favorite teams here at Woodlands Online will play in District 13 of the 6A Division II, teams include;

- The Woodlands Highlanders

- College Park Cavaliers

- Conroe Tigers

- Oak Ridge War Eagles

- Willis Wildkats

- Grand Oaks Grizzlies

- Caney Creek Panthers

- New Caney Eagles

- Cleveland Indians

Out of these teams, only two have claimed the district title since the district was formed in 2022: the New Caney Eagles, who won the first title in the 2022-2023 season, and the Willis Wildkats, who have won the last two years.

First lets start off with a questions;

"Who is the best team in this district?"

On paper, the best team in my opinion would be Willis, as 5-star University of Texas recruit Jermaine Bishop Jr, listed on 247 and On3 as one of the top athletes in the country, leads them. They also have Jaivion Martin, a dominant tight end who is a top recruit heading to the University of Arkansas. Both players play on both sides of the ball and make an impact, making Willis's overall talent the best in the district. However, Willis lost a game to Klein Collins and was blown out in that game. Granted, Klein Collins is ranked as one of the best football teams in Texas, but it was an ugly defensive showing that highlighted where Willis could struggle outside of Bishop and Martin. Other strong teams in the district include The Woodlands, College Park, and Conroe, each with balanced rosters and star power on both sides of the ball. For my pick of the district champion, I still favor Willis based on talent, but I could see a team like College Park giving them a tough challenge for the title.

"Who is your favorite player in the district"

This is a tough choice because there are so many talented players in the district this year, and I have many guys I want to watch. However, I think I have to go with the obvious choice of Jermaine Bishop Jr. There's a reason he's ranked so highly on recruiting sites, and watching him in person clearly explains why. Even though the game against Klein Collins didn't go Willis's way, Bishop still made an impact on offense, catching huge passes and running routes that no high school corner could hope to cover. Compared to other wideouts at this level, he's in a league of his own, thanks to his smooth route running, speed, and ability to leap over defenders to make catches. When Willis gets the ball on offense, he's easily my favorite player to watch and likely the best in this district.

"Who do you think wins these opening district games?"

For opening week in the district, we have Conroe versus College Park, Grand Oaks versus The Woodlands, Willis versus Caney Creek, and Oak Ridge versus Cleveland. Some of these games are evenly matched in my eyes, like The Woodlands versus College Park, where both teams are strong coming into the game. Other games like Willis versus Caney Creek shouldn't be as close, as Caney Creek and Cleveland are not very strong teams in the district, and I expect Willis to dominate Caney Creek. But let's give a concrete score prediction for each game.

- Conroe @ College Park: College Park wins 31-28

- Willis @ Caney Creek: Willis wins 49-7

- Grand Oaks @ The Woodlands: The Woodlands wins 28-20

- Oak Ridge @ Cleveland: Oak Ridge wins 35-10

Now, let's discuss my predictions for the district as a whole and put a ranking on each team. Below I will list where I think each team in this district will finish and what I think their record will look like at the end of the year.

1. Willis Wildkats: 9-1 overall | 9-0 in district

2. College Park Cavaliers: 9-1 overall | 7-1 in district

3. The Woodlands Highlanders: 8-2 overall | 6-2 in district

4. Conroe Tigers: 7-3 overall | 5-3 in district

5. Oak Ridge War Eagles: 5-5 overall | 4-4 in district

6. Grand Oaks Grizzlies: 5-5 overall | 3-5 in district

7. New Caney Eagles: 2-8 overall | 2-6 in district

8. Caney Creek Panthers: 1-9 overall | 1-7 in district

9. Cleveland Indians: 0-10 overall | 0-8 in district

I've got Willis still winning this district and capturing their third straight district title. As I mentioned earlier, I think the talent on this team is too much to handle. Without all those turnovers against Klein Collins, I believe this team could have had a better game, but I see them bouncing back and winning this year. Regarding teams like College Park and The Woodlands, both have lots of talent, but I give the edge to College Park because they have some elite offensive weapons at WR who score tons of points. I could see College Park getting a rare win over The Woodlands. I think Oak Ridge and Conroe will be competitive in all their games, but they just don't have as much talent as the top teams. Grand Oaks is intriguing, and I'm interested to see what they can do this year. The teams below them might struggle to win this season. The teams at the bottom may not be as bad as their records suggest, but this district is cutthroat, and it will be tough for Caney schools and Cleveland to find any wins against the top teams.

Overall, this upcoming slate of games will set the tone for the rest of the season, and I am excited to see what all these teams can do and who will come out on top.

- Until next time...