Top Players to Watch in the 2024 UIL Texas high school football championships

The annual tradition of the Texas high school football championship game at AT&T Stadium is back this week with 12 teams looking to cap off the season with a state championship.
In all six classes, there’s plenty of talent on the field to watch over four days of action in Arlington.
High School on SI will have scores, schedules and coverage throughout the finals.
Top Players to Watch in the UIL Texas high school football finals
QB Bowe Bentley, 6-2, 200, jr., Celina
The dual-threat quarterback is one of the best in the state, and colleges have taken notice. North Texas, Boston College, Cincinnati, Arkansas State and Texas Tech have offered Bentley, who also took unofficial visits to SMU, Ole Miss and Texas A&M. He’s thrown for 2,946 yards and 42 TDs with 7 interceptions. He is averaging 7.6 yards per carry with 855 yards on the ground with 16 touchdowns — third on the team.
WR Brock Boyd, 6-2, 180, jr., Southlake Carroll
The TCU pledge has been a go-to target this year for Carroll quarterback Angelo Renda. Brock has hauled in 98 catches for 1,630 yards and 18 touchdowns. He had 24 offers and follows in the footsteps of his older brother, Brady, who went to Texas Tech out of Carroll.
WR Cannon Bozman, 6-0, 165, jr., Dallas Highland Park
He’s been the top target for the Scots this year. He’s leading the team with 65 catches for 1,002 yards and 11 touchdowns. Bozman had a touchdown in the semifinal win against Denton Ryan.
RB KJ Edwards, 5-10, 180, jr., Carthage
He’s one of the top running backs in the country — No. 5 according to 247Sports — and holds nearly 30 offers heading into the finals. This will be his second trip to AT&T Stadium for the finals, helping the Bulldogs win the Class 4A Division II title as a freshman. He’s averaged more than 10 yards per carry in each of his three seasons.
WR Quentin Gibson, 5-9, 165, sr., Fort Worth North Crowley
A relative unknown when the season started, Gibson had 542 yards receiving and 7 scores in 2023. This year, he skyrocketed up the recruiting rankings with several big performances. He has 86 catches for 1,828 yards and 33 TDs. He signed with Colorado.
RB Christian Glenn, 5-9, 168, sr., Southlake Carroll
He moved into the starting running back role on Nov. 22 and the former wide receiver has posted good games in recent weeks. He scored a season-high 3 TDs in the quarterfinal win over Denton Guyer and ran for a season-high 132 yards against Longview last week. He wears No. 83 to honor his late father, Terry Glenn, a former NFL wide receiver.
RB Logan Gutierrez, 5-8, 180, jr., Celina
He’s part of one of the best backfields in the state with Harrison Williams. Gutierrez leads the Bobcats with 1,372 yards with 21 touchdowns — averaging 8 yards per carry.
QB Chris Jimerson Jr., 5-10, 170, sr., Fort Worth North Crowley
A three-year starter for the Panthers, he’s having his best year to date passing the ball. Heading into the finals, he’s thrown for 3,470 yards with 54 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. He’s signed to play at North Texas.
QB Buck Randall, 5-11, 172, so., Dallas Highland Park
The sophomore has thrown for 3,583 yards with 38 touchdowns heading into the Class 5A Division I finals. He’s completed 240 of 388 passes. He’s been on visits to Texas A&M, Texas, SMU, Notre Dame and Oklahoma this fall.
QB Angelo Renda, 6-0, 180, jr., Southlake Carroll
In his first year starting, Renda has led the Dragons to the Class 6A Division II finals. He’s completed 230 of 321 passes for 3,550 yards with 36 touchdowns. The dual-threat QB has also added 644 yards and 18 scores on the ground. Renda holds offers from Jacksonville State, SMU and UTSA.
RB Grayson Rigdon, 5-11, 185, sr., Columbus
There may not be a better athlete at the state finals than Rigdon. The Wyoming signee — football and basketball — is playing in his fourth straight state finals. He led Strawn to a 6-man title in 2021 and then helped Benjamin repeat as 6-man champions in 2022 and 2023. He’s also a state qualifier in triple jump and 4x200-meter relay and in basketball he averaged 40.7 points as a sophomore and 45.1 points per game last year.
