Projected Playoff Teams:
Coppell, Flower Mound, Lewisville, Hebron

Vitals:

    
     Last fall, newcomer Lewisville Hebron crashed the party and went undefeated in district play to capture the 6-5A crown.  While Hebron is likely to be strong again, Coppell, Flower Mound, and Lewisville appear to be the class of the district.

    Coppell started last season as hot as anyone in the state, winning their first 7 games by an average score of 45-12, but lost 3 of their last 4 down the stretch including an embarrassing 52-20 first round loss to Colleyville Heritage.  The Cowboys have a ton of talent returning for 2007.  Overall, Coppell returns 28 lettermen and 6 All-District performers from last year’s squad.  Proven QB Dalton Williams also returns after a strong season filling in for the injured Kenny Greaves.  Williams will have plenty of weapons at his disposal including star RB/CB Devin Smith and 5 receivers who tallied 20 receptions or more in 2006.  The defense should be very strong, so if the offense can minimize turnovers, Coppell could be a very dangerous team come playoff time.

    Also promising to be in the mix for the 6-5A title are the Flower Mound Jaguars and the Lewisville Fighting Farmers.  Flower Mound returns 9 All-District players from last year’s 8-3 squad that finished third in district.  Had star QB Jacob Morris not transferred to Coppell, Flower Mound would be the clear favorite to win this district.  Even without Morris, the Jags will field a strong team, since they return key players at nearly every other position.

    Though they were just 5-6 a year ago, Lewisville is a team to watch out for this fall.  Last year’s squad boasted one of the very best defenses in the state, but they were often forced to be on the field far more than they would’ve liked because of their anemic offense.  The good news is that the defense returns 6 All-District players, including SS Todd Spence and LB’s Patrick Bonenberger and Jason Miner, who were all first-team selections.  If Lewisville can field even a mediocre offense, they could very well end up as district champs.  With 41 lettermen returning, Lewisville will be one of the most experienced teams in the state.

    The Hebron Hawks and the Marcus Marauders will likely battle it out for the district’s fourth and final playoff spot.  Both teams should be competitive, but the top 3 in the district look to be a step ahead.  Hebron lost a ton of experience from last year’s 10-2 team, but in their short history, they’ve shown that they can reload with the best of them.  As for Marcus, they’ll have to replace most of their offensive firepower, but they do return 4 All-District defenders.  Sophomore RB Stephen Hopkins was one of only a few freshmen in the state to see significant varsity action last fall.

    Carrollton Creekview might be able to stay in the race for the 4^th playoff spot with 6 returning All-District players including stud athlete Lonzie Range at QB.  Range is a highly sought-after recruit who projects as a WR at the next level, but his progression as a QB will determine how well Creekview does this fall.

    Carrollton Smith and Carrollton Turner will be very hard-pressed to compete in the district this year with the other teams returning so much proven talent.  Newman Smith returns one All-District player on each line and Turner returns RB Michael Jackson, who averaged over 7 yards a carry as a junior.