Photo by Brian McLean/GM Sports Media
By Nolan Ruth
X – @RealNolanRuth
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In loving memory of Jacob Lawrence Johnson; December 19, 1980-October 23, 2026
The time has finally come. Though most of the state still has one more week of the regular season to go, the private schools are entering postseason play. Three out of the four private schools in Parker County have at least one more week to play. What is even more incredible is that with one week left in the UIL regular season, seven of the eight UIL programs in Parker County are postseason bound! There is a lot still to play out, and this is the piece where I break it all down one team at a time!
WRITER’S NOTE: The Parker County Roundup would like to take a moment to honor and remember Millsap head coach Jacob Johnson, and also tip a cap to coach William Bass who is taking over the reins for the Bulldogs under very tough circumstances. We at GM Sports Media wish the Bulldogs the best of luck moving forward.
WEEK 10 FINALS:
Weatherford 28, Arlington Bowie 7
Aledo 61, Arlington Sam Houston 0
Azle 6, Denton Ryan 49
Springtown 27, Decatur 41
Brock 59, Graham 7
Peaster 7, Paradise 14
Millsap 21, Hamilton 34
Perrin-Whitt 6, Newcastle 52
Willow Park TCA 29, Muenster Sacred Heart 50
Weatherford Christian 0, Nazarene 52
Azle Christian BYE
Perrin Grace Christian 56, Arlington St. Paul’s 0
With this being the last FULL regular season week, I am going to work from my initial order of largest school to smallest school. And because of the lateness of the season and this being my penultimate Parker County Roundup, this will largely be a season wrap up while previewing the week ahead. Next week will only include public schools as I do not do postseason roundups.
I will start with a big congratulations to Marshall Williams and his Weatherford Kangaroos! Weatherford started the season as a long shot to make the playoffs, and then managed to upset both Lamar and Bowie to find itself in postseason play. It is not a certainty yet, because there is a weird scenario where Aledo loses to Lamar next week that causes a big tie between the last two playoff seeds between four teams. But as it stands, the Roos will likely have the 2-seed in Division II, where they will likely face Southlake Carroll. That will be a daunting task, but the way Weatherford has played this season, I expect a fight.
Aledo is in unfamiliar territory, as the Bearcats are not district champions for the first time in 19 years. However, they get a break because of the other way they are in unfamiliar territory. Aledo did not know ahead. There was a very slight chance that the Bearcats could have gone Division I, but now that both Granbury and Bowie are not likely to make the playoffs, they are the smallest school in the district to reach the postseason. As of now, they seem to be facing Keller Central, however it is yet to be seen if they will get the home field. Despite their three losses, and first district loss since 2007, this was a pretty successful first year in 6A for Aledo. As mentioned before, should they lose to Lamar, chaos will ensue amongst the other playoff teams, but the Bearcats stand firm as the 1-seed in Division II.
Another congratulations is due for Wilson Rigg in his first year at the helm of the Azle Hornets, as they now find themselves back in postseason play. I stand pretty firm about where I have stood all season. It has taken all year but I still cannot get a read on this team. Granted, they lost to the teams that I figured they would, but an unexpected loss, and a few wins that were tighter than I anticipated still have me with questions. Right now it appears that they will face the Arlington Heights Yellow Jackets at what I can only assume will be at Farrington Field. That will be tough as Heights, and their district rival Wyatt Chaparrals have Fort Worth ISD believing again, and homefield advantage against a team with seemingly no identity is a dangerous environment for the opposition.
Springtown has had a season that, quite frankly, has been disappointing. With everything they brought back from a team that went three rounds deep a year ago, sitting at 4-5 with a 3-3 district record is far less than ideal. The good news is, the big win against Alvarado puts them just over the playoff bump into the postseason, however it is still not set in stone. They need a win over Carrollton Ranchview to solidify it. Right now it appears they will face Midland Greenwood in the first round.
Brock has done Brock things all season. I have not had any notes since the week two loss to Anna that I really did not think was a big deal. And now after a shellacking of arch-rival and biggest competition Graham by a score of 59-7, I have no doubt in my mind that the Eagles are on a collision course with the Carthage Bulldogs in the semifinals. HOWEVER, the biggest story for Brock may be that Carthage went down this week to Gilmer! That shakes up Region II in quite a way that we have no idea who could be waiting for the Eagles in mid-December. But it is clear that 4A-Division II is ripe for the picking and the time for Brock is NOW!
