ARE TIMES CHANGING? WHAT WILL SCHOOLS DO TO KEEP UP WITH SOUTH LUBBOCK?

As I’ve been covering thirteen years, there has always been growth and high interest in the heart of Lubbock, as far as sports go. Coronado and Monterey have had some great runs in football including 2017, 2018 and 2019; where Coronado was one win away from hosting A 5A DI State Semifinal and were up 28-7 on Red Oak in that Quarterfinal game.

Estacado is always great and never really miss the playoffs in football and is the premier team in Lubbock for basketball. But there has been a seismic shift in the 806 the last few years as new schools like Memorial and Lubbock-Cooper Liberty have opened and are the new hot spots for sports.

You really can’t blame the parents as in life we all know… Everyone wants the new thing and those schools and facilities are on par with the big time schools around Texas. Currently there are kids that are trying to play this year at those new schools that are pending hearings to be eligible for the 2026 season, and those teams that lost those kids will take a hit!

There’s a preview of where Lubbock’s population and kids are trying to go when we see Wolfforth Frenship vs Lubbock-Cooper and Memorial vs Lubbock-Liberty on Friday, August 28th. Both games will be on Woodrow Road: AKA 1585 and hopefully the construction will be done, if not it’s going to be crazy!

What will Lubbock ISD and other districts do to keep up; facility and academic-wise to not lose kids to these new schools that are more appealing to the eye of parents and athletes that want to be practicing and playing with the best resources to support their dreams?