High School Sports

UPDATE: UIL district and conference realignment announced this morning shows Longview dropping out of 5A. DeSoto joins Robert E. Lee, John Tyler, Mesquite, Mesquite Horn and North Mesquite in new 11-5A.

Longview moves in to District 13-4A along with Hallsville, Pine Tree, Marshall, Mount Pleasant, Sulphur Springs and (Texarkana) Texas High.

Updated Friday, Feb. 1, 2008 at 9:33 a.m. CST

By CHRIS PARRY
Staff Writer

There are so many scenarios that Robert E. Lee head football coach Mike Owens is using the wait-and-see approach for Friday's biennial realignment.

The University Interscholastic League will release the new districts and classifications at 9 a.m. on its Web site.

Shortly thereafter, football coaches across the state will begin scrambling to fill non-district schedules.

Owens said he and Tyler Independent School District Athletic Director Danny Long have had "a thousand conversations" about the different possibilities.

Some rumors are stronger than others. And all of them have Longview going down to 4A, which creates a vacancy in District 12-5A.

Those are three of a myriad of possibilities.

Owens confesses he "doesn't have a clue," except when it comes to Longview and DeSoto.

"I think that we'll lose Longview and get DeSoto," Owens said. "If DeSoto comes in, then we'll be a six team district."

Owens added that he will depart for Birdville I.S.D. Complex at 7 a.m. Friday so he's in position to visit with other head coaches and athletic directors if REL needs to add games to its 2008 schedule.

Two years ago, Owens and fellow 12-5A coaches were left scrambling for non-district games because realignment left Lee and JT in a six-team district.

If Longview drops down, as the rumors suggest, and DeSoto joins to make another six-team district, Owens said the Red Raiders already have four of its five non-district games set.

"We will play Longview in Zero Week, Lufkin in Week 1 and Dallas Kimball in Week 2," Owens said. "If we need a fourth game, we've already agreed with Abilene."

Raider Rap: Lee senior T.J. Jones changed his commitment Thursday from Stephen F. Austin to Sam Houston State. All told, Lee is expected to have eight seniors, six in football and two in soccer, sign college letters of intent at 9 a.m. Wednesday at REL's Cox Communications Field House. They are: Maurice Hood (SFA), Jones (Sam Houston State), Josh Hahn (SFA), Trevius Jones (TCU), Ralston Dews (Northwestern La.), Kendall Frizzell (Texas) and Kirby Huffstickler (Central Arkansas).

Longview High School moves out of District 11-5A for football and basketball.
(Staff file photo by Herb Nygren Jr.)