2026 Public Schools Top 100 Preview: No. 71 Aledo (TX)
Aledo brings a loaded recruiting core into its first Class 6A season after a 14-1 state-semifinal run.
Top 25 Public HSFB8/26/20267 min read
Aledo has won 12 state championships and 135 consecutive district games. None of those numbers removes the uncertainty from 2026. The Bearcats are entering Class 6A for the first time, replacing almost all of last season's established skill production and opening at defending 6A Division I runner-up North Crowley.
The reason I am not lowering the standard is that Aledo attacked the transition instead of pretending it did not exist. Senior quarterback Tre Williams arrives from Lewisville after a 29-touchdown season. Boise State commit Kingston Parks gives him a 6-foot-3 target, the offensive line returns experienced size, and Oregon State commit Tymon Meeks anchors a defense that looked ready for the classification jump during its final scrimmage.
Team Snapshot
Team: Aledo Bearcats
Location: Aledo, Texas
Classification: UIL Class 6A
Head Coach: Robby Jones
2025 Record: 14-1
2025 Finish: UIL Class 5A Division I state semifinalist
T25PS Ranking: No. 71
The Standard Moves Up, but the Roster Has to Catch Up
Aledo's 14-1 season ended in a 56-52 state semifinal against Frisco Lone Star, a game that showed both the program's ceiling and how thin the margin can become late in December. Now Robby Jones has to replace quarterback Lincoln Tubbs and most of the proven touches around him. Williams and Parks give the passing game immediate credibility, but the offense still has to establish who it trusts when a drive reaches third-and-medium.
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The best place to begin is up front. Grant Forman, Cooper Elms and Omari Din-Mbuh return with college offers, while Colby Thompson can help the edge as both a blocker and a receiving target. On defense, Meeks is the headliner, Cole Cox moves inside after a 106-tackle season and Jordan Hall is the lone returning regular in the secondary. That is enough experience to build around, not enough to skip the building.
The opener at North Crowley will tell us how quickly the new pieces can operate under pressure. It will not decide the whole season. The more important measure is whether Aledo can come through North Crowley, Midway and Trinity with a clearer offensive identity, then preserve the habits that built the district streak when bigger 6A bodies show up every week.
Players to Know
Tre Williams, QB
Williams transferred from Lewisville after completing 65 percent of his passes for 2,536 yards and 29 touchdowns as a junior. The 6-foot, 185-pound senior holds offers from Arizona State, Colorado State, Marshall, Texas State and UNLV. He is more comfortable winning from the pocket than Tubbs was, so Aledo's offense may look different without becoming less aggressive. His first job is to turn a talented new receiving group into a dependable one.
Tymon Meeks, DL
Meeks is a 6-foot, 250-pound senior committed to Oregon State. He was credited with 94 tackles, 27 tackles for loss and 10.5 sacks in 2025, production that makes him far more than a recruitable body in the middle. Colorado, Miami, UCLA, Duke, East Carolina, UTSA and UTEP were among his many other offers. Aledo needs him to collapse pockets and make life easier for a defense replacing experience behind him.
Kingston Parks, WR
Parks is a 6-foot-3, 195-pound senior committed to Boise State after previously pledging to Utah. He transferred from Arlington Oakridge after catching 24 passes for 380 yards and five touchdowns in 2025, and his offer list also includes Arizona and North Texas. His size gives Williams a true outside target and lets Aledo ask its smaller receivers to win in space rather than through contact.
Colby Thompson, TE
Thompson is a 6-foot-5, 220-pound senior who can add surface area to the run game and become a large target off play action. He caught six passes for 42 yards in six stat-entered games last season. Northern Arizona, Lamar, SEMO, Missouri Western, Northeastern State and several Division II programs have offered him. His blocking will set his weekly floor; his receiving can raise the offense's ceiling.
Jordan Hall, DB, Class of 2028
Hall is a 5-foot-11, 175-pound junior who appeared in all 15 games as a sophomore and is the only returning regular in Aledo's secondary. Texas, Auburn, Kentucky, Kansas State, Arizona, Oregon State, Lamar and UTEP have offered him. That recruitment reflects the upside, but his immediate responsibility is larger: he has to communicate, hold up against No. 1 receivers and help several new defensive backs settle in.
Cooper Elms, OL
Elms is a 6-foot-5 senior tackle with offers from Navy, UTEP, Lamar, McNeese, Northeastern State, Missouri Western and Midwestern State. His length matters against the edge speed Aledo will see in 6A, and his experience matters just as much with a transfer quarterback learning the offense. If the Bearcats can keep Williams comfortable, Elms will be one of the reasons.
Omari Din-Mbuh, OL/DL
Din-Mbuh is expected to be a rare two-way lineman at this level, helping at guard while taking on a larger role at defensive tackle. Army, Navy, New Mexico State, UIW, Lamar and Prairie View A&M have offered him. Managing that workload will be important, because his strength makes both lines better and Aledo cannot afford for either side to lose him late in games.
Caden Palmquest, TE, Class of 2028
Palmquest is a Class of 2028 tight end with offers from SMU, Arkansas, Baylor, UTSA, Tulane, UNLV, North Texas and Oregon State. His varsity role is still forming behind an experienced senior in Thompson, which gives Aledo the freedom to use him where he is ready instead of forcing the recruitment to dictate the depth chart.
Grant Forman, OL
Forman is a 6-foot-3 senior center and guard with an offer from Lamar. He is one of the line's returning communicators, which becomes especially important with Williams arriving from another program. Forman has to identify pressure, keep the interior clean and help Aledo avoid the negative plays that can make an unfamiliar offense feel even newer.
The Veterans Behind the Offer Holders
Cole Cox made 106 tackles from the outside in 2025 and is expected to move into the middle of the defense. Max Forman added 29 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss and two sacks while working at defensive end, and 220-pound senior Jeremiah Johnson is positioned to take the larger share of the backfield work. Those players may not lead the recruiting graphic, but they will determine whether Aledo has enough dependable snaps around its commits.
Schedule Breakdown
North Crowley is a severe first test for a team replacing this much skill production. Midway and Euless Trinity follow before the district schedule begins at Granbury. That opening month should tell us whether Williams has enough timing with Parks, Thompson and the other receivers and whether Hall's rebuilt secondary can survive explosive offenses.
Arlington Bowie visits after the open date and looks like the most immediate threat inside District 3-6A. Aledo's 135-game district winning streak will now be defended in a new classification, but the closing run through Arlington, Weatherford, Sam Houston and Lamar gives the Bearcats a chance to improve rather than simply endure the move.
Complete 2026 Schedule
Aug. 28: at #16 North Crowley
Sept. 4: Midway
Sept. 11: at Trinity
Sept. 18: at Granbury
Sept. 25: Martin
Oct. 9: Bowie
Oct. 16: at Arlington
Oct. 23: Weatherford
Oct. 30: at Sam Houston
Nov. 6: Lamar
Biggest Question
Can Aledo replace its skill production quickly enough for its first 6A schedule?
The championship habits are real, but 6A will test Aledo's depth before December. Williams and Parks must make the transfer additions feel native to the offense, the veteran line has to control stronger fronts, and Hall must lead a secondary with almost no returning starting experience around him. The program knows how to respond to adversity. This roster still has to prove it can create the same answers.
Bottom Line
I am not treating Aledo like a newcomer simply because the classification changed. The Bearcats have a proven senior quarterback, recruited line play and a defensive front that belongs in 6A immediately. The jump raises the weekly degree of difficulty and exposes the thin spots faster, but it does not change the expectation: Aledo should contend for the district and be a dangerous first-year playoff team in the state's largest classification.
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