Freshman Friday: 2026 West Texas Prospects To Watch In The Fall

<p>West Texas features some of the top young high school football talent in the Lone Star State. It's Freshman Friday, so here are more of the Top 10 2026 prospects in West Texas going into the 2023 season:</p>   <p><strong>Boyd Cox, Coahoma</strong>: Cox was named District 4-3A Offensive Newcomer of the Year by the district's coaches after throwing for 2,044 yards and 19 TD is his first year as the starting QB. Cox and 2025 RB Jaidyn Vineyard will be a formidable offensive backfield duo for the Bulldogs in 2023. Three of Coahoma's top four receivers return as well. The Bulldogs made the playoffs in 2022. They could make a deep run in 2023.</p>   <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='953376' first='Caton' last='Cramer'], Seminole</strong>: Cramer emerged as a reliable contributor for the Indians last season, rushing 24 times for 216 yards and catching 18 passes for 339 yards. Cramer possesses outstanding size at 6-foot-3, 190 pounds. He'll be a major college prospect in short order.        </p>   <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='402595' first='Caden' last='Ellis'], Midland Legacy</strong>: Like most freshman at a program like Midland Legacy, they rarely see the field for the varsity in the fall. But make no mistake, Ellis will very likely be a major contributor as a sophomore this coming season. He possesses blazing speed, running the 100 in a personal best 10.9 seconds and the 200 in 22.38 seconds earlier this week. Colleges are already interested. Ellis has Junior Day or camp invitations from Texas State and Eastern New Mexico.</p>   <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='212439' first='Ryan' last='Estrada'], El Paso El Dorado</strong>: Estrada staked his claim to being the top young running back in West Texas by rushing for 1,326 yards on just 127 carries in 2022. He averaged an impressive 10.4 yards per carry, scoring 13 TD on the ground. Estrada can also catch the football out of the backfield as he finished with a team-high 23 receptions for 280 yards. Overall, he finished his freshman campaign with 1,788 total yards. Baylor offered in February, joining SMU and UTSA in the chase. They are the first of many offers Estrada will get over the next couple of years.</p>   <p><strong>Reid Macon, West Plains</strong>: In West Plains' first year of varsity football, Macon led the Wolves to an encouraging 7-5 record and a second-round appearance in the Class 4A, D playoffs. He threw for 2,273 yards and ran for 337 yards, accounting for 26 TD. He already possesses good height (6-0) and he'll continue to grow, get stronger and develop. West Plains is an up-and-coming program in the Panhandle and, along with their young QB, will only get better in the future.</p>   <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='402602' first='Cedric' last='Ross'], Lubbock Estacado</strong>: Ross is one of two rising sophomores who could be major contributors for Estacado in 2023. Ross showed flashes of his potential last season by rushing for 368 yards on 27 carries and 5 TD while catching 18 passes for 395 yards. The second is <strong>James Bozeman</strong>, who just won the 200 meters at the District 5-4A track meet with a sizzling time of 22.09 seconds. Ross has plenty of speed, too.</p>   <p><strong>KJ Russell, Lubbock Monterey</strong>: With a 6-foot-0, 233-pound frame, Russell proved he could excel at the varsity level as a defensive end in 2022 with 29 tackles in 8 games. Monterey was winless in 2022 but if Russell and other young players improve, the future could be bright for the Plainsmen.     </p>   <p><strong>Prather Schneemann, Iraan</strong>: Residing in the small Pecos County town of Iraan, Schneemann demonstrated promise and potential last year as a dual threat quarterback for the Class 2A Braves. He threw for 300 yards and 2 TD as the backup QB and ran for 135 yards, averaging nearly 6 yards per carry.  </p>   <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='402615' first='Daveon' last='Singleton'], El Paso Chapin</strong>: El Paso is blessed to have not one but two extremely talented and dynamic rising sophomore running backs. Singleton is an elite athlete and utilized in a variety of roles. SMU offered after Singleton's electric first season of high school football in 2022. Called upon to play quarterback in the middle of the season, Singleton threw for 731 yards and nine touchdowns, while rushing for 902 yards and 14 touchdowns. Singleton is just scratching the surface of his potential.</p>   <p><strong>Sione ‘Papa' Vaea, Lubbock-Cooper</strong>: Earning playing time as a freshman on the defensive line is rare, but the 6-foot-0, 235-pound Vaea succeeded in doing that in 2022 for a Class 5A program. His work ethic is impressive, based on his Twitter posts. He seems to have all the ingredients to become a dominant defensive lineman.</p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/ReidMacon5/status/1597271031827210240?s=20 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/cadenellis_1/status/1646674947719192578 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/RyanEstrada_1/status/1593677604686467073?s=20 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/vaea_sione/status/1594432783522447361 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/kimaje_russell/status/1643271193535950848?s=20 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/DaveonSingleton/status/1628512477737631746?s=20 </div></figure>

West Texas features some of the top young high school football talent in the Lone Star State. It's Freshman Friday, so here are more of the Top 10 2026 prospects in West Texas going into the 2023 season: