By Mike Craven
Westlake High School was once the dominant football program in the Austin-area. The emergence of nearby Lake Travis towards the end of the last decade bumped the Chaparrals off the mountain top as the Cavaliers won title after title, but the tide could be turning back towards Westlake’s favor.
The two teams will battle it out for supremacy in District 16-4A. Westlake went 7-4 in 2014, the first season under former Southlake Carroll head coach Todd Dodge. The Chaparrals also gained momentum this offseason, winning the Texas State 7-on-7 Championship behind the strong arm of current Texas commit and quarterback Sam Ehlinger.
Lake Travis, under the direction of head coach Hank Carter, went 10-2 last season and was an Area Finalist in Division II. The Cavaliers don’t possess the same talent it did when it went on its run of state championships from 2007-2011, but it returns 15 starters from a team coming off a district championship in 2014.
Austin isn’t a hotbed of talent production like D-FW or Houston, but the area sees plenty of teams go deep into the playoffs. Leander ISD produces great teams each year in the form of Cedar Park, Rouse High School and the emerging Vandegrift Vipers. Pflugerville Hendrickson is a regular in the playoffs and Georgetown High School made a run to the state championship game a few years back.
But it is Westlake and Lake Travis that have experienced the most success over the past few decades. Those two schools carry a torch or sorts for the area. The rivalry lost some luster over the past few years with Westlake somewhat struggling and Lake Travis no longer being a favorite to win state titles.
That should change with Westlake now guided by a head coach with a championship pedigree. The Chaparrals are a team to watch in 2015 and 2016. The quarterback is obviously in place and there are plenty of weapons around him for the offense to be successful under the tutelage of Dodge. If the defense can rise to the occasion, Westlake will arrive back on the map, and that is a great thing for Austin-area football.
