Friday Night Fireworks: Breaking Down the RGV’s District Showdowns
The 2025 Texas high school football season is officially here, with teams set to take the field for Week 1 beginning Thursday.
Last year brought a premature ending to football in the RGV, with all of the area’s teams eliminated in the second round of the postseason.
This year, several teams look primed to break through the second round and make deep playoff pushes for the RGV. From a loaded PSJA North roster to a Sharyland High squad littered with electric weapons, here’s a look at some of the top teams and players in the area heading into the 2025 season.
CLASS 5A DI
No UIL classification features more RGV teams than Class 5A Division I, with 15 programs split between Districts 15-5A DI and 16-5A DI.
The large number of teams creates some of the most competitive races in the region, beginning with the eight-team District 16-5A DI, home to McAllen High, McAllen Memorial and Edinburg Vela.
The SaberCats claimed the district crown last season, finishing a perfect 10-0 in the regular season before falling in the second round of the playoffs to eventual state champion Smithson Valley. They graduate plenty of talent from that squad, but the program’s pedigree brings high expectations once again in 2025. Defense should be their strength, with eight starters back. Senior linebacker OJ Cano quarterbacks the unit, flying sideline to sideline to make plays, while senior corner Sergio Briones provides a lockdown presence in the secondary.
Vela won’t have an easy road to repeating, with several McAllen ISD teams looking to claim the crown. The McAllen Memorial Mustangs return nine offensive starters, including quarterback Kane Coy. Add explosive wideout Michael Alaniz, versatile athlete Jayden Soliz and running back Braxton Speights, and the Mustangs feature one of the Valley’s most dangerous offenses.
The McAllen High Bulldogs are also in the mix, bringing back 13 starters. Their defense is stacked with senior linebacker Oliver Schwarz, who recorded more than 100 tackles last year, and defensive ends Cash and Fletcher Frisby, who anchor a physical front seven. La Joya Palmview, McAllen Rowe and Mission High also have their sights set on playoff berths.
Over in District 15-5A DI, the PSJA North Raiders are chasing a fourth straight district title. Arguably the Valley’s top program over the past five years, the Raiders return 17 starters from last season. Leading the way is four-year starting running back Ethan Guerra, one of South Texas’ best, with 4,547 career rushing yards and 47 touchdowns.
The “Black Shirt” defense is once again loaded, with playmakers at every level, including defensive backs Ethan Guerra and Bryan Guerrero, along with defensive lineman Rey Martinez. A pair of Corpus Christi teams stand in the way of another crown, while Harlingen South and PSJA Memorial look to break through as postseason contenders.
Between returning stars and hungry challengers, Class 5A DI promises tight races in every district, where even a single upset could shake up the Valley standings.
Players To Watch: LB/RB Joel Vasquez, Donna High; ATH Prince Johnson, Donna North; LB Marcus Garza, Harlingen South; RB Ethan Guerra, PSJA North; DL Rey Martinez, PSJA North; RB Elias Rodriguez; LB OJ Cano, Edinburg Vela; DB Sergio Briones, Edinburg Vela; QB/DB Joseph Martinez, La Joya Palmview; LB Oliver Schwarz, McAllen High; DL Cash Frisby, McAllen High; QB Kane Coy, McAllen Memorial; WR Michael Alaniz, McAllen Memorial; ATH Jayden Soliz, McAllen Memorial; WR Shelby Sital, Mission High;
CLASS 5A DII
Class 5A Division II is loaded with competitive teams from both the Lower and Upper Valley, with 10 programs split between two districts.
The toughest is arguably District 15-5A DII, which features the two Sharyland ISD programs, perennial contender Mission Veterans, a tough Roma squad, and the Coastal Bend’s Alice Coyotes.
Sharyland High and Sharyland Pioneer are the district’s top contenders, each boasting some of the Valley’s most elite playmakers. The Diamondbacks are led by receiver-turned-quarterback William Goodloe, who emerged as a dual-threat option behind center last season. The 6-foot-2, 178-pound senior accounted for nearly 1,800 total yards and 21 touchdowns in his first year as QB1.
Goodloe isn’t the only weapon in the backfield, as running backs Dylan Tijerina and Marcus Perales form a two-headed rushing attack, combining for over 1,400 yards and 11 touchdowns last season. Still, the road to the gold ball in 15-5A DII likely goes through Sharyland High, which returns one of the Valley’s most explosive offenses.
Senior Calvin Harris is coming off a breakout campaign in which he threw for 2,947 yards and 30 touchdowns, adding 720 yards and 12 scores on the ground. He’ll lead an offense that also features arguably the RGV’s top receiving corps, highlighted by junior Francisco Gomez (899 yards, 10 TDs) and senior Bruno Cavazos (768 yards, 5 TDs). The trio looks capable of guiding the Rattlers to their first gold ball since 2022.
Mission Veterans and Roma aren’t to be counted out. The Patriots are led by sophomore quarterback Roman Reyna, who took over as QB1 last year and excelled, while the Gladiators boast one of South Texas’ top ball carriers in junior fullback Ruben Garcia, who rushed for just over 900 yards as a sophomore.
