Who wins Friday Night Lights? Vandegrift-Cedar Park, Bowie-Dripping Springs predictions

As the 2026 high school football season enters Week 8 in Central Texas and around the state, the American-Statesman's seasonlong staff picks for the week's 15 top Austin-area matchups feature high school reporters Colby Gordon and Shaun Chornobroff , high school correspondent Jay Plotkin and sports editor Richard Tijerina . Gordon is our defending champion.

This week's slate is filled with quality matchups, some of which could decide their respective districts.

Here are some Austin-area matchups we are really interested in on Thursday and Friday:

Cedar Park hopes to take another massive step towards a District 24-6A title after coming from behind to top Hutto 37-35 last week . It was the first time the Hippos had been held under 50 points this season. Cedar Park's offense (7-0, 3-0) is led by quarterback David Cooper, who has thrown for 18 touchdowns and run for seven more.

The Timberwolves defense will have another test this week against a Vandegrift squad with a strong running game. The backfield duo of Evan Williamson and Preston James has combined for 1,123 yards and 19 touchdowns for the Vipers (4-2, 2-0).

This battle is the de-facto District 26-6A title game.

Bowie (5-1, 2-0) is hoping to take down Dripping Springs after falling to the Tigers in one-possession results each of the last two years. Running back Rhys Moreno has 1,116 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns to lead the offense. The Bulldog defense has allowed just nine points over its last two games, wins against Hays and Austin High.

Dripping Springs (5-1, 2-0) is led by a juggernaut offense averaging 49 points per game and a defense allowing less than 16 points a contest. Quarterback Chase Ames has thrown for 23 touchdowns against just one interception.

Chornobroff's Pick: Bowie 30, Dripping Springs 28

Pflugerville's Caleb Gaston has had a strong first season as the Panthers (3-3, 1-0) starting quarterback. The junior has thrown for 15 touchdowns and paces the team with eight rushing scores. If he can lead the Panthers to a victory Friday, Pflugerville has a good chance to win out and take the District 12-5A II title. Defensively, the Panthers are led by linebacker Cameron Thornton, who has multiple Division I offers.

Bastrop won 11 games last year, but a glut of injuries at the beginning of the year led the Bears (2-4, 1-0) to drop four of their five games. The team's gotten the majority of those contributors back, including Arizona State commit Weston Nielsen . This Bastrop team now has more star power and depth than it did amid its early season struggles.

Chornobroff's Pick: Bastrop 38, Pflugerville 28

McCallum has notched victories over Cedar Creek and Lehman over the last two weeks but faces a significantly tougher challenge with rival Anderson on Thursday. McCallum (3-3, 2-2) has dropped distrit games to Smithson Valley and Manor.

A win for Anderson would be huge for the Trojans (4-2, 2-2) playoff chances after defeats to Smithson Valley and Boerne Champion in two of the team's first four District 13-5A I contests. Anderson has an array of talented players on both sides of the ball that should lead it to victory.

Chornobroff's Pick: Anderson 31, McCallum 23

Weiss enters this contest looking to rebound from a 49-47 loss to A&M Consolidated. The Wolves (4-2, 3-1) offense is loaded with skill-position talent. Quarterback Jaxon Schad has tossed 22 touchdowns and just four interceptions.

A win for Georgetown would boost the Eagles (4-3, 3-2) playoff chances. The running back duo of Weston Steward, Zecheriah Guyton and Nathan Lyock has combined for 1,364 yards and 15 touchdowns.

Chornobroff's Pick: Weiss 42, Georgetown 28

Chornobroff (14-1), Gordon (12-3), Tijerina (12-3), Plotkin (10-5)

Standings: Gordon (80-25), Plotkin (78-27) (-2), Chornobroff (76-29) (-4), Tijerina (74-31) (-6)

Cedar Ridge - Gordon, Plotkin, Chornobroff, Tijerina; Vandegrift - None

Bowie - Chornobroff, Tijerina; Dripping Springs - Gordon, Plotkin

Vista Ridge - Chornobroff ; East View - Gordon, Plotkin, Tijerina

Austin High - Gordon, Plotkin, Chornobroff, Tijerina ; Del Valle - None

Johnson - Gordon,Plotkin, Chornobroff, Tijerina ; Akins - None

McCallum - None; Anderson - Gordon, Plotkin, Chornobroff, Tijerina

Weiss - Gordon, Plotkin, Chornobroff, Tijerina; Georgetown - None

College Station - Gordon, Plotkin, Chornobroff, Tijerina; Hendrickson - None

Pflugerville - Plotkin; Bastrop - Gordon, Chornobroff, Tijerina

Boerne - Gordon, Plotkin, Chornobroff, Tijerina ; Liberty Hill - None

Legacy Ranch - Gordon, Plotkin, Chornobroff, Tijerina; New Braunfels - None

Glenn - Gordon, Chornobroff; Connally - Plotkin, Tijerina

Navarro -None ; Crockett - Gordon, Plotkin, Chornobroff, Tijerina

Burnet - Gordon, Chornobroff; Marble Falls - Plotkin, Tijerina

Thorndale - Gordon, Plotkin, Chornobroff, Tijerina ; Granger - None