After a playoff spot clinch, what's next for the Rockwall Yellowjackets?

With the 2026 UIL football regular season winding down, Rockwall High School has already accomplished one of its biggest goals.

The Yellowjackets have already clinched a playoff spot after missing the postseason entirely a year ago, and their Friday night success has been built through countless reps when nobody's watching.

"We're just teaching that mentality to finish," Rockwall linebacker Christian Lawyer said. "Just be physical and have that finishing mentality. The physicality during practice helps a lot."

"We just out here and practicing wholeheartedly as a team," Rockwall wide receiver Brayden Puffer said. "Everyone is holding each other to a high standard. We're striving for success. When you come together as a team like that, you're capable of great things."

Head coach Trey Brooks is entering his 7th season at the helm.

Since taking over in 2020, he's guided the Yellowjackets to three district titles.

With each passing year, he's found even more joy in the journey.

"In some ways I think it's flown by, and in some ways I think back to 2020, and it seems like forever ago," Brooks said. "These guys are special. Just their attitude and what they bring every day. It's really awesome. We could see it early on in the offseason. A lot of times you get to this point in the year, and it's a bit of a grind because you've been going for so long. For this team, it's fun to be out here in practice every day."

So what is Rockwall's secret to success? Well, it's actually not much of a secret. In fact, it's written on all their jerseys. And the players say it's their job to live by it every day.

"We go by the motto, JFND: Jacket Fight Never Dies," Puffer said. Kind of stick that in our heart. Coming out here busting our tails every day, working out here as hard as we can."

The Yellowjackets close out the regular season with a showdown against their crosstown rivals, the Rockwall-Heath Hawks.

They're treating it like another game, but having a Friday where the whole town shows up to cheer on their schools is what high school football is all about.

"I'm really excited, obviously," Lawyer said. "Being raised in Rockwall, it's a fun game. I know a lot of those guys too. Just playing at a young age, I always looked up to those guys. I was like, 'Man, I want to be like that.'"

"We want them to enjoy it," Brooks said. "It's such a cool night just for this entire community. Everybody is there and it's a packed house. We want them to enjoy that, but for me it's about them separating that from the actual game. The game is important because it's a district game."