Judson coach takes reins
Cypress Ranch named Converse Judson's Sean McAuliffe as its new head football coach Thursday.
McAuliffe was the head coach at the San Antonio-area school for the last five seasons, leading the Rockets to a 54-13 record.
McAuliffe, a 1993 Judson graduate, twice led the Rockets to the state semifinals, including a a loss to Cypress Ranch, his new school, in the 2014 state semifinals. He previously served as the defensive coordinator at Kerrville Tivy and also coached at Lake Travis, San Antonio Holmes and Jersey Village, which, like Cypress Ranch, is a Cy-Fair ISD school.
“I’ve always thought real highly of the district,” McAuliffe said. “For being so big, it’s kind of a well-oiled machine, and they do a great job of developing young kids and people in general. It was opportunity I couldn’t pass up.”
McAuliffe replaces Gene Johnson, who left Cypress Ranch to take over the program at Waller. Johnson had been the Mustangs’ coach since the school opened in 2008, leading them to four double-digit winning seasons and three district titles. His 2014 team advanced to the Class 6A Division I state title game. Johnson led the Mustangs to 10-0 regular season last year before losing to Westfield in overtime in the second round of the playoffs.
In 2015, McAuliffe's Judson team lost to eventual state champion North Shore in the state semifinals. The Rockets went 12-1 last season before losing to Lake Travis 38-21 in the Class 6A Division I state quarterfinals.
Judson’s deep tradition of winning makes for a perfect fit for McAuliffe at Cypress Ranch.
“I was fortunate enough to work at a school in Judson where the expectations were extremely high,” McAuliffe said. “I’ve got quite a bit of experience dealing with that. They (the Mustangs) do have pieces in place. The foundation is laid. All I’m trying to do is build on that thing and make it even better than what it already is.”