Western Hills prepares to run onto the field during a high school football game against Diamond Hill-Jarvis at Farrington Field in Fort Worth, Texas, Friday, October 3, 2025.
Airin Farmer
Southwest Media
In a rare scheduling move, four Fort Worth-area football teams will play high school football games Wednesday.
Kennedale will take on Fort Worth Diamond Hill-Jarvis at Farrington Field, while Fort Worth Dunbar will clash with Fort Worth Western Hills at Clark Stadium. Kickoff for both games is set for 7 p.m.
It’s normal for Fort Worth ISD teams to play Thursday and Saturday games in addition to Friday, given the district has three stadiums available (Farrington Field, Clark Stadium and Scarborough-Handley Field) and 14 teams to assign. Those teams mainly play at Fort Worth ISD venues, since White Settlement Brewer and Kennedale are the only non-Fort Worth ISD teams in their districts.
“We’ve got to be a little creative sometimes,” Fort Worth ISD Athletic Director JJ Calderon said. “We want to make sure that our coaches and our teams have the best layout for their games.”
The Battle of the Bonfire trophy is raised after Arlington Heights defeated Paschal at Farrington Field in Fort Worth, Texas, Friday Nov. 07, 2025. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram
Calderon said the Wednesday games were originally scheduled for Saturday. But considering all teams in District 5-4A Division I had a bye in Week 4, scheduling for Wednesday made more sense.
The teams that play Wednesday will have 11 days in between games, which is already a big break. If they played on Saturday, it would’ve stretched to 14 days.
“Coming off a bye, it’s better for those teams not to have as many days in between games,” Calderon said. “[The teams] opted to play Wednesday instead of Saturday so that there is not as big of a gap.”
Every ounce of momentum can be really important for Fort Worth ISD squads in 2026. Their districts should be fairly competitive and balanced, which gives teams opportunity, whether that’s competing for a district title, earning a postseason berth or making significant improvements.
“It’s early and there’s a lot to endure through a football season,” Calderon said. “But for the most part, I would [say it’s balanced].”
In the 2026 realignment, the University Interscholastic League placed Fort Worth ISD teams into two districts (4-5A Division I and 5-4A Division I). To help with logistics, eight Fort Worth ISD teams opted up in the 2026 UIL realignment: Wyatt, South Hills, North Side, Polytechnic, Diamond Hill-Jarvis, Benbrook, Western Hills and Dunbar.
Fort Worth ISD football storylines to watch
Carter-Riverside and DHJ are two Fort Worth ISD 4A squads that have made noticeable progress. Carter-Riverside, led by coach David Lara, is 3-0 heading into district play one season removed from ending a 30-season playoff drought.
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Fort Worth Carter-Riverside runs onto the field during a high school football game against Fort Worth Diamond Hill-Jarvis at Handley Field in Fort Worth, Texas, Friday, October 31, 2025. Carter-Riverside won 49-32. Liana Bell Southwest Media
Diamond Hill-Jarvis is 2-1 and snapped a 47-game losing streak last season. Backed by growing community investment into the program, the Eagles will aim to win their first district game since 2019 and work toward, eventually, snapping a playoff drought that started in 1954.
“Carter-Riverside and Diamond-Hill have really big game changers at those campuses,” Calderon said. “They have had really strong direction. … We like the progress that we’ve seen at those two campuses. … It’s good to see those programs are on the path to start thriving.”
DHJ and Carter-Riverside’s year-to-year continuity is something Fort Worth ISD schools share, as all teams started the 2026 season with the same group of head coaches.
“We were really pleased last year we were in a position to retain all our coaches,” Calderon said.
A couple of teams have a chance to be on a similar trajectory as Fort Worth Arlington Heights in 2025, when the Yellow Jackets made it past the area round for the first time since 1973.
In District 5-4A Division I, Eastern Hills is the front-runner and expected to compete for a district title among squads like Southwest, Kennedale and more. After finishing third in district behind 4A powers Decatur and Springtown last season, the Highlanders won a playoff game for the first time since 1999.
“It came down to the last week for playoff spots,” Calderon said. “And that competition has been healthy for that district. … We anticipate we’ll have something similar with that district, with playoff spots or district championships coming down to the very end.”
In District 4-5A Division I, undefeated squads Wyatt and Heights are expected to contend. The Chaparrals won a share of the district title with Heights in 2025, ending a 27-year drought. Other squads like South Hills could have strong seasons, too.
They’ll have a tough opponent in White Settlement Brewer, a physical squad with a strong run game. The Bears lost to Heights in the bi-district round in 2025 in a competitive game; they will be a formidable foe for any squad during district play.
”The addition of Brewer to the 5A district is good for our district,” Calderon said. “… There’s a lot of teams that are going to be battling it out in that 5A district for the district championship and playoff spots as well.”
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Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Charles Baggarly is a high school sports editor and reporter for the Fort Worth Star Telegram. He graduated from TCU in 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and served as TCU 360’s sports editor. Connect with Charles on Twitter or via email.