2016 Football Playoffs

ARLINGTON -- Three takeaways would have been a good number for a team playing on state championship weekend. Carthage got six. Senior defensive tackle Austin Russell, junior cornerback Mekhi Colbert and senior safety Mason Graham each came up with two steals in a 31-17 win Friday against Abilene Wylie for the Class 4A Division I state title at the Dallas Cowboys' AT&T Stadium.

ARLINGTON -- The Carthage Bulldogs followed a familiar pattern back to the top of the high school football mountain. Carthage's shutdown defense in the second half carried it to the title game, then led the Bulldogs to their fifth state championship since 2008...

Mineola downed Yoakum, 35-14, Thursday at AT&T Stadium for its first football state championship in school history. Here are ETSN.fm photographer Rob Graham's best pictures from the game and celebration.

ARLINGTON -- Mineola's two-year journey back to the Class 3A Division I state championship game ended Thursday in front of 20,334 fans with the ultimate prize in hand. The Yellowjackets won the big one for the first time in school history and did so in convincing fashion, 35-14, against Yoakum at the Dallas Cowboys' AT&T Stadium in Arlington. A big senior class, which mostly started in a 2014

ARLINGTON -- Before Mineola quarterback Jeremiah Crawford ever took the field at AT&T Stadium on Thursday night, he had cemented his place as one of the most accomplished high school football players in East Texas history. There was just one thing missing: a piece of hardware he and his fellow 18 senior teammates had been chasing for three years. ...

Here is the East Texas live scoreboard for the 2016 state championships. Follow and talk to us on Twitter at @etsnfm.   Thursday, Dec. 15 CLASS 3A DIVISION I Yoakum -- 14 Mineola -- 35 FINAL   Friday, Dec. 16 CLAS...

CLASS 4A DIVISION I State Championship Carthage Bulldogs (12-2) vs. No. 9 Abilene Wylie Bulldogs (12-1) 4 p.m. Friday AT&T Stadium, Arlington   Coaches Carthage: Scott Surratt Wylie: Hugh Sandifer   Road to Arlington Carthage Bi-district: def. Silsbee, 34-... Read More ... Read More ...

CLASS 3A DIVISION I State Championship Game Yoakum Bulldogs (11-4) vs. Mineola Yellowjackets (13-2) 8 p.m. Thursday AT&T Stadium, Arlington Coaches Yoakum: Bo Robinson Mineola: Joe Drennon Last week Yoakum: def. Malakoff, 28-24 Mineola: def. Wall, 50-8

CARTHAGE -- Defense wins championships. It's one of the most tired clichés in sports, but there is a reason the same sayings are repeated year after year. They're at least partially true. Carthage (12-2) still has one final hurdle standing in the way of its fifth state championship since 2008, but without the Bulldogs' superb performance on defense during the playoffs, the season would have been o

The final week of the 2016 high school football season has arrived, and two East Texas teams have opportunities to capture state championships. Our Clint Buckley and Mike Graham break down the title quests of Carthage and Mineola in this week's edition of the ETSN...