It's been a big week for college football fans in Texas. The University of Texas and Southern Methodist University are both heading to the college football playoffs.
And in high school sports, a slew of North Texas teams are making waves as they inch closer to possible championships.
It hasn't been quite as sunny in Arlington, where the Cowboys have had a pretty disappointing season.
Dallas has been rocked by injuries, most notably with Dak Prescott — who this year became the highest-paid player in NFL history — going down with a hamstring injury. The 5-8 Cowboys looked to have some momentum going into their last game against the Bengals, but fell short after a late miscue.
Still, there are a few reasons to be excited in the world of Texas sports.
Mustangs go undefeated in ACC play
There were some questions about how quickly SMU could adapt to the level of competition in the Atlantic Coast Conference after announcing their move last year. In fact, Florida State at one point sued over SMU and other teams' inclusion in the conference, saying in part the Mustangs would drag down the level of competitiveness.
That's not quite how it played out, with the Seminoles coming in dead last in the ACC and SMU going undefeated in conference play.
SMU had a much better season this fall than anyone expected, and made the College Football Playoff, though not without some controversy. The Mustangs were picked over Alabama for the final at-large spot, leading Alabama fans to cry foul. But the selection committee got it right: the Mustangs were ranked three spots above Alabama going into last week and lost a tight 34-31 game to Clemson on a last-second field goal in a SEC championship. Meanwhile, Alabama finished 9-3, didn't play on conference title weekend at all and took two bad losses to 6-6 teams between Oklahoma and Vanderbilt. Without one of those, it certainly would have had a stronger chance of qualifying.
Instead, SMU will face Penn State on Saturday, Dec. 21, in the first round of the playoffs. Of course, the Mustangs aren't the only Texas team to make it. Despite losing to Georgia a second time in the SEC title game, the University of Texas Longhorns will host Clemson in Austin on Dec. 21 as well.
The high school football state semifinals could feature the game of the year
It's also a big weekend for local high school sports: Seven Dallas-area teams are in the state semifinals in the state's four largest divisions, all competing for coveted spots in next week's state championship games at AT&T Stadium.
Among the top games is perhaps the most hyped North Texas game of the year, Duncanville vs. North Crowley in 6A Division I. Duncanville is going for three straight state titles, while North Crowley is going for its first title since winning it all back in 2003.
Duncanville quarterback Keelon Russell was also just named Gatorade National Football Player of the Year. The 6-foot 4-inch senior passed for 3,652 yards with 52 touchdowns and only two interceptions, averaging 12.7 yards per attempt while also rushing for 254 yards and two touchdowns as he led the school to an undefeated season.
Duncanville, 13-0, will take on 14-0 North Crowley Saturday at Eagle Stadium in Allen.
Texas Rangers making moves
It may feel like it's all football this time of year, but there are some other things going on in the world of North Texas sports.
Namely, it's been an eventful week for the Rangers despite the fact that the season's still months away. They resigned star pitcher Nathan Eovaldi to a three-year, $75 million deal. Eovaldi was key in the Rangers championship season just two years ago, and earned the win in the decisive Game 5 of the World Series.
The team also traded for power bat Jake Burger from the Miami Marlins in exchange for three minor league prospects. Berger hit 29 homers last season and could slot in at either designated hitter or a corner infield spot. And then they signed relief pitcher Jacob Webb to a one-year deal worth up to $1.5 million.
The Rangers had quite the World Series hangover last season, missing the playoffs entirely, but they've still got many of the core pieces that helped win it all and haven't been shy about making a key addition or two that can have them get back among the World Series contenders in 2025.
OK but really — what about the Cowboys?
Sure, the Cowboys haven't looked great this year. And frankly, it's going to be an uphill battle for them to even attempt to make the playoffs at this point, especially after the last disappointing play against the Bengals reminiscent of Leon Lett's botched play back in the 1993 Thanksgiving Day game.
But while their playoff odds are grim at this point, on the bright side, they play in the NFC — the significantly worse of the two conferences this year. So there's the narrowest of paths left to make the playoffs, although they're going to have to overcome yet another injury: DeMarvion Overshown suffered a serious knee injury that could keep him out for the entire 2025 season. Micah Parsons was also visibly upset after that loss and left the field early.
So while it doesn't look great for Dallas, look on the bright side: they do have the Carolina Panthers coming up on Sunday — one of the very few teams in football to boast a worse record. So stay positive Cowboys fans.
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