Week 9 of the Texas high school football season is here, and district races are getting serious.
Several games across the Wichita Falls area this week could significantly affect playoff positioning, while a few others give teams a chance to build much-needed momentum heading into the final stretch of the regular season.
Legacy is looking to bounce back on the road; Memorial gets a shot at one of the hottest teams in District 2-5A Division II, and District 4-4A Division II features a pair of intriguing matchups.
Here are five games to keep an eye on this week, along with our predictions.
More: See Dave Campbell's Texas high school football rankings for Week 9
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Legacy (4-3, 1-2) at Lubbock Coronado (1-7, 0-4)
Legacy was painfully close to picking up a big district win last week.
The Leopards went toe-to-toe with Abilene Cooper before falling 41-35, and while a loss is still a loss, there were plenty of encouraging signs from an offense that showed it can put points on the board.
Coronado has had a much tougher time finding that kind of consistency. The Mustangs are winless in district play and coming off a 48-6 loss to Lubbock-Cooper.
Road games in Lubbock are never automatic, but this feels like a good opportunity for Legacy to get back on track and put itself right back in the thick of the playoff race.
Prediction: Legacy 38, Coronado 20
Amarillo Palo Duro (7-1, 4-0) at Memorial (3-4, 1-2)
Palo Duro has been rolling through district play and comes to Wichita Falls sitting alone atop the standings at 4-0. The Dons have been explosive offensively, including a 53-10 win against Abilene Wylie last week.
They've also already shown what they can do against a Wichita Falls opponent, beating Legacy 50-9 earlier in the season.
Memorial has enough talent to make things interesting, especially at home, but the Mavericks will need to play one of their most complete games of the season to pull off the upset.
Palo Duro simply looks like the more complete team right now.
Prediction: Palo Duro 56, Memorial 27
Burkburnett (5-2, 1-1) at Graham (7-0, 2-0)
Burkburnett has quietly put together a very good season and enters Friday with five wins in seven games. The Bulldogs are coming off a hard-earned 21-13 win over Iowa Park and have shown they can win close, physical games.
Unfortunately for Burkburnett, though, Graham hasn't shown many weaknesses.
The Steers are still unbeaten at 7-0 and just handed previously undefeated Mineral Wells its first loss of the season. Graham has consistently found ways to control games and has looked like one of the area's strongest teams since Week 1.
Burkburnett should make Graham work for it, but until somebody proves otherwise, it's hard to pick against the Steers.
Prediction: Graham 35, Burkburnett 17
Brock (6-1, 2-0) at Iowa Park (3-4, 0-2)
Iowa Park could probably use a break in its schedule right about now.
The Hawks have lost three straight after opening the season 3-1, and this week's opponent isn't exactly ideal for a team trying to snap a skid.
Brock is 6-1 and has been absolutely rolling lately. The Eagles scored 56 points against Glen Rose before putting up 77 in a shutout win against Bridgeport last week.
Iowa Park has been competitive for most of the season and should benefit from playing at home, but Brock's offense is operating at a different level right now.
If the Hawks can turn this into a lower-scoring, possession-based game, they can give themselves a chance. If Brock gets rolling early, however, it could be a long night.
Prediction: Brock 48, Iowa Park 14
Breckenridge (1-6, 1-1) at Holliday (2-5, 2-0)
The Eagles had a difficult start to the season, but things have looked much different since district play began. Holliday has won two straight and sits 2-0 in district after another huge offensive performance last week.
A team that spent much of the season searching for answers suddenly has some real momentum.
Breckenridge picked up its first win of the season against City View, but the Buckaroos couldn't keep that momentum going in a 38-6 loss to Jacksboro last week.
Holliday's offense appears to be finding its rhythm at exactly the right time, and playing at home only adds to the advantage.
This might have looked like a toss-up a few weeks ago, but right now, Holliday feels like the safer pick.
Prediction: Holliday 42, Breckenridge 30
This article originally appeared on Wichita Falls Times Record News: Who wins Week 9? 5 Texoma high school football predictions