State title games to air on local TV

Remember the days when you had to actually go to high school football games to see them?

If you were lucky, your local high school program had a good radio crew that always followed them around, no matter if they were playing at Mesquite, Gun Barrel City, or Conroe.

There are still several radio teams out there — Kilgore has one, in Ragin’ Red Broadcasting — that do just that. But now, during the regular season, there are alternatives, like the NETSN Live team that broadcasts numerous East Texas games every week during the regular season.

During state championship week, though, it’s been kind of 52-card pick-up the last few years. If you’ve never played 52-card pick-up, just get you a deck of cards and throw them up in the air. You’ll see the mess that results.

Fox Sports Southwest, now defunct, broadcast those games, but a LOT of people didn’t have that. It was bought by Bally Sports, which existed for about a year, and it’s also gone.

Last year, the Victory+ Network offered broadcasts of all the University Interscholastic League state title games. And then guess what happened to Victory+?

You got it: no longer in business, as of September.

So the UIL has reached an agreement with Nexstar Media Group and Mission Broadcasting. They’re going to broadcast all 12 of the state title games — being played as usual at AT&T Stadium in Arlington from Dec. 16-19 — on local TV stations.

Here in the Longview-Tyler-Kilgore area, that would be KTPN and KETK.

“The UIL State Football Championships are an important tradition for high schools and communities throughout Texas,” said Dr. Jamey Harrison, Executive Director of the University Interscholastic League. “We are excited to work with Nexstar Media and Mission Broadcasting to expand access to these championship games and we are pleased that fans will be able to watch them through streaming and local television broadcasts across Texas.”

Last year, of course, and the year before that, the Carthage High School Bulldogs won the UIL Class 4A, Division II state championship, and Kilgore competed in the 4A-DI game the last two seasons.

This is the last weekend of the regular season, and next weekend (Nov. 12-14), the playoffs start.

It all winds up at AT&T Stadium that week in December.

On Wednesday, Dec. 16, the two 1A (six-man) games are set for 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., and then the Class 2A-DII game is set for a 7 p.m. kickoff. If Overton were to make it to the state championship game, that’s the one the Mustangs would be in.

The next day, the 3A-DII state title game kicks off at 11 a.m. If West Rusk, Arp, or Troup were to reach the state championship, that’s the one in which they’d play.

At 3 p.m. that Thursday, it’s the 2A-DI state title game — Beckville would play in that one, if the Bearcats made it that far.

And at 7 p.m. that night, it’s the 3A-DI title game. That could include Tatum or Gladewater from the ETBlitz.com coverage area.

Championship Friday is being scheduled a little differently this year. Normally both 4A games are that day. This year, the 11 a.m. game is for the 5A-DII state title. The 3 p.m. game is the 4A-DII state championship — that would include Gilmer or Carthage, if either are still playing. And that night at 7 p.m., it’s the 6A-DII title game.

Saturday, Dec. 19 kicks off with the 5A-DI title game at 11 a.m. The 4A-DI game would follow at 3 p.m. — that could include Kilgore, Henderson or Pine Tree from the ETBlitz coverage area. And then the week concludes with the 6A-DI championship game that night, a 7 p.m. start.