In District 16-5A DII, Edcouch-Elsa claimed the district championship in 2024, going 5-0 en route to their first gold ball since 2013. Back-to-back titles aren’t out of the question with playmakers like DB Israel Campos (seven interceptions) and running back Aydan Garcia (647 yards, five TDs) returning.
Mercedes enters 2025 as arguably the district’s top team, led by RB Robert Sanchez and OL Eddie Ramirez. Sanchez rushed for 1,669 yards and 24 touchdowns last season, ranking in the RGV’s top 10, while Ramirez anchors a physical offensive line. Defensive standouts Frank Salinas and Noah Buenrostro give the Tigers a strong chance to come out on top.
Also in the mix are Brownsville Lopez and Brownsville Pace. The Lobos returned to the postseason for just the third time in program history, while the Vikings are coming off a playoff-qualifying season of their own.
Class 5A DII features high-powered offenses and dynamic defenses, with several teams ready to make noise and compete for district titles from start to finish.
Players to Watch: LB Ryan Guerra, Mission Veterans; QB Roman Reyna, Mission Veterans; FB Ruben Garcia, Roma; QB Calvin Harris, Sharyland High; WR Francisco Gomez, Sharyland High; WR Bruno Cavazos, Sharyland High; QB William Goodloe, Sharyland Pioneer; RB Dylan Tijerina, Sharyland Pioneer; DB Israel Campos, Edcouch-Elsa; RB Aydan Garcia, Edcouch-Elsa; RB Robert Sanchez, Mercedes; OL Eddie Ramirez, Mercedes; OL Sebastian Uribe, Brownsville Lopez; WR Eli Uruegas, Brownsville Lopez; WR David Melendez, Brownsville Pace; DB/WR AJ Arevalo, PSJA Southwest
CLASS 6A
The Valley’s Class 6A districts were decimated by realignment two years ago, with only 11 teams from the area remaining in the classification. That isn’t to say the RGV doesn’t have talented teams in Class 6A, with several of the RGV’s top teams coming from District 31- and 32-6A.
PSJA High is coming off its second straight district title and has its eyes set on the three-peat out in 31-6A. The road to No. 3 won’t be an easy task, however, with just eight starters set to return, including just five on offense. Junior quarterback Dylan Rodriguez is set to take over the offense after spending time as the backup last season. He finished with 600 passing yards and five touchdowns on limited action as a sophomore.
Defensively, Jacob Cuevas and Marco Maynez give the Bears a pair of veteran playmakers on the D-line, with the duo combining for 20 tackles for loss and eight sacks a season ago.
Hoping to dethrone PSJA High are the Weslaco High Panthers, the 2024 District 31-6A runner-up.
Weslaco High got off to a slow start last season, losing their first two games of the year before going on to finish 8-4 overall. The Panthers return some of the Valley’s most dynamic playmakers in athlete Chris Luna and wide receiver Joseph Leal. Luna, who is slated to step into the starting QB role, can do it all on the field, while Leal is a big play waiting to happen, evident by his 25.5 yards per catch average in 2024.
Over in District 32-6A, the Los Fresnos Falcons open as the favorites to repeat as champs after capturing their first district title in over a decade in 2024. They’re led by four-year starter at quarterback, Robert Pineda. The senior is a dual-threat playmaker behind center, entering his senior season with 4,974 career passing yards and 57 career passing touchdowns and 2,995 career rushing yards and 38 career rushing touchdowns.
Lurking in the shadows looking to dethrone the Falcons are several teams, including Brownsville Veterans and Harlingen High.
The Chargers finished as runner-ups in the district last year, going 8-4 overall and falling just three points shy of a third round playoff appearance. They return 15 starters this season, including nine on one of the Valley’s toughest defensive units.
Senior fullback Cesar Belmontes is set to shoulder the offensive load this season, while explosive playmakers Alvin Trevillion and Maddox Bond add another wrinkle in the Chargers’ physical offense.
Meanwhile, the Cardinals are coming off one of the most disappointing seasons in recent memory, going 5-6 overall. Still, expect a big bounce back for the historic program, with players like senior running back Noah Huerta and sophomore quarterback Hassan Woolery headlining the offense and defensive end Saul Cerda and defensive back Davian Renteria spearheading the defense.
PSJA High, Los Fresnos, Weslaco and Harlingen all bring talent and high expectations, making Class 6A a district-by-district battle that could go down to the final week of the season.
Players To Watch: QB Johan Carreon, Edinburg Economedes; LB Jaime Eugia, Edinburg Economedes; DB Woodrow Villarreal, Edinburg High; LB Moises Hernandez, Edinburg High; LB Brian Morado, Edinburg North; WR Kiandre Estrada Edinburg North; RB Mauricio Mendoza, La Joya High; QB Owen Benoit, La Joya High; QB Dylan Rodriguez, PSJA High; DE Marco Maynez, PSJA High; ATH Chris Luna, Weslaco High; WR Joseph Leal, Weslaco High.
