Rangers, Scots Are Rivals in New District 7-6A
Separated by just a few miles on the Dallas North Tollway, Jesuit and Highland Park are now neighbors in the new District 7-6A, too.
The idea became possible when the Scots learned they would be moving to Class 6A for the next two years. And in February, the UIL made it official with its biennial realignment announcement.
Jesuit and HP will be part of a nine-team district that includes schools from Irving ISD and Richardson ISD: Irving, Irving MacArthur, Irving Nimitz, Richardson, Richardson Berkner, Richardson Pearce, and Lake Highlands.
The district will cover only football, volleyball, and basketball, meaning it will be an eight-team league for volleyball and girls basketball, minus Jesuit. It will take effect for the 2022-23 and 2023-24 school years.
Although an alignment has not been finalized yet for baseball, track and field, tennis, and golf, the lineup should remain consistent. New district assignments for sports such as swimming, wrestling, and soccer will be unveiled later.
Of the nine football teams, only three posted winning records last season — Jesuit, HP, and Lake Highlands. The Rangers and Scots will meet for the first time on the football field on Sept. 30 at Highlander Stadium.
With eight district games, the schedule will only have room for two nondistrict contests for each school. District play will begin on the weekend of Sept. 9.
From Jesuit’s perspective, the district remains unchanged from the 7-6A alignment of the past two seasons, except for the addition of HP. During that stretch, the Rangers have gone 13-1 in league play, including an undefeated run to the district title in 2021.
In Dallas ISD, W.T. White will look to extend its two-year postseason streak in a challenging nine-team football grouping in District 5-5A Div. I. The Longhorns will be matched against Bryan Adams, Molina, Sunset, Carrollton Creekview, Carrollton R.L. Turner, Mansfield Timberview, Birdville, and Richland.
Meanwhile, Hillcrest is situated in a 10-team football scrum in District 6-5A Div. II with nine other Dallas ISD rivals — Thomas Jefferson, Adamson, Conrad, Kimball, Seagoville, Spruce, Woodrow Wilson, and defending state champion South Oak Cliff. That district will be split for scheduling purposes but consolidated for standings and playoff seeding.
For basketball and volleyball, WTW and Hillcrest will be situated together in District 11-5A alongside Thomas Jefferson, Adamson, Kimball, Molina, South Oak Cliff, Sunset, and Woodrow Wilson.
