More Central Texas games to watch: Week 4

In case you missed it, be sure to check out our preview of the TribFridayNight Top Five games of the week . But there are always plenty of great games to watch in Central Texas, including these matchups:

Here's a breakdown of the top five games of the week in Central Texas high school football for Week 4.

Bosqueville (3-0) at Rosebud-Lott (2-1)

Breakdown: The fact that these former district mates are in new loops now isn't the only change that has happened since last season. The most striking difference is Bosqueville's ascension toward becoming a winning program again.

The Bulldogs have powered to a 3-0 mark under first-year head coach Reggie Patrick following wins over Bartlett, Milano and Meridian. That's hardly a murderer's row of opponents, but wins are wins, especially when you're coming off a 1-9 season.

Cooper Wright (426 yards, 4 TDs) leads a potent Bosqueville rushing attack. The Bulldog defense has looked stingy, giving up no more than 16 points in a game this season. They're paced by linebacker Camp Youens, along with a secondary that has produced four interceptions in three games.

Rosebud-Lott promises to give the Bulldogs their stiffest test yet. The Cougars boast the most prolific passing combination in Central Texas through the first three weeks of the season — sophomore quarterback Pryce Rabroker (746 passing yards, 10 TDs, 0 INTs) and senior receiver Carson Kahlig (24 catches, 503 yards, 8 TDs). All told, Rosebud-Lott is putting up more than 330 yards of total offense per game.

Robinson (2-1) at No. 2 Glen Rose (3-0)

Radio/Streaming:

Breakdown: Robinson's nondistrict schedule has grown progressively more challenging. Following wins over West and Caldwell in the first two weeks, the Rockets suffered their first loss to an explosive Alvarado squad, 47-21, in Week 3.

Now Robinson gets Class 4A Div. II's second-ranked Tigers, who can stretch defenses both vertically and horizontally. Glen Rose quarterback Canyon Evans is hitting 72% of his attempts for 936 yards, nine touchdowns and no interceptions. His most prolific target is senior Josiah Groeneweg (28 catches, 327 yards), but the Tigers feature weapons all over the field. Groeneweg is one of four different Tiger receivers with more than 100 yards already on the season.

Chris Lancaster has been fortifying the Rockets' confidence ever since he arrived prior to the 2023 season. Robinson's best path to success against Glen Rose might be trying to put together some slow-and-steady, chain-moving drives behind running back Steven Wright, who's averaging 102 rushing yards per game, and quarterback Brice McCurdy. The more the Rockets can keep that potent Glen Rose offense off the field, the better.

One of Robinson's district mates Gatesville followed that strategy to a fair amount of success back in Week 2. While the Tigers still won the game, 28-12, the Hornets kept things close into the third quarter.

Mexia (1-2) at Teague (2-1)

Radio:

Breakdown: Only 13 miles of Highway 84 separate these longtime rivals, though the UIL sent them moving in different directions in district realignment earlier this year. Teague got sent east alongside Fairfield, hooking up with the likes of Palestine Westwood, Huntington, Crockett and Diboll in District 9-3A, while Mexia and Groesbeck were pushed west to join West, Whitney, Maypearl and Grandview in District 5-3A.

While the Mexia-Teague clash might not have district implications, it's still a fierce feud that each community really wants to win.

The Black Cats endured a back-and-forth game in a 35-13 loss to Gatesville last week. Mexia fell behind 21-0 by late in the second quarter, then scored two quick touchdowns to make a game out of it before halftime. But Gatesville shut out Mexia, 14-0, in the second half, thwarting the Cats' rally.

Braden Wilson and WR Kyran Bedford can create big plays in the passing game for Mexia. The Black Cats have also made some strides defensively since allowing 77 points in the season opener to Palestine Westwood, but Aaron Nowell's team still has room to grow on that side.

Teague, meanwhile, has allowed only 10 points in its two wins, and the Lions had a good shot to win their other game, falling to Tolar, 23-21 in Week 2.

RB/LB Korey Silar leads the Lions in tackles with 27, and UTIL J'Kybryen Harris remains one of the more dynamic players in Central Texas. Harris has already scored touchdowns via the run, the catch, on an interception return, and twice on punt returns this season.

Mexia has won five of the past eight meetings between these squads, including a 47-23 win last year. But it's a rivalry that always figures to spark some stunning fireworks.

Connally (3-0) at Alvarado (3-0)

Radio/streaming:

Breakdown: Connally defeated a state-ranked Grandview team last week, but Cadets coach Terry Gerik saw a lot of room for improvement. The Cadets sputtered on offense, especially early in the game, but they overcame that because QB Jamarion Vincent made a bunch of big plays.

Vincent rushed for 224 yards, including touchdown runs of 79, 17 and 48 to boost Connally to a 38-21 victory over the Zebras. On the flip side, Grandview held the rest of the Cadet rushers to 3.75 yards per carry.

