3. Houston
Coach: James Thomas (sixth season)
Last year: 9-3 (lost to Germantown, 24-14, in the second round of the Class 6A playoffs)
Schedule: Friday: at Briarcrest; Aug. 25: at South Panola; Sept. 1: Germantown*; Sept. 8: at Cordova*; Sept. 15: at Whitehaven*; Sept. 22: Tupelo (Miss.); Sept. 29: Bartlett*; Oct. 5: Arlington*; Oct. 20: vs. White Station at Germantown*; Oct. 27: at Collierville*
Outlook: Thomas has been at Houston a long time as an assistant and now as head coach and when he says this may be the best collection of skill players he’s ever had, that means something.
Running back Damon Sisa was MVP of a rugged region and an all-state selection as a junior after running for 1,308 yards and 20 touchdowns. Chandler Day (1,728 yards, 22 touchdowns) is one of the city’s top quarterbacks and the receiving corps is deep, with Shawne Jones, Derrick Miller and Andre Allen being joined by some promising newcomers. And speaking of newcomers, the Mustangs added Celley Davis after his dad, Marvis, was hired as the district athletic director. The younger Davis had a fine freshman season at Lausanne and is one of Tennessee’s top prospects in the class of 2026.
There’s experience along the line thanks to the return of Adam Grant, Travis Shaw and Garrett Lear. Jones, Owen Waggener and Ben Killebrew form a good group of linebackers and Houston will win many special teams battles thanks to George Vezina, who is adept at both kicking and punting. Overall, eight starters are back on each side of the ball and there... Click here to read full article
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