THSCA Urges State Colleges to Stop Scheduling Friday Night Games

SAN ANTONIO – The UIL held its annual press conference Sunday morning at the Texas High School Coaches Association (THSCA) convention and addressed a number of diverse topics regarding athletics in the state of Texas heading into the 2024-25 school year.

• THSCA Executive Director Joe Martin expressed the organization’s displeasure with Division I football conferences scheduling games on Friday nights during the Texas high school football regular season. He singled out the Big 12, which scheduled a game between TCU and Houston on Friday, Oct. 4. “We are asking all conference commissioners to refrain from scheduling games on Friday nights during the 11-week Texas high school football regular season. We believe Friday nights should be dedicated to the communities involved in Texas high school football,” Martin said.
• UIL Athletic Director Ray Zepeda, along with THSCA’s Martin, said their main concern heading into the new school year was heat and athlete safety. “We felt like last year we didn’t do a good enough job with the record heat to prepare our coaches and give them the tools to be successful, so that’s why we’re emphasizing that with our coaches here,” Zepeda said. Zepeda commended the coaches and athletic trainers for their work last year, as there were no catastrophic heat-related issues at UIL schools a year ago.
• The THSCA and UIL are actively working with TASO to address the referee shortage through the new Texas Way initiative with Stephen Mackey and 2 Words Character Development. The Texas Way initiative focuses on sportsmanship among players, coaches, fans and officials. Additionally, Zepeda highlighted the 17 school districts in the state that offer sports officiating courses.
• UIL Assistant Director Dr. Jamey Harrison didn’t rule out the possibility of adding a Class 7A in the future, but he added that the math doesn’t quite work out right now. However, adding a postseason division has alleviated some of the concerns about enrollment disparities within classifications.
• Dr. Harrison confirmed that the 2024 UIL Football State Championship games will once again be played at AT&T Stadium.
• The UIL mentioned that the THSCA had some concerns regarding student-athlete transfers and this process and Dr. Harrison confirmed that the UIL is looking to improve and modify the current PAPF (Previous Athletic Participation Form) process.