Athletics News
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Decision to Change Golf Tournament Venue Not Taken Lightly
By Peter Contreras, Assistant Athletic Director | Tuesday, November 20, 2012 11:39 AM
Last week’s decision to change two golf courses for the 2013 UIL State Golf Championships caught a lot of coaches by surprise. However, the decision was made only after a great deal of discussion.
While two golf courses have changed, UIL’s intent has not. The first priority of the League is to provide the best possible opportunity and experience for our student-athletes and schools, and it will remain so.
The decision to move Conference 5A from Jimmy Clay Golf Course to Morris Williams Golf Course and Conference 1A from Morris Williams to Lion’s Golf Course was done with this intent in mind.
Volleyball Tournament Wraps Up in Garland ISD Venue
By Jeanne Acton, Journalism Director | Tuesday, November 20, 2012 10:38 AM
At the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland ISD, Brock High School goes up for a block during the 2A semifinal game against Holliday High School. Brock won the game and went on to beat Schulenburg High School to take home the 2A Conference State Title.
Photo by Ashley Landis, 1st Photo Texas
For the first time in the history of UIL volleyball, the state tournament was not played in the Austin area because of a date conflict with the F-1 races. The tournament was moved to the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland ISD, and it appears to have been a success.
"There were no real disadvantages,” Peter Contreras, assistant athletic director and tournament director, said. “Parking for our teams and spectators was not an issue, and the fact the facility has four locker rooms for teams participating was a big advantage."
Before securing a site for the 2013 state tournament, Contreras said the League will look at several factors.
Tips for Preparing for Post-Season Competition in Team Tennis
By Darryl Beasley, Asst. Athletic Director | Tuesday, October 02, 2012 10:19 AM
Falls marks the time of the year to prepare for post-season competition in team tennis. Below is information to help with organization and advancing from district to regional and regional to state.
First and foremost, a rule change will affect both team tennis and spring tennis. The new rule allows school coaches to coach players in between points. According to United States Tennis Association (USTA) rules, a player is allowed 20 seconds between points. The new UIL rule will allow a school coach to provide feedback during that 20-second time, but it cannot interrupt the continuous play rule which states play shall be continuous from the first service until the match is concluded. The official school tennis coach may coach in a manner that does not interfere with the play on adjoining courts. Coaches and/or coaching are NOT permitted in or on the confines of the tennis court (exception: during the 90 second changeover at the end of odd games, and during the 10-minute rest period for split set matches).
Legislative Council Drives Rule Changes at League
By Dr. Mark Cousins, Athletic Director | Tuesday, October 02, 2012 10:07 AM
For more than 70 years, the UIL Legislative Council has been the driving force behind rule changes for the University Interscholastic League. Although the League has been around for more than 100 years, in the early years of existence, the rule making processes were handled through the University of Texas.
The Legislative Council is a peer-elected group of school superintendents that represent various size schools and geographic regions of the state. There are 28 total members on the Legislative Council. There is an elected representative from each of the four regions, in each of the five conferences (1A-5A). The chair of the Council then appoints eight additional members to the Council to ensure diversity in terms of school size, geographic location and ethnicity.
Although many in the school business are fully aware of the process for making rule change proposals for UIL, there may be others who do not fully understand how the process works. First and foremost, it should be understood that no UIL staff members are allowed to vote, nor do they serve as members of the Legislative Council.
Beasley Inducted into Beeville Hall of Fame
By Jeanne Acton, Journalism Director | Tuesday, October 02, 2012 9:05 AM
Assistant Athletic Director Darryl Beasley accepted his award in his hometown Beeville.
Darryl Beasley has lived sports all his life. He played high school and college basketball. He coached at both the high school and college level. And for the past eight years, Beasley has been an assistant athletic director at the League.
So it probably wouldn’t be a shock to anyone that his hometown, Beeville, inducted him into its Hall of Fame this month.
But it was to Beasley.
“The call came out of the blue,” he said. “I didn’t expect it.”
Volleyball State Tournament to Move to Garland
By Peter Contreras, Assistant Athletic Director | Monday, August 27, 2012 3:23 PM
Wow. Where did the summer go?
Talk about days and months running together. If parents and the public really knew how much work is done during the summer in preparation for each upcoming school year, I think they just might be amazed.
Like you, August arrived sooner than I wanted and since no one bothered to ask if I was ready, forward is the only direction acceptable. For the 2012-13 school year, I have key changes to highlight in the sports where I serve as your UIL director. Here are few of those changes.
A Guide to Help Coaches and Schools Prepare for Year
By Mark Cousins, Athletic Director | Monday, August 27, 2012 2:11 PM
Over the years, I have spent many column inches in the Leaguer discussing what schools and coaches need to do to ensure that their programs and participants are ready for the school year. In this column, I want to focus on what the schools need to do to ensure themselves and their coaches are ready for the beginning of the season.
The day-to-day work of a coach is dedicated to making sure the students are prepared to be successful in the classroom and also in the extracurricular activity of their choice.
In many cases, the things that coaches have to do in order to qualify to coach in Texas are sometimes overlooked. These dedicated professionals that we call ‘coach’ spend hundreds of hours each year preparing kids to be their best. But before they can work with the students, they must also spend many hours preparing themselves to meet the various requirements needed in order to coach.
Routines Make the Year Run Smooth for Coaches
By Darryl Beasley, Assistant Athletic Director | Tuesday, June 05, 2012 8:34 AM
One thing coaches can appreciate is a routine free of surprises. The last thing you need is to be blindsided with student eligibility, new student/transfer, new forms, new sports rules, new UIL rules or simply rule changes. It’s vital to have a routine in place. Below are some helpful hints to help coaches prepare for the upcoming school year.
Eligibility for Student/Athletes
During the last six weeks in spring, consider checking credits of your athletes to ensure eligibility for the first six weeks. This should be done for the sports starting before or during the first six weeks of school.
Eligibility for the first six weeks is as follows:
2012-13 Area Track Meet - All Conferences Q & A
By Mark Cousins, Athletic Director | Tuesday, June 05, 2012 8:08 AM
Qualification
Four contestants qualify from each district to area; four contestants qualify from each area to region, and two contestants qualify from each region to the state meet.
1. Are Area Meets required for the 2012-13 school year?
Yes, area meets are now required. However, there are options.
With majority votes from both DEC's, the area meet can be cancelled. In this scenario, each district would hold their district meet and advance the top two finishers in each event to the Regional Meet.
Additionally, with majority votes from both DEC's, district meets can be skipped and the corresponding districts could elect to go straight to the Area Meet (with no district meet). In this scenario, the top four finishers in each event would advance to the Regional Meet.
New School Year Means New Athletic Rule Changes
By Mark Cousins, Athletic Director | Tuesday, June 05, 2012 8:01 AM
“Out with the old…….In with the new.” This has been a favorite saying of mine, however, I am not sure where it originally came from and am too lazy to go online and actually figure it out. Nonetheless, it does still ring true to me in many ways. My problem is that I have trouble throwing things out (anyone who has seen my desk can attest to that!) and with the "new" things coming and changing at an ever increasing rate, it is harder and harder to keep up.
The same can be said when it comes to UIL rules and programs. Even though we are just nearing the end of the current (old) school year, preparations for the new school year have long been underway. Below are a number of "new" things member schools, coaches and administrators will experience as we move to the 2012-13 school year.