Connally running back Braeden Ford has rushed for 403 yards through three games, most of which came in the first two. The Cadets probably need to be balanced on offense to knock off Alvarado.

The Indians rolled past Robinson, 47-21, last week. Alvarado QB Cardea Collier passed for 304 yards and rushed for 111 in the win. Collier has been a true dual-threat in all three wins for the Indians. He has 834 passing yards, 256 rushing yards and has accounted for 16 TDs.

Connally last played Alvarado 10 years ago in a nondistrict game. The Cadets won that one, 23-13, on the Indians' home field.

Lorena (0-3) at Cameron Yoe (0-3)

Radio/streaming: KMIL 105.1 FM (Cameron)

Breakdown: Winless in mid-September is no doubt an uncomfortable place to be for both of these proud Central Texas programs who each boast multiple state championships in their histories.

And of course, the reason for the victory droughts for both teams is mostly a product of tough scheduling. All Lorena has done the last two weeks is play the two combatants in the 3A Division I state championship game from last December — Malakoff and Franklin. By the way, Malakoff and Franklin are currently ranked No. 1 and No. 3 respectively in 3A DI. Cameron Yoe's slate hasn't been as tough as that, but the Yoemen did play a strong Sealy team and Yoe's opponents are a combined 7-2.

It's likely that the winner of the Leopards-Yoemen showdown will be the team that can play with the obvious desperation to win without pressing too much.

Lorena coach Kevin Johnson said he's seen progress the last two weeks, but losing the turnover category kept the Leopards from being more competitive. Even so, Lorena QB Brady Smedshammer has had some success leading the offense, which is averaging better than 330 yards per game.

Cameron Yoe's offense is led by senior Cade Hubnik, but the Yoemen are inexperienced in a lot of other spots.

Lorena and Cameron Yoe were in the same district in recent seasons before the Leopards moved up to 4A Division II for this school year. The Leopards escaped Cameron with a win, 43-41, on Sept. 22 last year.

Hamilton (3-0) at Clifton (2-1)

Radio/streaming: NFHS Network

Breakdown: Hamilton is 3-0 for the first time since 2018 and, considering the Bulldogs' strength of schedule, this looks like their best team since the 2006 squad won nine games in the regular season.

This week, Hamilton will go up a division and face a 3A Division II opponent in the Clifton Cubs. It appears to be a good solid test for both Central Texas programs, especially since Clifton is coming off a 19-7 loss at Italy.

The Cubs need to get rolling again with QB Joaquin De La Hoya, who has rushed for more than 300 yards this season despite being held to 31 by the Gladiators last week. Even with its offensive star limited, Clifton stayed in the game against Italy with another strong defensive effort.

The last time Hamilton and Clifton played, they were district rivals in 8-3A Division II in 2018 and 2019. The Cubs easily won both games during that two-year cycle. Those were recent peak years for Clifton, which defeated Hamilton, 56-13, in 2019 and went 8-4.

Waco High (2-1) at Navasota (1-2)

Breakdown: The Lions are off to their best start since 2017 and have a great chance to keep the momentum rolling when they travel to face Navasota this Friday.

Head coach Linden Heldt is in his fourth year at the helm at Waco High, and the seniors he has been developing since they were freshmen restarting to come into their own.

Behind an offensive line that is all seniors, senior running back Mason Smith rushed for 136 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-winning score, in the overtime win against Cleburne last week.

Senior quarterback RJ Young rushed for a touchdown and threw a touchdown in the win, while senior linebacker Oshawn Neal had 10 tackles and a tackle for loss.

Waco High last had three wins in its first four games in 2017, the same year the Lions made the playoffs.

Navasota, a 4A-DI school that hasn't made the playoffs in the last two years, opened the season with back-to-back losses to perennial playoff teams Sealy and Madisonville but rebounded last week with a lopsided win against Brookshire Royal.

McGregor (0-3) at Gatesville (2-1)

Breakdown: The Hornets proved their offense can strike quickly and often last week, while the Bulldogs are still searching for their first win of the season.

Gehrig Keeton and receiver Amos Phillips linked up early on and running back Cy Burns rushed for a touchdown to help Gatesville get out to a two-touchdown lead in the first quarter and pull away from Mexia last week.

McGregor, meanwhile, struggled to move the ball in a loss to West one week after compiling more than 500 yards from scrimmage.

Bubba Zacharias threw for 176 yards and a touchdown, while the Bulldogs combined for 104 rushing yards and a touchdown, from senior Shaun Coleman, in a 56-14 home loss to the Trojans.

This will be the third year in a row that the Bulldogs and Hornets will face off, and both previous meetings were one-score affairs. McGregor won, 21-17, last year, and Gatesville came away with a 27-20 win in 2022.