#bEASTTEXAS Fabulous 15: Jefferson, Marshall and Waskom ranked in preseason poll

Published 4:19 pm Wednesday, July 30, 2025

Carthage and Malakoff, which both ended the 2024 season playing for a state championship at AT&T Stadium, are the preseason No. 1 teams in the 2025 preseason edition of the #bEASTTexas Fabulous 15.

Carthage, which won its final 15 games of the 2025 season and won the Class 4A Division II championship with a 15-1 mark, received 12 first-place votes and 208 points to take the top spot in the Class 6A/5A/4A poll.

Malakoff started the 2025 season 15-0 before falling to Columbus in the Class 3A Division I title game, also finishing at 15-1. The Tigers received eight first-place votes and 188 points to grab the top spot in the 3A/2A/TAPPS poll.

Longview and Texas High each received one first-place vote in 6A/5A/4A. The Lobos received 187 points to check in at No. 2. Texas High and Kilgore tied for No. 3 with 175 points, and Lufkin (139 points) came in at No. 5.

Rounding out the 6A/5A/4A rankings were Pleasant Grove, Gilmer, Chapel Hill, Pine Tree, Marshall, Van, Athens, Sulphur Springs, Lindale, Tyler Legacy and Center.

In 3A/2A/TAPPS, 32 teams received at least one vote.

Palestine Westwood (11-1 in 2024, also falling to state champion Columbus in the playoffs), received three first-place votes and 158 points to check in at No. 2.

Jefferson (No. 3) and Honey Grove (No. 10) received the other two first-place votes.

Winnsboro and Grand Saline came in at No. 4 and 5, respectively. The rest of the rankings included Liberty-Eylau, New Diana, Beckville, Waskom, Lovelady, Garrison, DeKalb, Daingerfield and Troup.

Voters in the poll were Phil Hicks and Brandon Ogden of the Tyler Morning Telegraph, Jack Stallard of the Longview News-Journal, Ryan Silapan of the Panola Watchman, Lauren Rosenberg of the Marshall News Messenger, Nathan Hague and John Krueger of the Nacogdoches Daily Sentinel, Edwin Quarles of the Lufkin Daily News, Jay Neal of the Jacksonville Progress, Dan Mallea of CBS 19, Harlen the Sports Guy of the Friday Night Scoreboard Show, Bret Swinney and Jarrin Peeples of the Northeast Texas Sports Network/NETSN and Conrad Bahr of 99.9 KMOO FM.

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#bEASTTexas Fabulous 15

6A/5A/4A

Team Points 2024 Record 2024 Final Ranking

1. Carthage (12) 208 15-1 2

2. Longview (1) 187 12-3 3

T3. Texas High (1) 175 12-1 1

T3. Kilgore 175 13-3 5

5. Lufkin 139 10-2 5

6. Pleasant Grove 122 10-3 7

7. Gilmer 121 8-4 8

8. Chapel Hill 102 10-4 9

9. Pine Tree 94 10-2 4

10. Marshall 81 10-3 11

11. Van 60 10-4 10

12. Athens 58 8-3 12

13. Sulphur Springs 43 10-3 13

14. Lindale 33 6-6 NR

T15. Tyler Legacy 20 3-7 NR

T15. Center 20 8-3 14

Others receiving votes: Tyler 17; Henderson 9; Mount Pleasant 6; Canton 5; Whitehouse 4; Hallsville 1.

Dropped out: No. 15 Canton.

3A/2A/TAPPS

Team Points 2024 Record 2024 Final Ranking

1. Malakoff (8) 188 15-1 1

2. Westwood (3) 158 11-1 4

3. Jefferson (1) 157 12-1 3

4. Winnsboro 119 10-3 7

5. Grand Saline 105 11-1 5

6. Liberty-Eylau 103 11-3 10

7. New Diana 96 11-1 2

8. Beckville 86 10-2 6

9. Waskom 77 10-3 9

10. Honey Grove (1) 75 12-2 11

11. Lovelady 70 9-3 8

12. Garrison 68 9-3 13

13. DeKalb 52 11-2 14

14. Daingerfield 44 8-6 NR

15. Troup 35 8-4 NR

Others receiving votes: Mildred 34; Shelbyville 28; Atlanta 24; Joaquin 23; Grapeland 20; Brook Hill 17; Grace Community 16; Hooks 14; Overton 11; Mount Enterprise 6; Hawkins 5; Arp 3; Edgewood 2; All Saints 1; Big Sandy 1; Elysian Fields 1; West Rusk 1.

Dropped out: No. 12 Mildred; No. 15 Atlanta.