Lake Travis opener on TV
Cavs’ Sept. 1 game at Judson to air on Fox Sports Southwest.
Note to high school football fans: If you can’t make it to Converse on Sept. 1 for the season opener between Lake Travis and Judson, you’ll have a second option for watching the showdown — a live television broadcast.
And that will be a historic first for Texas high school sports.
Last month, the University Interscholastic League’s legislative council broke from tradition to approve the live TV broadcast of one or two high school games on the opening Friday night of the season. On Monday, Fox Sports Southwest announced that it will air a doubleheader Sept. 1, with Idalou-Shallowater at 6 p.m. and Lake Travis-Judson at 8:30 p.m. at Rutledge Stadium.
Coached by Hank Carter, Lake Travis won the Class 6A, Division I state championship last fall, its sixth state title in the past 10 years and its first in the UIL’s highest classification. Carter said he didn’t hesitate to give permission for a telecast of the Cavaliers’ season opener, saying his players are accustomed to being on TV.
Carter said the Cavaliers had a successful run of spring practices as they retool after returning just six starters — three on offense, three on defense — from their 15-1 state championship squad.
“We have a lot of players who want to prove themselves,” Carter said.
Judson defeated Lake Travis 35-28 to open the 2016 season. The Rockets closed with a 9-3 record, losing to Westlake 24-21 in the area round of the Class 6A, Division I playoffs.
“We wanted to create a signature event that celebrates and captures the cultural significance of football in Texas,” Steve Simpson, senior vice president and general manager for Fox Sports Southwest, said in a statement. “Our broadcasts will have a limited commercial format, allowing us to tell stories that highlight communities, legends and traditions from the small-town schools to the large metropolitan area programs.”
More than 10 games across the Lone Star State — including Vandegrift at Odessa Permian and Westlake at Katy — will be part of live “look-ins” during the Friday night broadcast.