Best Texas high school football players at every position entering 2024

From quarterbacks to place kickers, SBLive took a position-by-position dive into the top players in Texas

Deondrae Riden barrels toward the endzone in a 6A Division II Texas state semifinal win over Southlake Carroll in November 2023. / Photo by Michael Horbovetz, SBLive

Who are the best high school football players in Texas?

Before the 2024 season kicks off across Texas on Thursday, SBLive examined the best players across the state at each position.

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We took a look across all districts, graduation years, classifications and associations for the players that rose above the rest.

Scroll down for a sneak peak at each position:

TOP PLAYERS IN TEXAS BY POSITION ENTERING 2024

TOP 50 QUARTERBACKS

Sneak peak: Keelon Russell, Duncanville, sr.

The 6-foot-3, 175-pound Russell helped lead the Panthers to a repeat state title last season, completing 72 percent of his passes for 3,483 yards and 38 TDs after throwing for 2,377 yards and 22 TDs as a sophomore. He made headlines this offseason after de-committing from SMU, announcing his commitment to play instead for Alabama.

• First game: Sept. 6 vs. South Oak Cliff, 7:30 p.m. Central time

>> Read the rest of the top QBs here

TOP 70 RUNNING BACKS

Sneak peak: Deondrae 'Tiger' Riden, DeSoto, sr.

The 5-foot-10, 195-pound Texas A&M commit might be the state's top returning back. He's a two-time 6A Division II state champion and mustered his second consecutive 1,000-yard rushing season in an injury-painted junior season.

• First game: Saturday vs. Creekside (Georgia)

>> Read the rest of the top running backs here

TOP 40 WIDE RECEIVERS

Sneak peak: Dakorien Moore, Duncanville, sr.

Arguably the top receiver in the country, Moore is back in his quest to help lead the Panthers to a third consecutive state title. Last season, he caught 71 passes for 1,523 yards and 18 TDs. Formerly an LSU commit, Moore instead has switched commitments to Oregon.

• First game: Sept. 6 vs. South Oak Cliff, 7:30 p.m. Central time

>> Read the rest of the top wide receivers here

TOP 25 OFFENSIVE LINEMEN

Sneak peak: Michael Fasusi, Lewisville, sr.

The 5-star offensive lineman committed to Oklahoma over Texas and Texas A&M in August on the six-year anniversary of moving to the U.S. from Nigeria. He's rated the nation's No. 2 tackle.

• First game: Friday vs. Mansfield Summit, 7 p.m. Central time

>> Read the rest of the top offensive linemen here

TOP 25 TIGHT ENDS

Sneak peak: Nick Townsend, Houston Dekaney, sr.

Meet Houston's top tight end. In 10 games, the 6-foot-3, 210-pound 4-star Texas commit caught 18 passes for 431 yards and seven TDs. He committed to the Longhorns in late June over Alabama and Texas A&M. Also a standout defensive end, Townsend had 52 solo tackles, eight sacks and three fumble recoveries as a junior.

• First game: Friday vs. Port Arthur Memorial, 7 p.m.

>> Read the rest of the top tight ends here

TOP 30 DEFENSIVE LINEMEN

Sneak peak: Keylan Abrams, DeSoto, sr.

The 6-foot-1, 205-pound Abrams may be considered the heart and soul of the Eagles’ defense. The phenomenal edge rusher, a TCU commit, improved on his sophomore season, when he had 74 tackles, 15.5 tackles for loss and 10.5 sacks. As a junior, Abrams registered 90 tackles, 20 tackles for loss and 18 sacks as DeSoto made it back-to-back 6A Division II champs.

• First game: Saturday vs. Creekside (Georgia)

>> Read the rest of the top defensive linemen here

TOP 30 CORNERBACKS

Sneak peak: Dorian Brew, Conroe, sr.

One of the nation's top corners, the 6-foot, 200-pound Brew moved to Texas ahead of last fall after two seasons with Northmont (Ohio). In June, the 4-star committed to Oregon over Ohio State, Texas and USC and collected more than 25 offers. The son of elite sprinters (father Derrick Brew won Olympic gold in the 4x400 in 2004) runs a sub-11-second 100 as a standout sprinter at Conroe.

• First game: Friday vs. Alief Elsik, 7 p.m. Central time

>> Read the rest of the top cornerbacks here

TOP 25 SAFETIES

Sneak peak: Jonah Williams, Galveston Ball, sr.

There are few-to-no athletes across the country comparable to Williams. He turned in a 5A District 9 Defensive MVP season as a junior (58 tackles, four tackles for loss, four interceptions and four special teams touchdowns). The hulking defensive backfield presence who is interchangeably dominant as a linebacker is the nation's No. 7 overall prospect, per247 Sports. He committed to Texas last week.

• First game: Thursday vs. Manvel, 7 p.m. Central time

>> Read the rest of the top safeties here

TOP 45 LINEBACKERS

Sneak peak: Charles Ross, North Shore, sr.

The 6-foot-2, 205-pound 4-star LSU commit was a fixture in nationally ranked and two-consecutive-time-running 6A Division I state runner-up, turning in 71 tackles, six sacks and two picks. Also a sub-11 100-meter dash runner.

• First game: Friday vs. South Oak Cliff

>> Read the rest of the top linebackers here

TOP 25 KICKERS/PUNTERS

Sneak peak: Brayden Pate, Gilmer, sr.

Pate may very well be the best placekicker in East Texas. He converted all 12 of his field goal attempts, with a long of 36 yards, and was 95-of-103 on PAT attempts as the Buckeyes claimed the 4A DII championship. In Gilmer’s regional final win against previously undefeated Carthage, Pate made all four of his field-goal attempts and all five of his PAT tries.

• First game: FJ

>> Read the rest of the top kickers/punters here

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2024 Texas high school football preview

Stay with SBLive's preseason coverage in the lead up to the 2024 Texas high school football season and the start of games on Thursday.

• Who are the 25 best teams in Texas, regardless of classification or association? Here are the SBLive Preseason Texas Power 25 rankings, as well as the 20 winningest active coaches.

• Who are the 100 most important high school football players in Texas? We scoured the state and counted down from 100 to 1: Part 1 (100-51) |Part 2 (50-1)

• Who are the most underrated teams in the Lone Star State entering the season? We're taking a look by region at the programs poised to out-perform expectations, starting with North Texas, Southeast Texas and Central Texas.

• We examined offseason player movement and the 12 transfers that will have the biggest impact in the fall.

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SBLIVE SPORTS LAUNCHES HIGH SCHOOL ON SI

High School On SI will serve as the premier destination for high school sports fans, delivering unparalleled coverage of high school athletics nationwide through in-depth stories, recruiting coverage, rankings, highlights and much more. The launch of a dedicated high school experience expands Sports Illustrated’s reach to even more local communities as fans can now truly follow athletes from “preps to the pros” on a single platform, bringing them closer to the action than ever before. For more information, visitsi.com/high-school.

-- Andy Buhler | andy@scorebooklive.com | @sblivetx