Peaster has righted itself after a struggling start. Let me rephrase, nothing was really wrong with the Greyhounds from the start. Some offensive line changes made mid season really helped Peaster get the offense going. Despite the 14-7 loss to Paradise on Friday night, dare I say it, the Greyhounds could be poised for another regional title run if they can tie it all together. That is what happened last year when Paradise took the regular season match, and Peaster took the playoff match. However, next week’s game against Vernon could definitely throw a wrench in those plans. The Greyhounds have clinched at least a 3-seed out of four. That would put them in the same side of the bracket as Vernon no matter what. But a loss would send Peaster into a much tougher two weeks before rematching with Vernon and then possibly Paradise in the regional final. Much is still up for grabs in who they will face in the first round.
Much love goes out to Millsap ahead of Jacob Johnson’s memorial service. I wish the best to the Bulldogs and coach William Bass as they face the tough challenge of finishing their record breaking season without the man who rebuilt the program from the ground up. Friday’s loss to Hamilton was tough, and after speaking with Bass it seems the team was not all there ahead of the service on Friday, despite the inspired performance the night of Coach Johnson’s passing. If there is such a thing as a forgivable loss, I think this more than fits the category. Millsap is still in prime position to claim the district title with a win over Clifton next Friday, for which I will be in attendance. I have trouble reading too deep into the current playoff scenario, because a loss to Clifton would create absolute chaos. But as it stands now, the district title is the Bulldogs’ to lose. That would give them a first round date with either Scurry-Rosser or Cedar Hill TLC.
Perrin-Whitt is the first team I reach in which the season is over. The Pirates still have one game left against Northside, but the last two losses to Bryson and Newcastle have already eliminated any possibility for Perrin to reach the playoffs. A four team district in 1A means at least two district wins are needed to guarantee a playoff berth. The Pirates can now only manage one, and even that is not likely to happen. It was a rough and injury plagued season for Perrin, and they graduate a strong senior class this spring. I will not be negative but I will say that the future is…interesting for the Pirates and coach Kevin Loyd. They will get one more report next week after the Northside game.
Down to the private schools, Willow Park TCA has also seen its season come to an end. Despite missing the postseason, I have nothing but praise for Scott Campbell and what he is doing with the Eagles. As I had hoped, he helped TCA collect a few key district wins to get into position for the playoffs, but just lost a couple too many. The non-district 3-0 record is what sticks out to me from where the Eagles have been recently. Keep your eye on this program. They are slowly getting bigger, faster and stronger. It will not be long before they return to their former glory, and I would stake my career on that. I will revisit their season at my end of season roundup.
To the next private school is one that has also slowly climbed the ladder up to the postseason again, and they made it happen! The Weatherford Christian Lions are back in the playoffs despite this week’s loss! With the new TAPPS rules Crowley Nazarene went into a big school bracket, allowing the Lions to sneak into the small school bracket! They will face off with Gainesville Lone Star at a time and place to be determined. I will update when details come out, but until then I can only tip my cap to Colt Jones for his longtime work at WCS and getting the Lions out of the gutter and into the postseason again!
Azle Christian is also in the postseason after a strong regular season showing. The loss to Decatur Victory was a wound, but I still believe The Cru is one of the best six-man programs in the state at any level. Their first round matchup will come with a long road trip as they face Lubbock Kingdom Prep in Lubbock at 7 p.m. Friday night. The winner will move on to the semifinals, a stage that ACS is familiar with. Will this be the season The Cru breaks through?
Finally, we come to TCAF’s Perrin Grace Christian Colts who are back in the semifinals in just their second season of league play. Even the smallest of Parker County schools is representing well, having clinched a postseason berth in its second season. After a strange season in which the Colts showed a lot of heart, they now get a rematch with last year’s district opponent Irving Faustina (defending champion) at Lake Worth next Friday. After speaking with coach Sammy Ellison, it sounds like the Colts have come together well and are more prepared to pull an upset than they were last year when they lost to Faustina by mercy-rule. If things go that way, we could have a Parker County state championship before Thanksgiving! Best of luck Colts!
That is it for the penultimate Parker County Roundup! Of 12 teams, 10 are postseason bound. Despite some lumps in the regular season, that sounds like a pretty good season to me! I will have one more Parker County Roundup next week as UIL wraps up the regular season, then as always I will finish with my End of Season roundup when all teams are eliminated (or state champions) and of course the All-Parker County team!
