LASA principal cites safety concerns, lack of program numbers for dropping UIL football
LASA is dropping its UIL football schedule for two years for safety reasons, principal Stacia Crescenzi said Monday.
Instead, the Liberal Arts and Science Academy will play a non-honors schedule against other teams in the Austin area — some games are against charter schools, according to former Raptors coach Derrick Lewis.
Crescenzi said "several factors" led to last Friday's decision to drop UIL football for the next two years, but it basically became a case of numbers. After graduating a large senior class in 2023, the majority of the school's remaining players are freshman and sophomores and most of them would have had to play both offense and defense, she said.
"Because the culture of most LASA athletics is that we welcome everyone regardless of experience, it is common for many new members of our team to have never played organized football prior to high school," Crescenzi said. "We don’t mind this. In fact, we like this welcoming atmosphere. However, it does raise safety concerns to a higher level when we are scheduled to play certain teams outside of AISD."
After the fall football schedule has been completed, Crescenzi plans to meet with parents of the remaining football players to discuss details about the future.
"I feel my job as principal, when it comes to athletics, is really two-fold: keep students safe and try to help give them the most enjoyable experience possible," she said. "For LASA in football, this meant requesting that we move to non-honors status."
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As for Lewis, he is optimistic that LASA will someday field a competitive team.
"If you understand what goes on in the walls of LASA, you would see this is an amazing school," Lewis said. "It's having some growing pains any program would have as a new school."
On a related matter, the athletic department's strength and conditioning coach, Trey Soto, died last month after a long battle with leukemia. LASA is still searching to fill that position, Crescenzi said.
"That took the air out of the building," said Lewis, adding that the school plans to rename the weight room in his honor. Soto was a regular competitor at Strongman events, earning invitations to the national finals three straight years.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: LASA principal cites safety, program number concerns for football cut
