Woo Doo Photo / Rodney Wooters
Football expectations don't fade in Southlake — they're renewed every fall. "Dave Campbell's Texas Football" is the latest to buy into the Dragons again, ranking Carroll No. 8 in its preseason Class 6A poll heading into the 2026 season.
Carroll joins a loaded top 10 that includes No. 1 Waxahachie, No. 2 Galena Park North Shore, No. 3 Sheldon C.E. King, No. 4 North Crowley, No. 5 Humble Summer Creek, No. 6 Duncanville, and No. 7 Allen. Denton Guyer and Dickinson round out the top 10 behind the Dragons.
The ranking comes as Carroll begins a new era under first-year head coach Lee Munn, who takes over a program that has remained one of Texas' premier powers. The Dragons have reached at least the state semifinals in each of the past two seasons and finished 2025 with a 14-1 record after falling to eventual state champion DeSoto.
If there were any questions about Carroll's preseason ranking, the Dragons will have every chance to answer them on the field. Munn's squad opens the year with one of the toughest non-district schedules in Texas, facing the aforementioned North Crowley (Sept. 4) and Allen (Sept. 11) before district play even begins.
Despite graduating standout quarterback Angelo Renda and several key playmakers, Carroll returns plenty of talent on both sides of the ball. Hudson Tomcheck takes over at quarterback, protected by one of the state's top offensive line units featuring Luke Wilson, Ty McCurry and Tristan Dare, while wide receivers Brody Knowles and Blake Gunter headline a talented group of returning skill players.
The preseason ranking reinforces Carroll's status as one of the favorites in Class 6A entering the fall, with a challenging schedule that opens Aug. 27 against Jenks (Oklahoma).
Dave Campbell's rankings have long been considered one of the state's most respected preseason projections and have served as the official Texas high school football rankings provider for the Associated Press since 2019.