UIL to Announce Cutoff Numbers for Each Classification Prior to February Realignment

Wondering where the enrollment cutoff line will be for each classification with the UIL's biennial realignment is a longstanding, if frustrating, tradition in Texas high school athletics.

But this time around, you won't have to wait to find out what those cutoff numbers are.

The Dallas Morning News reported Thursday night that the UIL has informed coaches and administrators that it plans to release each classification’s cutoff numbers early, probably two months before the unveiling at the beginning of February.

UIL "snapshot day," which is when the league gathers the enrollment numbers for realignment, is Oct. 25, according to TheOldCoach.com. UIL athletic director Mark Cousins told the DMN that he hopes the UIL will release the enrollment cutoff numbers by mid-to-late November.

The creation of a new Class 6A -- and subsequent re-naming of the current 1A through 5A classifications -- provide added intrigue to the upcoming realignment. The UIL has previously confirmed that six-man will become 1A, 1A will become 2A, 2A will become 3A, 3A will become 4A, 4A will become 5A, and 5A will become the new 6A.

The enrollment cutoff numbers for each class are not expected to be too drastically different from what they are now, but they could move enough in each class to create notable change, especially for schools that will be close to the 5A/6A cutoff.

Another issue to watch could be the cutoff numbers for the current 3A/future 4A. Right now, 3A has the smallest number of schools of the five 11-man classifications. If the UIL hopes to even the distribution of schools, that could mean that schools that are small 4A's under the current setup could remain 4A and be among the state's largest in the newly minted 4A classification.

Below you can see the current UIL cutoff numbers for each classification.

UIL Conference Cutoff Numbers

Fall 2012-Spring 2014

• 5A -- 2,090 and larger
• 4A -- 1,005 to 2,089
• 3A -- 450 to 1,004
• 2A -- 200 to 449
• 1A -- 199 and smaller
  • 99.9 and smaller -- Enrollment cutoff for six-man football and for basketball and spring meet for large and small schools

Division I and Division II Cutoff Numbers

for 2A, 1A 11-man, and 1A six-man football

• 2A -- 297.5
• 1A 11-man -- 150.5
• Six-man -- 53.5