Super Centex high school football podcast

Some are calling this this "bye-pocalyse," with something like 40% of Texas teams taking the week off. We're joined by special guest Don Hyde of the La Vega Pirates this week. Does their bye week fall at a good time, and how is he approaching the time off?What's it been like for La Vega to play 5 road games? Has it felt different this fall to never be at home?Johnny Tusa always said he wanted to put his best athletes on defense. Does La Vega do that, or is it more best fit, best ability for the position?Let's find out about Coach Hyde's background and his coaching journey, including learning under Willie Williams.What's it like being a psychologist on the sideline for La Vega kids, like what we saw with Josh Majors on Friday night?Let's find our about the camaraderie on the La Vega coaching staff — that's been a strength for the Pirates for a long time. For a longtime coach who's seen a lot of kids over the years, we know kids can be kids. What's the dumbest excuse ever heard on the football field?

1. Midway heads to Lake Belton this week for its District 12-6A opener. It was a great matchup in 2026 and maybe a bit of a budding rivalry for the Panthers. Who has the edge?2. Chad has a history of adopting a dark-horse team the last couple of years. So let's pick a team flying under the radar with some surprise potential.3. We don't talk volleyball very often, and November's a ways away, but who would you put your entirely theoretical money on to make it to state this year?4. Over-under time, courtesy of former Waco TV sports guy Jack Allen. How would you handicap these 2026 win totals: Midway -9.5, La Vega 11.5, Whitney 10.5?-----Music: http://www.purple-planet.com

1. University hosts La Vega this week, and most people would pprobably agree the Class 4A Div. II Pirates are the favorite over the bigger 5A-DII Trojans. What can the U-Dawgs do to spoil the Modoc night, if anything?2. Low-key great rivalry games this week include Midway-Belton, Crawford-Marlin, Fairfield-Mexia, Groesbeck-Teague and Vanguard-Valor. Which of those is the best rivalry overall, and which game will be the best matchup here in 2026?3. We're rolling out our weekly StatsPlus package this week, which rounds up the best performances across Central Texas in several categories. Whose numbers have jumped out at you?4. A reader suggested China Spring's Major Bowden, a two-time state champ and the winner of the Mr. Texas Football award, for the Mount Rushmore we discussed last week. And that got us thinking: Is he even the best player in China Spring history? What about Shawn Bell, Larry Weikel and others? We take a trip down memory lane.-----Music: http://www.purple-planet.com

Mart head coach Chris Lancaster recently departed after just one game. The Panthers come into every season with the heavy, heavy weight of expectations. Is it unreasonably heavy? And after some down years, has Mart jumped the shark as a power program in Central Texas?We've now seen two weeks of games, and things may be coming into focus. What do you think you know about Centex football after Week 3? Looking ahead, Week 3 doesn't have a huge number of marquee matchups, but which games have your attention as ones that could be revealing? Who's on your Mount Rushmore of Waco football stars? We talk LT, DJ, Louis Fite and more.------Music: https://www.purple-planet.com

Which defense impressed us the most in Week 1?We tried to predict "surprise" teams of 2026 recently. After seeing the Week 1 scores, who do you think might have some staying power?DeSoto went viral for all the wrong reasons last week after refusing to shake hands before the game. Do you think sportsmanship has taken a hit, in general? Or is this just an isolated incident?We're going out on a limb: Why pick Mason over Hamilton, Mexia over Troy or Midway over Aledo?------Music: https://www.purple-planet.com

It's Week 1, and we have several bangers around Central Texas — which games have your interest? La Vega-Franklin, Mart-Whitney, Hamilton-Bremond, Robinson-Bellville or something else?We know what to expect out of our returning Super Centex stars, guys like Lathan Whisenton, Pryce Rabroker, Davontrae Kirkland, Brice McCurdy and Kobe Haynes. We expect them to have big years. But who are some up-and-comers, or position switchers, that you're interested to see play this fall?The preseason rankings are just a series of educated guesses. We have 11 local teams ranked by Dave Campbell's Texas Football. But who do you expect to see ranked pretty soon? Who's being left out of the conversation? We'll probably roll out the Super Centex All-Name Team again this season. Which mondo monikers have caught your eye so far this year?------Music: https://www.purple-planet.com

We're rolling out more questions from Centex players, who had plenty they wanted us to talk about at our annual Photo Day last month:How are districts drawn, anyway?Who are the best O-linemen in the area?Who will be the comeback teams of 2026? Do we have any bold predictions?Who's going to state? Our best guesses for trips to Jerryworld in December.------Music: https://www.purple-planet.com

1. We had a great turnout for Trib Photo Day 2026 at Waco ISD Stadium, with 49 Central Texas high school football teams in attendance. As always, we had hundreds of players fill out our Trib questionnaire, and one of the questions was ... what would you like for us to talk about on the Super Centex Podcast? So to kick off this all-request edition, by popular demand, we talk about the best Central Texas rivalries: What are your favorites, and what are the ingredients for a good one?2. Apparently everyone's talking about "wet bulb glow temperature," or WBGT. What exactly is that? Let's get into it.3. Another popular request was to "talk about small schools" — we'll leave six-man for another time, but we'll dive into Class 2A. Who has your attention going into this season? And what is it about 2A ball that makes it just a little more special?4. There were plenty of funny, non-football suggestions for podcast topics. So here we go: The Trib sports guys weigh in on the epic Kendrick Lamar vs. Drake feud.------Music: https://www.purple-planet.com

Congrats to Jonesboro, winner of its third UIL softball title in a row and the only Centex team to take home a trophy this year. Of this trio of the Eagles, Midway and Bosqueville, who is best equpped to be right back here next year?In baseball, the Robinson Rockets play for the state title Friday. Can they bring home the crown against Brock in Round Rock?Brice wrote this week about a state champion he covered 30 years ago: the 1996 Brenham Cubettes, who beat Midway 1-0 in the softball state title game. But what are some of the other favorite teams we've covered?It's June now, and we're finally post-graduation after a flurry of activity. We were all 18 once — even Chad. Let's dish out some life advice for these new graduates.------Music: https://www.purple-planet.com