The San Angelo Standard-Times will preview local high school football teams throughout August ahead of the 2025 season.
Junction Eagles
District: 14-2A DII
2025 record: 12-2, 5-0
Head coach: Scott Freeman
Most recent district championship: 2024
State titles: N/A
What to know
The Eagles had arguably their best season in program history, snapping a 21-year district championship drought and advancing to the fourth round of the postseason. Despite some key losses to graduation, Freeman said he is excited about the new young players set to take the field for Junction in 2025.
Junction returns six starters on offense and seven on defense, including dual-threat quarterback Chasen Doyal, who finished with 1,606 yards and 25 touchdowns passing, adding 353 yards and four touchdowns rushing. Freeman said he expects Doyal to have a larger role on this year’s offense, aided by new skill position players like running back Aydin O’Brien and wide receiver Hunter Dale.
Along with new starters, the Eagles plan to have more players play on both sides of the ball, starting with defensive back Grant Simon, who will also play wide receiver this season.
Freeman said the Eagles learned a lot from last year’s postseason run and loss to Shiner in the regional final. With more than half their starters returning from last season, there are plenty of reasons to believe Junction has what it takes to make another deep playoff run.
Coach Scott Freeman on the 2025 season
“We have our goals,” Freeman said. “You know, the first one is to win our first game. So right now, our entire focus is on Goldthwaite. The second goal is to win the district opener. We’ve got to take care of Center Point and start off on a good note. Then we want to play on Thanksgiving and play in December – that’s three and four. So really, those four goals are what we preach and harp on all year long – they’re posted all over the locker room, so there’s no question about what our goals are. So, right now, it’s about winning game one. And I feel like, if you can take care of those four goals, that you had a really special season.”
2025 schedule
Week 1 – Goldthwaite at Junction, 7:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 29
Week 2 – Junction at San Saba, 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 5
Week 3 – Early at Junction, 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 12
Week 4 – Junction at Mason, 7:30 p.m., Friday, Sept. 19
Week 5 – OPEN
Week 6 – Falls City at Junction, 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 3
Week 7 – Center Point at Junction, 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 10
Week 8 – Junction at Brackett, 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 17
Week 9 – D’Hanis at Junction, 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 24
Week 10 – Junction at La Pryor, 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 31
Week 11 – Sabinal at Junction, 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 7
Paul Witwer covers high school sports and Angelo State University sports for The San Angelo Standard-Times. Reach him at sports@gosanangelo.com. Follow him on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, @Paul_Witwer.
This article originally appeared on San Angelo Standard-Times: Will Junction high school football build on its historic playoff run this season?
Reporting by Paul Witwer, San Angelo Standard-Times / San Angelo Standard-Times
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
