REALIGNMENT WRAPUP | A more thorough analysis of Thursday’s announcement
Members of Kilgore’s football team celebrate a big play against Needville. (Photo by ALEX NABOR – ETBLITZ.COM)
Happy Realignment Day!
It’s likely no one was saying that Thursday morning, especially at the Region VII Building in Kilgore, as the University Interscholastic League – the governing body of all things Texas high school sports – announced its biennial realignment (every two years).
But it does have a major impact on every single sport, as well as many extracurricular activities.
The schools that are considered, for at least the time being, to be a part of the ETBlitz.com coverage area are Kilgore, Henderson, Sabine, West Rusk, Tatum, Arp, Troup, Gladewater, White Oak, Overton, and Leverett’s Chapel, so that’s where this story will focus, although there is, obviously, other realignment news.
But as was reported in December in the cutoff numbers story, the biggest news in the ETBlitz.com coverage area wasn’t who moved, but who didn’t.
Kilgore, Henderson
In football, aside from Jacksonville moving back up to UIL Class 5A – that is to say, smaller 5A, the Division II classification – and Athens moving down to smaller 4A, 4A DII, there wasn’t much to affect Kilgore and Henderson, who stay in the same district.
Both the Kilgore Bulldogs and Henderson Lions remain 4A, Division I, of course, and because of Jacksonville and Athens exiting, their district – again District 9-4A, Division I – will get a new look this realignment.
Palestine, whose coach, Lance Angel, just retired, is back to join them, as are the Lindale Eagles, and yes, the Chapel Hill Bulldogs.
In place of Jacksonville and Athens is a pair of former district rivals: Mabank, and an old rival from the past: Pine Tree, the Longview school who comes down from Class 5A, Division II.
That means basketball is – interesting.
Both Kilgore and Henderson will compete in District 16-4A, and here’s the list of their district rivals: Carthage, Cumberland Academy (a former and now again district rival, in Tyler), Gilmer, Pine Tree, Spring Hill and Chapel Hill.
And in volleyball, it’s that same alignment.
Soccer alignments were not announced on Thursday.
Incidentally, there was some thought that Henderson would move down a classification, to the smaller division of 4A. But Henderson’s enrollment snapshot number that HISD submitted was 982.5, and the cutoff for 4A, Division II and Division I is 956 students – schools with more than 956 students are in 4A, Division I, all the way up to 1,314 students.
Kilgore High School is well within 4A, Division I. Kilgore’s enrollment number is 1,168, nowhere near the bottom level of 957, nowhere near the top number of 1,314.
As for the newbies in the district, Mabank was in the football district only a handful of years ago, although they didn’t perform all that well, and it’s a bit of a hike from Kilgore (81 miles, one way), and Henderson (92 miles).
Pine Tree’s submitted enrollment number was 1,256.5, not even close to the 1,314 needed to remain in 5A. That means the Pirates, who are about 12 miles from Kilgore, are getting a whole new set of rivals, and renewing “acquaintances” with Kilgore and Henderson.
Sabine, West Rusk, Gladewater, Arp, Troup, Tatum, White Oak
The Sabine Cardinals’ football district doesn’t look just a lot different that it did in 2022 and 2023. Atlanta, Gladewater, Jefferson, Tatum and White Oak are all still there, and Liberty-Eylau has joined the party – now a seven-team district in District 8-3A, Division I.
West Rusk, Arp, and Troup all play in the smaller 3A, Division II. The West Rusk Raiders have owned their district for some time, but it’s being shaken up a bit.
The Raiders, Arp and Troup will remain district rivals, but will now compete in District 11-3A, DII against Arp, Troup, Buffalo, New Diana, Elkhart, and Winona. Out are Grand Saline, Quitman and Edgewood.
In basketball, Sabine, West Rusk, Gladewater, Arp, Troup and White Oak will all be in the same district, District 16-3A. And they’ll also compete in that exact same district in volleyball: District 16-3A.
West Rusk has competed in Class 3A, Division II, the smaller division of 3A, and had great success there in several sports, including track, where they won a state team trophy last year, as well as football, a string of district championships and playoff runs, and softball. The Raiders’ snapshot number was 349, and the 3A cutoff number is 368.
Troup (323) is also well within that number and the Tigers were not a surprise whatsoever to remain at 3A-DII. Nearby rival Arp was even smaller (302).
Sabine remained in the bigger 3A, Division I for football, and it wasn’t close. The Cardinals snapshot was 454. Gladewater, White Oak and Tatum will all remain “big” 3A, as well.
Overton
Overton will remain in Class 2A, DII, but it was a bit closer.
Overton sports turned in a snapshot of 166, 25 below the cutoff to move up to 2A, Division I (181).
They will compete in District 11 again. Their opponents will be Alto, Cushing, Lovelady, Mount Enterprise, and Tenaha, who dealt Overton its only regular season defeat last year in the final game of the regular season, and claimed the district title.
In basketball, Overton will compete in District 22, and their rivals will be Alto, Cushing and Mount Enterprise again, as well as Douglass, New Summerfield, and longtime rival Carlisle.
And in volleyball, the Lady Mustangs will be in District 19, along with Alto, Grapeland, Latexo, and Carlisle.
Leverett’s Chapel
The Lions will continue to compete at the six-man, or 1A, level, as they turned in a snapshot of 67. That’s DI, believe it or not. The Lions are six students, just six, above the cutoff from being the smaller 1A, Division II, the smallest school athletics programs in the state.
In 2024, LC will compete in District 10-1A, Division I, along with Campbell, Union Hill, Saint Jo and Savoy. High Island, a coastal school (which meant long trips), is out, moved to District 12 with former LC rivals Apple Springs, Burkeville, and Chester.
LC doesn’t play basketball in a district, but in volleyball, they’ll be in District 23-1A, along with Neches and Trinidad.
Of interest
Where did Jacksonville and Athens go, you might ask?
Well, Jacksonville went back to the smaller 5A, 5A-DII.
They’ll compete in District 7-5A Division II, along with Whitehouse, Mount Pleasant, Nacogdoches, Texas High, Hallsville and Marshall, for football.
And Athens heads to small 4A, as mentioned, to District 8-4A, Division II, with Carthage (uh-oh), Brownsboro, Bullard, Rusk, and Center.
Now, about the Longview High School Lobos.
Longview reported an enrollment of 2,280 – that’s five students, just five, over the cutoff mark of 5A, Division I and 6A, and the Lobos are now officially up to 6A.
They’ll play football in District 10-6A. Also in that district: Tyler Legacy, Forney North Forney, Royce City, Rockwall, and Rockwall-Heath.