The District 26-4A playoff puzzle will be solved after Lanier and Crockett play Thursday night.

The Vikings and Cougars are scheduled to kick off at 7 at Burger Stadium, and the winner will join McCallum, LBJ and Travis in the football postseason.

Crockett beat Lanier 55-7 last year and has won four of the past five meetings between the two schools.

The Cougars (3-6) have won two straight games and are led by running back Mark Davis, who has rushed for 558 yards and six touchdowns this season. Ryan Vaughan is averaging 18.6 yards a reception and has three touchdown catches.

Lanier (1-7) has not played since beating winless Reagan 12-7 on Oct. 16. Vikings quarterback Marquis Walker has run for 10 touchdowns and thrown for two scores this season.

The Crockett-Lanier result also will impact the playoff plans of Lake Travis, the two-time defending state champion.

If Crockett wins, the Cougars will play Lake Travis in the first round of the Class 4A, Division I playoffs. If Lanier wins, LBJ will open against the Cavaliers, who have won 39 straight games.

Lake Travis beat LBJ 55-14 in the bidistrict round of the 2008 playoffs.