2026 Preseason Top 100 Season Preview: No. 61 Lake Travis (TX)
Jason Carter and a proven skill group lead a nine-game reset after last season’s state-semifinal run.
Top 25 Public HSFB8/31/20265 min read
T25PS
Lake Travis reached the Texas Class 6A Division I semifinals last season, but the 2026 Cavaliers are not a continuation of that 14-1 team. Eighteen starters graduated. Only two offensive starters and two defensive starters return. #61 is a bet on the players who remain and on a program that has repeatedly rebuilt without lowering its postseason expectations.
The Cavaliers also enter the season carrying the memory of senior lineman Odin Hensley, who passed away in August after a medical emergency at practice. Lake Travis will wear No. 75 helmet decals in his honor.
On the field, the most important question has already been answered. Junior Jason Carter won the quarterback job and will make his first start Sept. 4 at Weiss. He takes over with established targets around him, but the new lineup has only nine counting games to become playoff-ready after the Dripping Springs opener was canceled.
Team Snapshot
Location: Austin, Texas
Head Coach: Hank Carter
2025 Record: 14-1
2025 Finish: Texas Class 6A Division I state semifinalist
Returning Starters: 2 offense, 2 defense
T25PS Preseason Rank: No. 61
Jason Carter Takes Over
Carter is a first-year starter after Lake Travis named him QB1 before the season, and he will operate an offense that still has senior receiver Westin Smith as its most proven option. Smith caught 71 passes for 801 yards and eight touchdowns in 2025.
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Jackson Koeppel, Owen Aird, Landan Poston and Teddy Lofgren give Lake Travis more ways to distribute the ball. That supporting cast should keep the offense from becoming a weekly referendum on the new quarterback. Carter does not have to replace every departed player himself; he has to get the ball to the veterans who are back.
Four Starters, Several Proven Players
The returning-starter count is severe, but the returning production is not empty. Safety Luca Antoun made six interceptions last season and enters 2026 committed to Penn. Linebacker Jeremiah Strong recorded 68 tackles. Koeppel, a Rice commit, can contribute on both sides of the ball.
Those players give Lake Travis a clear group to build around while the new starters settle in. The challenge is depth. A long Class 6A season eventually asks every contender to win games when its first plan is not working, and this roster has fewer players who have already done that at the varsity level.
Players to Know
Jason Carter, QB, junior
Carter has been named the starter and will open the season on the road at Weiss. His first month also includes Cibolo Steele, Cornerstone Christian and the district opener against McNeil.
Westin Smith, WR, senior
Smith is the offense’s most established target after catching 71 passes for 801 yards and eight touchdowns. He gives Carter a proven answer from the first snap of the season.
Luca Antoun, S, senior
The Penn commit intercepted six passes in 2025. He is the most accomplished returner on a defense replacing nine starters.
Jeremiah Strong, LB, senior
Strong returns after a 68-tackle season and gives the Cavaliers experience in the middle of a largely new defense.
Jackson Koeppel, ATH, senior
The Rice commit is a two-way option whose experience becomes more valuable on a roster with only four returning starters.
Schedule Breakdown
The canceled Aug. 28 game at Dripping Springs leaves Lake Travis with nine regular-season games. The opener is now Sept. 4 at Weiss, followed by another road game at Cibolo Steele and a neutral-site meeting with Cornerstone Christian in San Marcos.
District play starts Sept. 24 against McNeil. The open date follows, then the season turns to Cedar Ridge, Stony Point, Westlake, Round Rock and Westwood. Westlake is the headline game, but the entire five-game finish will test how far the new lineup has come.
Complete 2026 Schedule
Sept. 4: at Weiss
Sept. 11: at Cibolo Steele
Sept. 17: Cornerstone Christian
Sept. 24: McNeil
Oct. 2: Open
Oct. 9: Cedar Ridge
Oct. 16: Stony Point
Oct. 23: Westlake
Oct. 30: at Round Rock
Nov. 6: Westwood
Biggest Question
Can four returning starters become a complete playoff team?
Lake Travis has enough proven players to remain one of the district’s best teams. The uncertainty is everywhere around them. The first three games should show whether the new starters can support Carter, Smith, Antoun, Strong and Koeppel without asking that group to carry every week.
Bottom Line
Lake Travis is moving forward with a named quarterback, proven playmakers and a clear understanding of how much work remains. This is not last year’s semifinal team, but it does not need to be finished in September.
If the new starters develop around Carter and the senior core, No. 61 may look conservative by the postseason.
This preview is presented as part of MISTER F00TBALL’s National High School Football Composite Rankings, partnered with and powered by Prep Gridiron Logistics, the only rankings to include every national poll and every team receiving a Top 25 vote.
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T25PS Prediction
Projected Regular-Season Record: 8-1
Projected Postseason Finish: Texas Class 6A Division I regional finalist
Lake Travis should improve considerably between September and November. Carter has a real receiving group, and the defense has three senior leaders with major varsity production. That is enough to project another strong season even with one of the smallest returning-starter totals in this series.
A 7-2 regular season accounts for Westlake, a demanding non-district slate and the normal cost of replacing 18 starters. The Cavaliers should still enter the bracket as a team capable of beating a higher seed and reaching the regional final.
Thanks for reading,
Alex | T25PS
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