Both College Station ISD high schools open the Class 5A Division I football playoffs this week, one at home against a Houston-area team and the other against an unbeaten team with a recent state final appearance.
College Station plays Friendswood (8-2) at 7 p.m. Friday at Cougar Field, according to the Houston Chronicle's bi-district schedule. A&M Consolidated (6-4) opens against Richmond Randle (10-0), with the date and site still listed as to be announced on MaxPreps.
District 12 finished with Pflugerville Weiss first, College Station second, Georgetown third and Consol fourth, according to KCEN. The Cougars' only district loss was a 40-38 game at Weiss on Sept. 18. They have won six straight since, including 45-27 over Consol, 28-18 at Georgetown and 57-38 over Killeen. Their nondistrict wins over Cypress Springs and Magnolia came by a combined four points.
Friendswood arrives as the third seed from its district after losing its last two games, 28-21 at Angleton on Oct. 23 and 31-14 to Randle on Nov. 6. Before that, the Mustangs had won eight straight and scored at least 48 points six times, including an 80-0 win over Fort Bend Dulles. Friendswood has allowed 152 points in 10 games.
Consol earned its spot in a season of close, high-scoring games. The Tigers beat Weiss 49-47 on Oct. 9 and Killeen 45-42 on Oct. 30, and lost 41-38 to Georgetown. They clinched the fourth seed even after a 29-28 loss to Pflugerville Hendrickson on Nov. 6 at Tigerland Stadium, KBTX reported.
A fake punt that went for a Hendrickson touchdown gave the Hawks a 16-14 lead in the second quarter, and Hendrickson outscored Consol 13-7 after halftime.
Randle brings the strongest résumé in Consol's corner of the bracket. The Lions have outscored opponents 502-88, according to MaxPreps, and opened the season with a 20-14 win over South Oak Cliff, the team that beat Randle 35-19 in last season's 5A Division II state final. Randle also beat Angleton 29-22 and Friendswood 31-14 in its final two games.
The Lions have allowed more than 14 points once.
Consol's offense gives the Tigers a chance in a shootout. They have scored 420 points this season, more than 40 per game. Their defense has allowed 301, and Randle has scored at least 49 points six times.
Tiger Stadium will also host a 6A Division I game Friday. Hutto and Cypress Ranch play at 7 p.m. at the A&M Consolidated stadium, according to the Chronicle.
The area round is Nov. 19-21, with regional games during Thanksgiving week. The 5A Division I state final is scheduled for 11 a.m. Dec. 19 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington.
