Texas HS athletics operates at scale and intensity that most state landscapes don't match — UIL's breadth, the size of Texas HS football programs, and the operational complexity that comes with it. Lightning for Schools is built for Texas athletic directors who need flat-rate pricing that doesn't penalize them for having a full coaching staff, plus SB820-compliant student-data handling out of the box.
Built for UIL
Governing Body
University Interscholastic League (UIL)
Member-school eligibility rules, classification, and championship workflows shape what an athletic department needs from its software. Lightning for Schools is configured to support UIL-aligned workflows out of the box — not generic NFHS templates that don't map to your state's specifics. Reference:
www.uiltexas.org.
Compliant with Texas SB820 (Student Data Privacy)
Student Data Privacy
Texas SB820 (Student Data Privacy)
Texas SB820 (codified in Texas Education Code §32.151–32.158) requires education service contractors to limit collection of student data, prohibit sale, and maintain reasonable security — applicable to any platform handling student-athlete records in Texas public schools. Lightning's data-handling practices are built to meet these requirements; a vendor that can't speak to your state's privacy framework should not be on your shortlist.
What Texas athletic directors actually deal with
- UIL governs academic competitions, music, theater AND athletics — Texas AD workload spans broader than typical "athletics-only" state HSAAs. UIL District meetings address all UIL activities together, not separately.
- Texas HS football operates at semi-professional scale in many districts: 8-10 coach staffs, dedicated film and analytics personnel, $50M+ stadiums in suburban Dallas (Allen Eagle Stadium, McKinney ISD, Frisco). UIL Realignment runs every two years on the "Snake Draft" model — creates major operational rework every cycle.
- TAPPS (Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools) governs Texas private/parochial schools separately — UIL public school programs operate parallel to TAPPS programs (Houston Christian, Plano John Paul II, Dallas Bishop Lynch) but rarely cross paths competitively except in non-district scrimmages.
- Six-man football is sanctioned in UIL's smallest classifications (1A) — distinct rosters, scheduling, scoring, and rules from 11-man UIL football. ADs at 1A programs run a different sport operationally than 6A peers.
What Lightning for Schools includes
10 coach seats included
Flat $150/yr base includes 10 full coach seats. Need more for a big multi-sport department? Add extra seats anytime at 50% of the coach-tier price.
Roster + eligibility
Per-sport, per-season roster management with eligibility tracking, transfer documentation, and out-of-season practice limits.
Recruiting portal integration
Your student-athletes' Lightning profiles roll into a searchable college-coach portal — recruiting attention without leaving the AD platform.
DPA-compliant data handling
Aligned with Texas SB820 (Student Data Privacy) requirements. Documentation available for your district's procurement review.
Stat verification
Coach Verified and Tournament Verified stats flow into the recruiting layer automatically. Reduces manual roster-update workload for AD staff.
Multi-season scheduling
Fall / winter / spring sport scheduling in one tool — facility allocation, transportation requests, official assignments.
Built for athletic departments across Texas
We're looking for our first partner departments in the state. If you're an AD in one of these areas and want to talk through a pilot:
Dallas-Fort Worth metro
Houston ISD
San Antonio area
Austin metro
El Paso
East Texas
Talk to Christian directly
I'm the founder. Texas athletic directors who want to talk through a pilot or just get specific questions answered can reach me directly: [email protected] or (443) 996-6563.