Crandall opens the 2026 season with something it lacked a year ago: proven production at every major offensive skill position and a legitimate case to contend for a district championship.
The move from Class 5A Division II to Class 5A Division I brings a new district and unfamiliar opponents, but it also arrives with running back Darrik Ward, receiver Jeremiah Douglas, and quarterback Isaac Briones already established as one of the area’s most dangerous offensive combinations.
The Pirates open Aug. 28 at Class 6A Denton Braswell, but the season’s real question won’t be answered until October and November, when the schedule turns toward the teams competing for the same district title.
A Foundation Worth Building On
Crandall finished 7–4 overall and 4–3 in district play last season, good for fourth place and a playoff berth.
The Pirates opened 6–0, defeating Mount Pleasant, Hallsville, Irving, Mesquite Poteet, Corsicana and Kaufman before the schedule stiffened considerably.
Crandall dropped consecutive games to Midlothian Heritage, Ennis and eventual district champion Terrell, closed the regular season with a win at Greenville, and was eliminated by South Oak Cliff in the bi-district round.
The record undersold how productive the offense had become. According to 2025 statistics compiled from the Dallas Morning News, Crandall produced 2,474 rushing yards and 1,717 passing yards — 4,191 yards from scrimmage combined, with 35 rushing touchdowns and 15 through the air. Most of that production returns.
Ward Anchors a Deep Backfield
Darrik Ward was only a sophomore when he became Crandall’s most productive runner, carrying 200 times for 1,246 yards, 18 touchdowns, and a 6.23-yard average. He enters his junior season already responsible for more than half of the team’s rushing touchdowns from a year ago.
Ward won’t have to do it alone. Christian Ingram returns after rushing for 351 yards and three touchdowns on 55 carries, and Micah Wright added 185 yards and four scores in a reserve role.
The Pirates do lose Luke Vanlandingham, who rushed for 551 yards and six touchdowns, but the depth behind Ward gives Crandall a running game built to absorb that loss.
Douglas Forces Difficult Choices
Jeremiah Douglas is the player who changes what defenses can do against Crandall. The Vanderbilt commit caught 63 passes for 1,029 yards and 12 touchdowns last season, a 16.33-yard average per catch. The talented wideout accounted for roughly 60 percent of the team’s passing production.
That combination creates a genuine dilemma for opposing coordinators. Load the box to slow Ward, and Douglas can beat single coverage downfield. Roll extra help toward Douglas, and Crandall can lean on a back who already topped 1,200 yards as a sophomore.
Briones Brings Experience, Not Uncertainty
Crandall avoids one of the more common growing pains of a new starting quarterback because Isaac Briones already has significant varsity experience.
The senior signal-caller completed 69 of 101 passes for 789 yards, seven touchdowns and only two interceptions, a 68.3 percent completion rate that edged out Vanlandingham’s 67.7 percent mark in the same offense.
Briones also carried 11 times for 82 yards and two touchdowns, giving Crandall a senior who has already worked extensively with the playmakers he’ll lead this fall.
The Defense Must Find Its Footing
The offense is the clear strength. The defense is where Crandall has more to prove.
The Pirates lost several experienced defenders from last year’s group, though Davyn Davis and Jayden McCleary return in the secondary along with other contributors across the roster.
That inexperience showed during Crandall’s difficult late-season stretch, when the Pirates’ final four games came against some of the area’s most explosive offenses.
Crandall doesn’t need a dominant defense to compete for a district title. It needs one that can force a few stops, win the turnover battle, and keep games from turning into shootouts.
A New District, No Clear Favorite
Crandall’s jump to Class 5A Division I places the Pirates in District 7–5A Division I alongside West Mesquite, Tyler, Mesquite, North Mesquite, W.T. White, Bryan Adams and Sunset.
Two respected preseason projections disagree on who wins it, which says plenty about how competitive the race looks.
Dave Campbell’s Texas Football projects West Mesquite first, Crandall second, and Tyler third.
The Dallas Morning News has a different order — Tyler first, West Mesquite second, Crandall third.
Both projections agree on one point: Crandall belongs comfortably inside the four-team playoff field, with a real chance to finish atop the district.
Tyler is the league’s biggest wild card. The Lions went just 4–7 last season but return four-star running back CaDarius McMiller, an Oregon commit who rushed for approximately 940 yards and 17 touchdowns as a junior.
The Lions also have four-star receiver Trey Haralson, an SMU commit.
Tyler must replace quarterback Caden Granberry, who threw for 2,525 yards and 28 touchdowns, but the returning skill talent is enough to make Crandall’s Oct. 16 trip to Tyler one of the district’s most consequential games.
West Mesquite brings the strongest résumé. The Wranglers went 11–2 in 2025 and rank No. 19 in the Dallas Morning News’ preseason Class 5A area rankings.
Crandall’s trip to West Mesquite on Oct. 30 arrives late enough in the season that both teams should know exactly what’s at stake, with district-championship implications squarely in play.
Three Non-District Tests to Open the Season
Crandall won’t ease into 2026. The Pirates open at Denton Braswell, a Class 6A program that finished 2–8 last season but hired turnaround coach Justen Evans and returns a large share of its roster.
Six days later, Crandall travels to face Rowlett, which went 6–5 and reached the playoffs behind quarterback Sam Loera, who threw for more than 2,400 yards.
Then comes Terrell, the toughest non-district test on the schedule. The Tigers went 12–1 and scored 696 points last season, reaching the regional semifinals before losing to eventual finalist South Oak Cliff.
Terrell ranks No. 7 in Dave Campbell’s preseason Class 5A Division II poll and No. 13 in the Dallas Morning News’ area Class 5A rankings, largely on the strength of returning running back Julian Ashley, who rushed for 1,448 yards and 21 touchdowns.
The Sept. 11 rematch at Pirate Stadium gives Crandall an early chance to answer for last season’s lopsided result and sets up one of the schedule’s most compelling individual matchups: Ashley against Ward, two backs who were dominant as sophomores.
2026 Crandall Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Site |
|---|---|---|
| Aug. 28 | Denton Braswell | Away |
| Sept. 3 | Rowlett | Away |
| Sept. 11 | Terrell | Home |
| Sept. 17 | Sunset | Away |
| Sept. 25 | Bryan Adams | Home |
| Oct. 2 | Bye | — |
| Oct. 9 | North Mesquite | Home |
| Oct. 16 | Tyler | Away |
| Oct. 23 | Mesquite | Home |
| Oct. 30 | West Mesquite | Away |
| Nov. 5 | W.T. White | Home |
The Outlook
Crandall has enough returning production to expect another playoff run. The more interesting question is how far this group can go.
Briones needs to build on his 2025 experience, the receiving corps needs to develop options beyond Douglas so defenses can’t simply take him away, and the defense needs to hold up against the district’s better offenses.
West Mesquite brings the résumé, and Tyler brings elite individual talent, but Crandall may have the district’s most complete combination: a proven quarterback, a rising star at running back, and a receiver capable of taking over a game on his own.
The pieces are in place. What remains is turning one of the area’s most promising offensive rosters into a championship season.
