Week 9 of the Texas high school football regular season delivers three blockbuster matchups featuring six teams ranked inside the RGVSports.com Top 10 to set up a special RGVSports.com Game of the Week triplerheader.
No. 2 McAllen Memorial (6-1, 4-0) at No. 2 Edinburg Vela (7-0, 4-0): A top three matchup leads off the Week 9 Game of the Week action as the Mustangs visit the SaberCats at 7 p.m. Thursday at Richard R. Flores Stadium in Edinburg.
The Mustangs and SaberCats are the last two undefeated teams in District 16-5A DI and the winner of Thursday night’s slugfest will take sole possession of first place with just two weeks remaining.
Memorial enters Week 9 scoring 38.3 points per game while allowing 19.4 points defensively. The Mustangs are led by a three-headed rushing attack featuring senior JP Garza, junior Jaydin Soliz and sophomore Braxton Speights, while the connection of junior quarterback Kane Coy and junior receiver Michael Alaniz presents a passing threat.
Vela, meanwhile, has put up 33.1 points a game while holding opponents to 12.1 points. The SaberCats have one of the area’s most balanced offenses led by senior quarterback Geoffrey LeFevre, senior running back Jonathan Flores and senior receiver June Garza.
These two met just last season as district opponents with the SaberCats winning a high-scoring affair, 31-27, in McAllen.
No. 6 Los Fresnos (6-1, 1-0) at No. 4 Brownsville Veterans (6-2, 2-0): The second of three games headlining the RGVSports.com Games of the Week takes place at 7 p.m. Thursday, with the No. 4 Chargers playing host to the No. 6 Falcons at Sams Memorial Stadium in Brownsville.
Both teams are led into battle by a dual-threat behind center, with junior Robert Pineda (2,009 total yards, 29 total touchdowns) piloting the Falcons’ offense and senior Storm Montoya (900 total yards, 20 total touchdowns) commanding the Chargers’ ground-and-pound attack.
Both offenses have been as electric as they come this year behind their veteran signal callers, with the Falcons averaging 426.7 yards and 43.3 points per game, while the Chargers are averaging 417.5 yards and 39.5 points per game.
The Falcons enter the matchup riding a three-game winning streak over the Chargers, including a 35-10 win during their last meeting in 2015.
The winner between the two teams puts themselves in the drivers seat for the District 32-6A title.
No. 5 PSJA High (5-2, 2-0) at No. 7 Weslaco High (5-2, 2-0): A pair of 2023 district champs square off in the third game headlining the Week 9 action, only this time with the 31-6A crown hanging in the balance.
The Bears are the reigning District 31-6A champs, winning the title with a perfect 5-0 mark during league play a season ago. They’re led into the contest by a high-octane aerial assault piloted by senior quarterback Myles Lopez (2,227 passing yards, 18 passing touchdowns).
The Panthers, who captured the District 32-6A title last year, are off to a hot start during their first year in District 31-6A, riding a five-game winning streak heading into the contest, including back-to-back district wins. They’re led by first-year starting quarterback Franky Trevino, who has emerged as a dual-threat option behind center after playing wide receiver last season. The senior signal caller has thrown for 924 yards and 9 touchdowns, also adding 413 yards and six touchdowns in seven starts this year.
The meeting marks the first between the two squads since 2013, a game won by the Bears 28-13. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. Friday at Bobby Lackey Stadium in Weslaco.