Anderson 5 things

· Series history

Lake Travis leads its series with Anderson 5-2-1. The Cavaliers have won four in a row by an average score of 51-13, including 62-0 in 2013. Anderson had its success against the Cavaliers in 2002-03, winning 48-7 and 38-37.

· The long road back

Though the past few seasons have been tough on the Trojans, Anderson is no stranger to recent success. Anderson won a share of a district title in 2010, when it won 10 games and reached the Area playoffs. That year’s bi-district win is the school’s only playoff win. Since that season, however, Anderson’s won just nine games, and five of those wins came in 2011. Former Westlake offensive coordinator Jeff Rhoads is midway through his first season in Northwest Hills trying to return Anderson to its winning ways.

· Everybody loves a taco

Anderson’s big rivalry game – the Taco Shack Bowl – against McCallum has served as the Central Texas season-opener for the past few years. Anderson won this year’s title 33-23 by rallying from a 14-0 halftime deficit thanks to four second-half touchdown passes from Kirby Hill.

· Forming an identity

Under Rhoads’ tutelage, the Trojans have opened things up offensively, trying to spread the field and attack with a West Coast-style passing attack. In six games, including wins over McCallum and Akins, Hill has completed passes to 11 different receivers. Six different Trojans have caught touchdown passes.

· Alumni news

While Anderson may have struggled to find consistent success on the gridiron, two of its graduates did not. Among its distinguished alumni are NFL Hall of Fame member Dick “Night Train” Lane, who starred with the Los Angeles Rams, Chicago Cardinals and Detroit Lions, and Thomas Henderson, better known as “Hollywood,” who enjoyed a Pro Bowl career with the Dallas Cowboys.