RB Bryson Roland, 5-8, 160, sr., Waco La Vega
Despite some big numbers, he’s an uncommitted senior for the Pirates. Roland has run for 2,045 yards with 30 touchdowns and has 100 yards or more in 10 of the Pirates. He ran for a season-high 301 yards in a quarterfinal win against Sealy and has six games with at least 3 TDs.
LB Elliott Schaper, 6-3, 210, sr., Austin Westlake
The Duke signee has been a tackling machine for the Chaparrals this year. He enters the title game with 124 tackles — 28 TFL — with 12 sacks, 13 QB hurries and 3 interceptions. He hauled in two of those interceptions in a 24-17 win against Austin Lake Travis in the quarterfinals. He has 281 career tackles.
QB Adam Schobel, 6-4, 190, sr., Columbus
A four-year starter, he’s guided Columbus to the state title game. The TCU signee has thrown for at least 2,000 yards in every season. His dad, Matt, was a tight end at TCU and played in the NFL from 2002 to 2008.
LB Jayden Shelton, 6-0, 200, sr., Dallas South Oak Cliff
The Arkansas signee has posted his second straight season of 100 tackles or more. He has 118 stops this year — one away from last year’s total — and has two interceptions.
DE Cary Spires IV, 6-3, 200, jr., Richmond Randle
The edge rusher has been a force for the Vipers this year. He’s racked up 12 sacks. The Richmond Rosenberg transfer has 38 tackles and 19 of them are for losses.
DB Hollister Stephens, 6-0, 198, sr., Austin Vanedgrift
An all-district safety last year, he has been a tackling machine in the postseason and has 104 heading into the finals. He ended the regular season with 62. He posted 19 tackles in the win against Summer Creek, a season-high.
QB Jett Surratt, 6-1, 170, jr., Carthage
He’s a second-year starter for the Bulldogs and has them in the state title game for the second time in three years. The junior threw two touchdowns in pouring down rain in a semifinal win against Brock. Earlier this year, Surratt threw six touchdowns to six different receivers in a win against Van. Surratt holds eight offers with in-state interest from Houston, UTSA and Texas Tech.
QB Miles Teodecki, 6-3, 215, jr., Austin Vandegrift
The left-handed throwing junior has thrown for 3,016 yards and 46 touchdowns while adding four more on the ground for the Vipers.
TE/DE Jack Vandorselaer, 6-5, 240, sr., Southlake Carroll
The Tennessee signee is more of a blocking tight end, but has 4 catches for 49 yards and 1 TD this fall. His biggest impact has been as an edge rusher with 78 tackles, 10 TFL, 7 sacks, 18 QB hurries and 2 forced fumbles.
RB Cornelius Warren, 5-9, 165, sr., Fort Worth North Crowley
The feature back for the Panthers, he has 1,390 yards and 17 scores this year — averaging more than 7 yards per carry. He’s currently looking for a place to play next year after decommitting from UNLV after Barry Odom left for the Purdue job.
RB Harrison Williams, 5-11, 190, sr., Celina
He teams with Gutierrez to provide a formidable 1-2 punch for Celina. The all-state running back averages 8.1 yards per carry. He enters the state finals with 1,291 yards rushing with 17 touchdowns.
RB Landen Williams-Callis, 5-7, 180, so., Richmond Randle
The sophomore is one of the best players in the country, ranked as the No. 2 running back in the country in the 2027, according to 247Sports. He has 207 carries, 2,002 yards with 42 TDs. He also has 19 catches for 289 yards and 2 TDs. He holds 39 offers.
QB Rees Wise, 6-2, 205, jr., Austin Westlake
Wise has completed 67% of his passes this year with 2,444 yards and 23 TDs. On the ground, his 13 rushing touchdowns lead the team, adding 358 yards rushing. Wise holds 7 offers — 5 from Texas schools, as well as Nebraska and Oklahoma State.