By Max Thompson

SAN MARCOS – Lake Travis head coach Chad Morris looked relieved following the Cavaliers’ 38-21 win over Cibolo Steele (10-2) Friday night at Bobcat Stadium, and for the first half of the game, he had plenty of reason to be concerned.

The Knights ran all over the Cavaliers (12-0) in the first half, racking up 201 yards on 32 carries, and dominated the line of scrimmage, led by senior running back Cory Anderson and his punishing running style. Anderson finished the first half alone with 105 yards on 16 carries, before finishing the game with 172 yards on 27 carries.

Steele scored on its opening drive on a four-year run by Anderson, and went up 7-0, sending the Knight fans into chaos.

The Cavaliers answered with a three-yard run by quarterback Garrett Gilbert on their next drive, tying the game at seven. But the Knights continued to carve up the Cavaliers on the ground, scoring again on 13-yard run by Anderson.

Meanwhile, Lake Travis struggled offensively, as Gilbert threw his third interception of the season, and the Knights answered with an 11-play, 69-yard drive that was capped by a one-yard run by Dana Givner to go up 21-7 with 1:33 left in the half.

The Cavaliers gained some momentum with a quick eight-play drive that ended in an eight-yard touchdown pass from Gilbert to Cade McCrary. The drive covered 78 yards in just over a minute, and pulled the Cavaliers within a touchdown at 21-14.

“I think that touchdown gave us a chance knowing we had the ball to start the second half,” Morris said. “We knew we had to get back in it with some type of points, and that’s what we did.”

The Cavaliers drove to the Steele 16-yard line to open the second half before being stopped, but Kramer Fyfe’s 33-yard field goal pulled them within four at 21-17.

Steele followed with a three-and-out for the first time in the game, and Lake Travis took the lead for good – steered as usual by Gilbert ¬– seven plays later on a 19-yard touchdown pass from Gilbert to McCrary with 3:20 left in the third quarter, 24-21.

Steele had a chance to tie it with a field goal at the Lake Travis three-yard line, but the kick sailed wide, and the Cavaliers marched down the field two more times to score a total of 31 unanswered points since being down 21-7.

“My hat’s off to Steele, we knew they were going to be tough coming in. What a great football team,” Morris said. “We responded and did a great job. I can’t say enough about Garrett [Gilbert] and what he’s done for us, that was an amazing performance tonight.”

Lake Travis went up 31-21 thanks to a three-yard run by Gilbert, and the defense made another big stop, as Steele quarterback Jacob Trevino threw a fourth-and-eight pass ¬– from the Lake Travis 39-yard line ¬– wide of intended target Anthony Foster.

The Cavaliers piled on, scoring once more with 10 second left in the game on another three-yard keeper by Gilbert.

Gilbert finished the game with 23 completions on 27 attempts for 290 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran for three scores, having a hand in every Lake Travis touchdown.

Despite being railroaded early on by the Steele rushing attack, Morris said he wasn’t surprised but what the Cavaliers saw.

“We knew they’d be plenty good,” he said. “I wasn’t scared, but I didn’t want things to end like this. I knew there was a possibility with the way they were playing and the fact that we hadn’t stopped them. But I knew our kids were going to fight, and if we were going to go down fighting, we were going to give it our best shot. If that had happened, so be it.”

But that wasn’t what happened. The Cavaliers found a way to fight back after trailing by two touchdowns for the first time since last year’s Region IV final against Beeville Jones. In the process, they became the first Lake Travis team to ever go 12-0, and won the school’s second Area Championship, making this already the second most successful season in Cavalier football history.

Most importantly for Morris, he gets to practice with his players and coaching staff on Thanksgiving.

“Absolutely, I’m tickled to death with it,” Morris said. “12-0 for the first time in school history, and I get to practice on Thanksgiving. I can’t ask for anything better right now.”

McCrary led all receivers with six catches for 98 yards and two touchdowns, and Gilbert led all rushers with 72 yards on 17 carries.

Cibolo Steele 7-14-0-0–21
Lake Travis 7-7-10-14–38

FIRST QUARTER
Steele: Cory Anderson 4 run (Matt Nelson kick)
Lake Travis: Garrett Gilbert 3 run (Kramer Fyfe kick)
SECOND QUARTER
Steele: Anderson 13 run (kick)
Steele: Dana Givner 1 run (kick)
Lake Travis: Cade McCrary 8 pass from Gilbert (kick)
THIRD QUARTER
Lake Travis: Fyfe 33 FG
Lake Travis: McCrary 19 pass from Gilbert (kick)
FOURTH QUARTER
Lake Travis: Gilbert 3 run (kick)
Lake Travis: Gilbert 3 run (kick)

INDIVIDUAL STATS
Passing…Lake Travis: Garrett Gilbert 23-24-1-290; Steele: Jacob Trevino 5-11-1-63.
Rushing…Lake Travis: Gilbert 17-72, Andy Erickson 4-26, Colton Volpe 2-8, Chris Aydam 3-2; Steele: Cory Anderson 27-172, Dana Givner 10-75, Jordan Small 3-9, Trevino 5-7, Anthony Foster 2-7.
Receiving…Lake Travis: Cade McCrary 6-98, Austin Pollard 5-75, Conner Floyd 4-75, Erickson 5-36, Aydam 2-3, Volpe 1-3; Steele: Foster 2-27, Michael Robinson 1-17, Sheldon McClain 1-10, Cameron Chandler 1-9.

TEAM STATS
Total yards: Lake Travis 398, Steele 333
Rushing: Lake Travis 26-108, Steele 47-270
Passing: Lake Travis 23-27-1-290, Steele 5-11-1-63
First Downs: Lake Travis 20, Steele 19
Penalties: Lake Travis 3-40, Steele 9-106
Punts(average): Lake Travis 0-0, Steele 1-26
Fumbles: Lake Travis 1-0, Steele 0-0