Under The Microscope: Week 3
Cover Photo via @thehornetnation on Twitter.
Our first full district break down kicks off this week with 5A Division II District 10. The district has seven schools in total, but only five are considered Houston-area. We have full previews for each Houston-area team as well as our player to watch for the district.
Lamar Fulshear
The Chargers went just 1-9 last season and will make the jump from 4A up to 5A for 2020. The good news is they’ll return quarterback Jackson Edge, who has great size for a signal caller at 6-foot-3. Edge has generated some Division I interest and a big senior season could help Fulshear to a playoff appearance.
Though they won’t be favored to make playoffs after a combined three wins in 2018 and 2019, a solid amount of returning starters including Edge could change that. The Chargers will benefit from the best teams in the district graduating key talent, while plenty of its district mates had their own struggles last season. Don’t count out Fulshear for a spot in the playoffs if Edge continues to blossom into a full-fledged Division I prospect and gets support from his teammates.
Montgomery
Speaking of teams that struggled to get going last season, Montgomery went 2-8 after losing a strong senior class. Like Fulshear, the Bears were a young team in 2019 and will benefit from returning talent in 2020 behind a pair of returning stars.
Quarterback Brock Bolfing is back for his junior year after another strong year at quarterback. Bolfing was the 2018 offensive newcomer of the year for the district, throwing for more than 2,200 yards that season. Joining him in the backfield is Jalen Washington, a dynamic back who ran for more than 1,200 yards as a freshman in 2018. The junior duo of Bolfing and Washington could put Montgomery back in the playoffs.
Lake Creek
Not every team can be like Shadow Creek. A school of a similar name, Lake Creek, also opened up shop in 2018 – going 2-8 in its first season of varsity football. That win total doubled to four in 2019, but still wasn’t good enough to make playoffs. If the Lions can up their win total by two once again for a 6-4 regular season, they might reach those post-season dreams.
Lake Creek will return 6-foot-6 quarterback Ty Sexton and his top target in tight end Dayeton Sweeting. With those two back, a playoff push is certainly in the cards for Lake Creek in 2020, and I believe the Lions will sneak into the final spot in 10-5A DII. If the returning talent can stay healthy, Lake Creek should be better than three teams in the district to get in.
Lamar Consolidated
It’s hard to know what Lamar Consolidated will do in 2020. Gone is coach Rick LaFavers, who is off to Ridge Point. LaFavers led the Mustangs to an appearance in the second round of the playoffs before bowing out to a talented Manvel squad a year ago.
Gone too is quarterback B.J. Harris, who captained the Mustangs offense to nearly 40 points-per-game and a 9-3 record in 2019. Running back Taye McWilliams is off to Baylor as well, so Lamar Consolidated will be replacing the three most important members of its 2019 squad. However, a combined record of 16-7 in 2018 and 2019 shows a program with talent that is capable of stepping up. I don’t know who it will be to step up for Lamar Consolidated in 2020, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Mustangs right back in the district title conversation.
Huntsville
The Huntsville Hornets suffered a similar ending in 2019, losing to eventual state runners-up Fort Bend Marshall for the second season in a row. Marshall has been a killer for 10-5A DII as the Buffaloes eliminated Huntsville and district champion A&M Consolidated last season.
Similar to Lamar Consolidated, they’ll lose quarterback Matthew Southern and wide receiver Tyrique Carter to graduation. While wide receiver Justin Butcher is back to lead the offense, the Hornets will lose the majority of the offensive production they enjoyed the last two seasons. Huntsville is a solid program, and like Lamar Consolidated, it will be exciting to see who steps up for the Hornets in 2020.
10-5A DII Player to Watch: Ty Sexton
It's tough to know what talent Huntsville and Lamar Consolidated return after graduating a ton of talent last season. For that reason, I'm giving our player-to-watch to Lake Creek quarterback Ty Sexton. He'll have a good chance to lead Lake Creek to its first ever playoff appearance, and is potentially the best returning player among the five Houston-area schools in 10-5A DII.