Preseason Class 5A rankings ahead of the 2024 season

By Michael Adams
madams@austinsportsjournal.com

The Austin Sports Journal ranks Austin-area high school football teams before the start of the 2024 football season. Here are the top Class 5A teams in the Austin area.

More rankings

Class 6A | Class 5A | Small school

Read more about the season in the 2024 Austin Sports Journal Football Preview e-edition.

1. Weiss Wolves

Head coach: Vernon Hughes

2023 record (district, finish): 9-2 (5-1, 2nd in 12-6A)

2023 playoff results: Lost to Cedar Hill in Class 6A bi-district playoff

Returning starters: 9 offensive, 5 defensive

Players to watch: RB DJ Dugar; QB Jax Brown; WR Adrian Wilson; DB Jorian Guinn; RB/WR Braiden Wooley; DB Jason Stokes

Outlook: The Wolves are hungry and loaded with talent. Move-in Dugar, an Oklahoma State signee, will make an immediate impact after rushing for 1,000-plus yards at Glenn last season. QB Brown has two talented WRs in Arizona State pledge WIlson and Wooley. Weiss will challenge A&M Consolidated and College Station for the district championship.

2. Liberty Hill Panthers

Head coach: Kent Walker

2023 record (district, finish): 10-5 (4-2, 13-5A-II district champion)

2023 playoff results: Lost to Port Neches-Groves in state semifinals

Returning starters: 5 offensive, 4 defensive

Players to watch: RB/DB Jack Pitchford; DL Alister Vallejo; DB Kendrick Hicks; RB/DB DJ Seaborn; LB Spencer Ballew

Outlook: Liberty Hill has reached the state semifinals in each of the last three seasons. Walker will put new pieces into his unstoppable Slot-T offense to replace two 1,000-yard rushers. Bastrop might be the only thing standing in the way of the Panthers.

3. Cedar Park Timberwolves

Head coach: Michael Quintero

2023 record (district, finish): 9-4 (5-2, 3rd in 11-5A-1)

2023 playoff results: Lost to A&M Consolidated in regional playoff

Returning starters: 5 offensive, 4 defensive

Players to watch: RB Trae Hill; LB Jahiem Porter; LB Logan Wicketts; QB David Cooper; OL Wyatt Valiente

Outlook: RB Hill ran for 1,558 yards as a sophomore and will carry the load for the Timberwolve’s offense as a new QB gets settled. Hill has a big offensive line in front of him to open up holes for him to run through.

4. Bastrop Bears

Head coach: Jake Griedl

2023 record (district, finish): 5-5 (2-4, 6th in 13-5A-II)

2023 playoff results: N/A

Returning starters: 10 offensive, 10 defensive

Players to watch: ATH Ramonz Adams; DL Tiki Hola; QB Weston Nielsen; WR Keyshon Moore; ATH Quintaelyn Joyner

Outlook: There hasn’t been this much excitement around Bastrop football since 2010, when the Bears reached the 5A quarterfinals. QB Nielsen is a top 2027 recruit and healthy, and he has multiple weapons at his disposal. Can the Bears dethrone Liberty Hill?

5. Anderson Trojans

Head coach: Donald Hatcher

2023 record (district, finish): 4-6 (3-5, 6th in 26-6A)

2023 playoff results: N/A

Returning starters: 8 offensive, 7 defensive

Players to watch: WR Ed Small; QB Max Gerlich; LB Gage Webb; WR Zayden Sharp; DB Colin Haines

Outlook: The Trojans leave one brutal district in Class 6A for another in 5A. However, look for Anderson to be right in the mix of the playoff picture behind a high-powered offense led by QB Gerlich and WRs Zayden Sharp and Small.

Anderson’s Ed Small makes a catch during the first day of football practice on Monday, Aug. 5, 2024 at Anderson High School in Austin, Texas. (Michael Adams/Austin Sports Journal)

6. Pflugerville Panthers

Head coach: Charles Taylor

2023 record (district, finish): 3-8 (3-3, 4th in 11-5A-II)

2023 playoff results: Lost to LBJ in bi-district playoff

Returning starters: 7 offensive, 7 defensive

Players to watch: QB Cole Taylor; WRT Kyran McFrazier; TE Jaivion Martin; LB Brandon Bradshaw; RB Rhyder Miller

Outlook: The Panthers turned it on in the final weeks of the season to win the final three regular season games and sneak into the playoffs. They won’t have to do that this year as an explosive offense led by junior QB Taylor will keep Pflugerville rolling. The Panthers are ready to pounce and might create some chaos if they can upset a few teams.

7. Rouse Raiders

Head coach: Joshua Mann

2023 record (district, finish): 8-4 (4-2, 3rd in 11-5A-II)

2023 playoff results: Los to Port Neches-Groves in area playoff

Returning starters: 8 offensive, 6 defensive

Players to watch: TE Mazon Rieger; QB London Morgan; WR Noah Fabila; DB Judson Mann; RB Anthony Reyes

Outlook: The Raiders return 14 starters from a team that went 8-4 and went two rounds deep in the playoffs, including QB Morgan and WR Fabila. Mann’s offense will be explosive and difficult to stop. Rouse will be just as solid on defense.

8. Georgetown Eagles

Head coach: Chuck Griffin

2023 record (district, finish): 6-5 (5-2, 4th in 11-5A-I)

2023 playoff results: Lost to Smithson Valley in bi-district playoff

Returning starters: 4 offensive, 5 defensive

Players to watch: WR Xavier Warren; DB Jahiem Dowd; WR Davyn Sewick; LB Kole Mitchell; LB Seth Warren

Outlook: The Eagles will be inexperienced on offense, especially in skill positions. However, Georgetown follows a common theme among area teams with experience up front on the offensive line. Defensively, there’s a lot of talent at linebacker. If defense wins championships, the Eagles could exceed expectations.

9. McCallum Knights

Head coach: Tom Gammerdinger

2023 record (district, finish): 7-4 (6-1, 2nd in 12-5A-II)

2023 playoff results: Lost to Rouse in bi-district playoff

Returning starters: 6 offensive, 6 defensive

Players to watch: RB/LB Mitchell Butler; WR/CB Mark Sanchez; QB Luke Dunham; RB/LB Devon Robinson; DB Jax Hicks

Outlook: The Knights have a talented offense that will spread the ball around. QB Dunham has weapons in the backfield and at wide receiver. The experience returning could send the Knights back to the playoffs.

10. Hays Hawks

Head coach: Mark Torres

2023 record (district, finish): 4-6 (2-5, 6th in 12-5A-I)