by Jeff Fisher
The Allen Eagles will be going after a couple of three-peats this year. First, there’s a third straight Texas championship and then there’s High School Football America‘s “mythical” national championship three-peat.
Allen has captured all or a piece of our first two national championships. The Eagles won the crown outright last year and shared it with Louisiana’s John Curtis in 2012. Just like last year, the Eagles begin this season on top of our preseason Top 25.
Led by dual-threat quarterback Kyler Murray, the Eagles are expected to challenge for the title again this season, even though the team will have to play all of its home games in nearby Plano because its $60 million stadium has been shutdown for major repairs to cracks that were found in the stadium’s foundation.
With Murray at the helm, the Eagles are on a 27 game win streak. Allen head coach Tom Westerberg, who was recently named the National High School Coaches Association‘s 2014 National Football Coach of the Year, returns a half-dozen starters on offense, but will need to replace all but one starter on defense this season. Westerberg owns a lifetime mark of 118-16 at Allen.
Allen is one of five Texas team’s in the preseason poll, followed by DeSoto at #5, Cedar Hill at #9, Katy at #13 and Southlake Carroll at #20. Allen beat DeSoto in the Class 5A Division state semis last year, while Cedar Hill topped Katy in the Class 5A Division II championship game. Allen, DeSoto, Cedar Hill and Katy all finished in our Final Top 25 last year.
Texas and Florida each have five teams in the Top 25, followed by California with four.
Here’s the entire Top 25 with last year’s record and its 2013 final High School Football America ranking.
1. Allen (Texas) 16-0, LY: #1
2. Hoover (Alabama) 15-0, LY: #10
3. St. Thomas Aquinas (Florida) 10-3, LY: NR
4. De La Salle (California) 14-1, LY: #9
5. DeSoto (Texas) 14-1, LY: #5
6. St. John Bosco (California) 16-0, LY:#2
7. Booker T. Washington (Florida) 14-0, LY: #3
8. Bishop Gorman (Nevada) 13-2, LY: #23
9. Cedar Hill (Texas) 14-2, LY: #7
10. St. Joseph’s Prep (Pennsylvania) 13-3, LY: #25
11. American Heritage (Florida) 15-1, LY: #20
12. Archbishop Moeller (Ohio) 14-1, LY: #6
13. Katy (Texas) 15-1, LY: #22
14. Miami Central (Florida) 13-1, LY: #4
15. Jenks (Oklahoma) 14-0, LY: #13
16. Bellevue (Washington) 14-0, LY: #12
17. Folsom (California) 14-1, LY: NR
18. Centreville (Virginia) 15-0, LY: NR
19. St. Peter’s Prep (New Jersey) 10-2, LY: NR
20. Southlake Carroll (Texas) 11-2, LY: NR
21. South Panola (Mississippi) 13-2, LY: NR
22. Servite (California) 6-6, LY: NR
23. Trinity Christian (Florida) 12-1, LY: NR
24. McEachern (Georgia) 11-3, LY: NR
25. Acadiana (Louisiana) 14-1, LY: NR
