Several Central Texas high school football teams play Thursday in Week 10 games that could decide their playoff chances. Five area teams are involved in three games, all set for 7 p.m.
Copperas Cove (5-3, 3-1 in 12-6A) visits Harker Heights (6-2, 4-0). A Copperas Cove win would set up a winner-take-all game against Waco Midway next week for the league title. Harker Heights is on a 21-game district win streak and has not lost to Copperas Cove since 2019. Shoemaker (3-5, 2-4 in 12-5A-I) plays Pflugerville Connally (2-6, 0-6). Shoemaker must win its remaining games to have a chance to qualify for the playoffs.
Waco University (3-5, 1-2 in 8-5A-II) plays Belton (6-2, 3-0). A Belton win and a Brenham victory over Ellison would put Belton in a first-place showdown with state-ranked Cubs next week. Chaparral (2-6, 1-3 in 12-6A) plays Lake Belton (4-4, 1-3). Lake Belton is tied for fourth place in a three-way tie and could earn its first playoff berth with a strong finish. A&M Consolidated (5-3, 4-2 in 12-5A-I) plays Killeen (4-4, 3-3) later in the week.