I closed my last post by talking about how soon we would be starting practice sessions for football, volleyball, cross country, and band. One of the sessions that I attended at the Summer Conference focused on UIL issues. The conference was conducted by Dr. Mark Cousins. Below is a summary of the session:
- Rule Changes
- Football – allow scrimmages after six days of contact, rather than seven
- Baseball & Softball – allow three games to be substituted in place of a tournament
- Band – allowing for a brief band director’s study period for the sight-reading contest.
- Officials
- Litigation with the sports officials organization continues
- Possibility of 2011-12 school year being conducted under 09-10 rules for officials
- Reclassification and Realignment
- Reclassification and realignment will take place this year. Numbers submitted in October and announcements made in February.
- This will be the first year that information is submitted electronically.
- All districts will have their information stored in a database that will be accessible by the public.
- Districts will have the opportunity to review information that was submitted.
- The split division will likely continue in 2A.
- 1A-3A will continue with 3 teams to the playoffs.
- The realignment process will start at the 5A level. There can only be 245 teams in 5A. Once this is established other divisions will done.
- Legislature
- Appears that steroid testing will continue for another 2 years.
- Concussions – any student even suspected of a concussion like injury will not be allowed to participate until cleared.
- Applies to every UIL activity.
- All football helmets will have to be individually inventoried so that districts can keep track of age and reconditioning.
- UIL is working on an implementation guide for the new concussion guidelines.