ARGYLE, Texas — For the first time this season, WFAA's Friday Night Football will broadcast a district matchup as the final week of September brings us to District 3-5A Division II.
Colleyville Heritage visits fifth-ranked Argyle, as the two teams that were picked preseason to battle for the district title, look to settle it on the field.
You can watch the game live on our streaming platform WFAA+, which is available on Roku, Apple TV, and Amazon Fire TV. You can also watch the game right here on WFAA.com, or our WFAA YouTube channel.
Both teams are off to strong starts to the year, with each team's only loss coming to state-ranked teams in the higher 5A-Division I. Both teams have started district play strong, both knocking off Mansfield Timberview in their most recent game. Timberview was the team picked to finish third in the district during the preseason.
Expect this game to feature its fair share of defense. Argyle held Timberview to just 14 points, sealing the win with a late pick-six to knock off the Wolves 24-14 on Sept. 13. Then Colleyville Heritage shut out the Wolves, intercepting Timberview three times to win 10-0 on Sept. 20. Now those two defenses will lay it on the line Friday night, to see which unit is better this fall.
Offensively, the Eagles are led by junior quarterback Maguire Gasperson and senior receiver Will Krzysiak. The tandem has connected for a pair of touchdowns already this season. And running back Watson Bell is the Eagles' bellcow, rushing for 428 yards and 5 touchdowns in Argyle's three games this season.
For Colleyville Heritage, it starts with quarterback Bodey Weaver. He steps in for the graduated Luke Ullrich, who combined for 54 touchdowns in 2023 to lead Heritage to the Regional Finals in 5A-Division II. Weaver already has 9 combined touchdowns – 7 passing, 2 rushing – in the first four games of the year. His primary target on the outside is Braden Blueitt, a senior wide receiver committed to Northwestern, who has four touchdown grabs in the early portions of 2024. Jerrod Wiley and Bryce Abram pace the running game for the Panthers. Nick Wankombe, Sameer Johnson, and Luke Graves all make an impact for the Panthers in the passing game.
The Eagles' defense is led by a defensive back group that makes plays all over the field. Two of their DBs are team captains – safeties Nathaniel Bruce and Garrett Westrom. Both are returning starters and quarterback a stout defense that flies to the football.
For Heritage, it starts up front. Defensive tackle Evan Naeata is a force in the middle, joined by De'Marius Logan, Nehemiah Olayiwola, and Matthew Udemba. And the linebacking corps, coached up by head coach and defensive coordinator Jerry Edwards, roams sideline to sideline making plays. Madden Williams, Dax Hebeisen, and Darian Lloyd are all veteran defenders who make it happen for the Panthers.
Our Friday Night Football pregame show will begin at approximately 6:50 p.m., with kickoff to follow at 7 p.m. Join Mike Leslie and Hek'ma Harrison on the call, for Week 5 of the Texas high school football season.