Dylan Jaeger with a long score for Round Rock. Weiss won a non-district football game 42-28 at Round Rock on August 28th, 2026. (Henry Huey @HenryHueyPhoto/Special to American-Statesman)
As the 2026 high school football season enters Week 2 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 reporter Colby Gordon, high school correspondent Jay Plotkin and sports editor Richard Tijerina. Gordon is our defending champion. Lake Travis and Dripping Springs take the field for the first time, with the Cavs playing Weiss in arguably the area's top nondistrict matchup of the year. The Tigers host San Antonio Harlan in a contest of two of the top teams in Class 6A Region IV. Here are some second-week Austin-area matchups that we're really interested in this week: Lake Travis at Weiss If you're heading to The Pfield for this one, get there early. The marquee game of nondistrict play for the area features the Statesman's No. 1 teams in 6A and 5A. Lake Travis is playing for the first time and is breaking in nine new starters on both sides of the ball, including quarterback Jason Carter. The Cavs' strength seems to be their defense, which will need to perform well against an electric Weiss offense. The Wolves (1-0) beat Round Rock 42-28 in Week 1 and have the benefit of already building some game chemistry. Jaxon Schad and the Weiss offense looked in midseason form, and this will be its biggest test of the season until the playoffs. It's a coin-flip game. Lake Travis must be able to run the ball and control the clock to keep the Weiss offense off the field. The Wolves need to protect Schad against a talented Cavs front seven. Look for Lake Travis to squeak out a win. Gordon's pick: Lake Travis 27, Weiss 24 Westlake vs Euless Trinity What's Westlake's encore after beating Inglewood, California? The Chaps loaded up with tough opponents in nondistrict play, and this is another fascinating matchup. Trinity (1-0), which was a 6A playoff team a year ago, beat Richardson Berkner 28-17 to open the year. Quarterback Patton Jones and running back Cooper Jones - no relation - impressed in Week 1, and Westlake has the benefit of playing at home. Expect the Chaps to pull away in the second half. Gordon's pick: Westlake 30-17. Vandegrift vs San Antonio Johnson Vandegrift (1-0) had the comeback of Week 1 when it rallied from a 21-10 deficit with less than 6 minutes to play to beat San Antonio Brennan 28-21 in overtime. Johnson is arguably the best team in the San Antonio area - and maybe even all of Region IV, regardless of classification - and features a dynamic offense led by quarterback Elvis Estrada and wideouts Braelyn Allen and Bryson Thompson. Vipers coach Drew Sanders can usually keep Vandegrift in any game, but Johnson simply has too much talent to outscheme. Gordon's pick: S.A. Johnson 35, Vandegrift 24 Pflugerville at Anderson Two impressive offenses clash in this matchup between 5A teams that defeated 6A opponents in Week 1. In his debut as a starter, Caleb Gaston went 20-of-30 passing for 247 yards and two touchdowns to help Pflugerville beat Leander 25-21. Most of that production went to speedy wideouts Breland Hill and Tyrone McGill, who have the ability to give most defenses trouble. Anderson also has an electric passing attack with quarterback Covert Darbyshire and a plethora of wideout options. But the Trojans may have an edge in the running game with Nick Briggs and Kam'ron Hornsby. Anderson's defense is better than expected, so that should be the difference. Gordon's pick: Anderson 38, Pflugerville 20 Westwood at Austin High Both teams could use a win here after Westwood lost to Boerne 34-14 and Austin High's game was called midway through the second quarter due to lightning. Austin High linebacker Ethan Kahle is probably the best player you don't know about but should. The Maroons return most of their production on offense from last year and hope that translates to more wins. One shouldn't read too much into Westwood's Week 1 performance, as Boerne seems primed to make a run in the 5A Division II playoffs. Expect a close one Thursday at House Park. Gordon's pick: Austin High 24, Westwood 21 Dripping Springs vs S.A. Harlan Chase Ames is arguably the area's top 6A quarterback, but he's breaking in a new set of wide receivers. The Tigers' offense may take some time to jell, so expect some lower-scoring games early in the year as Dripping Springs' defensive line should smother opponents. Gordon's pick: Dripping Springs 25, S.A. Harlan 24 Standings: T1. Gordon 11-4 T1. Plotkin 11-4 3. Tijerina 10-5 Our picks for Central Texas high school football Week 2 games Lake Travis (0-0) at Weiss (1-0): Lake Travis - Gordon, Plotkin, Tijerina; Weiss - none Euless Trinity (1-0) at Westlake (1-0): Trinity - None; Westlake - Gordon, Plotkin, Tijerina S.A. Johnson (0-0) at Vandegrift (1-0): Johnson - Gordon, Plotkin; Vandegrift - Tijerina S.A. Harlan (1-0) at Dripping Springs (0-0): Harlan - None; Dripping Springs - Gordon, Plotkin, Tijerina Westwood (0-1) at Austin High (0-0): Westwood - Plotkin; Austin High - Gordon, Tijerina Pflugerville (1-0) at Anderson (1-0): Pflugerville - None: Anderson - Gordon, Plotkin, Tijerina Leander (0-1) at Lockhart (1-0): Leander - Gordon; Lockhart - Plotkin, Tijerina Liberty Hill (1-0) at San Marcos (0-1): Liberty Hill - Gordon, Plotkin, Tijerina; San Marcos - None Legacy Ranch (1-0) at Kerrville Tivy (1-0): Legacy Ranch - None; Kerrville Tivy - Gordon, Plotkin, Tijerina McCallum (0-1) at Travis (0-1): McCallum - Gordon, Plotkin, Tijerina; Travis - None Elgin (0-1) at Northeast (1-0): Elgin - Gordon, Plotkin; Northeast - Tijerina Waco La Vega (1-0) at LBJ (1-0): La Vega - Plotkin; LBJ - Gordon, Tijerina Fredericksburg (1-0) at Wimberley (0-0): Fredericksburg - None; Wimberley - Gordon, Plotkin, Tijerina Taylor (1-0) at Burnet (0-1): Taylor - Gordon, Plotkin, Tijerina; Burnet - None Rogers (0-1) at Thorndale (1-0): Rogers - Tijerina; Thorndale - Gordon, Plotkin Sign up for the Daily Briefing from the Austin American-Statesman. Start your day with the must-read headlines from Austin's most trusted news source. This article originally published at Westlake vs Euless Trinity prediction and 14 other Austin-area high school football picks.