The ingredients are there for Highland Park’s football team to make a deep postseason run in 2026.
It doesn’t start on the field, though, for a program like HP.
It starts with upholding a tradition built over years and years as the winningest program in Texas high school football history.
More than 900 all-time victories. Six state championships. Sixty district titles.
“The team sets the goals for the team, but there’s been a standard and an expectation that the seniors leave the program better than they found it,” said Randy Allen, HP head coach. “They want to play as long as they can play and reach their potential. We start off with the idea that we’re the winningest team in the state of Texas, so we want to honor that tradition.”
With a state championship appearance in 2024 and a berth in the regional finals in 2025, HP’s seniors have already done their fair share of carrying on the tradition.
But the experience of coming oh so close to the program’s seventh state championship will also be a driving force for the Scots.
“There’s a lot of motivation and a lot of saltiness in our mouth from the last couple of years,” said senior captain and offensive lineman Cooper Alt. “I think we have what it takes to put it all together this year, though. We’ve been there, we’ve been close, and we have an amazing quarterback like Buck (Randall) who has started in the state championship before.”
On the field, eight playoff wins over the previous two seasons give a strong indication HP has the pedigree to play with anyone.
And if you ask HP’s captains, they have the talent this year, too.
That starts under center where seemingly the only thing missing on the resume of the aforementioned Randall is a state championship ring.
Now a three-year starter, the SMU pledge is coming off a season in which he threw for 4,396 yards and 51 touchdowns while chipping in 509 yards and 12 additional scores on the ground.
For his performance, Randall was named the 2025 District 7-5A Division I MVP.
That on the heels of a sophomore campaign in which he led the Scots to the state title game and threw for 3,899 yards with 40 touchdowns and 12 rushing scores.
In the backfield, Caiden Reeves is set for an expanded role after gaining 102 yards (4.3 per carry), while two-way player James Flowers (254 yards, eight touchdowns last season) will provide support in addition to his defensive duties.
The pair will be running behind an offensive line that appears capable of mauling opponents.
Alt and Benton Weathersby are returning after starting for HP a year ago, as is Division I prospect Colton Williams, who was a starter a year ago but suffered a season-ending injury in HP’s first game. Luke Swaner and Trey Lander round out the projected starters for the Scots.
“We have some good experience coming back,” Alt said. “Even some of the guys who weren’t starters last year still got some playing time.
“The thing I really like about our line is that it is super tightly-knit. We’re all friends with each other and there’s no gaps between us. These are the guys I’m going to hang out with on a Friday night. It’s not like I’m going to see you at practice and that’s it.”
With a beefy and deep offensive line, and three capable runners, the ground game could be an added weapon for a Scots team that has already produced prolific scoring numbers under the helm of Randall.
The extra security of a dominant rushing attack could also benefit the Scots’ passing game as HP works in a new-look receiving corps.
Slated to start for the Scots are James Axley, Evan Snelleman, Liam Thomas, and Luke Cecil, while Beckett Lawrence, Dean Dulin, and Max Green are also expected to contribute.
“I have a ton of confidence in those guys, especially after seeing how the 7-on-7 games went over the summer,” Randall said. “We got to see guys like Colton Heinlen, who took two years off from football and just came back. He balled out and played incredibly. He’s going to be key on the outside for us. Beckett Lawrence is a young guy, and we got to see a lot of him, and he had a lot of clutch touchdowns in 7-on-7. That’s really exciting, seeing those young guys that might not even necessarily be starters, but when guys go down, they’re going to be in there.”
Defensively, HP returns just three starters. But the Scots are fortunate to have not only a key returner at every level, but a captain.
“It’s funny that’s not how it’s supposed to fall, but it seems like every year that’s how it goes,” said returning cornerback and first-team all-district performer Dulin. “It’s how it should be. There are leaders in every area. Secondary, linebackers, d-line, o-line, and of course quarterback. So it works out pretty well.”
In the trenches, Boone Thompson is slated to start at nose tackle with Charlie Flint and Nick van der Westhuizen manning the defensive end spots. Patton Vargas, Slade Stapp, William Lajous, and Fischer Millican will also figure into the rotation.
Linebackers include captain Lee Wagner, Graham Rodgers, Beckett Curtis, and Dean Williams.
Joining Dulin in the secondary are cornerback Sutton Spillman and safeties Cotton Patterson and Green.
“I think we have a good amount of guys that gained a lot of experience last year, so I think we’re set up pretty good there,” Dulin said.
That potential defense, coupled with HP’s firepower offensively, figures to keep HP competitive in any game.
But if you ask Randall, the key ingredient to going one step further and reaching Texas football immortality may well be the chemistry and confidence he has seen throughout the offseason.
“I really think it’s going to come down to the belief we have,” he said. “Looking back at the state team two years ago, I really see a lot of similarities to that team with a lot of defensive-heavy leadership guys and then some new, young offensive guys. They haven’t proven their skills at the varsity level yet, but I think we’re going to see it. There’s a lot of belief between each guy here, and I think later in the season, what’s going to get you points and wins is really believing late in the game that you can win it.”
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