The University Interscholastic League legislative council approved the development of girls flag football as a pilot program at its annual fall meeting Monday morning in Austin, further establishing a path for the growing sport to become a sanctioned activity in Texas public high schools.
The pilot program is expected to begin in the 2028-29 school year and initially include no more than two classifications. The timing of the season, competition format and other logistical details have yet to be determined. The decision follows years of advocacy from the Houston Texans, Dallas Cowboys and school district leaders across the state. The sport has continued to gain momentum nationally, with 25 states expected to have sanctioned girls flag football by the fall of 2027.
The proposal passed Monday authorizes UIL staff to develop rules and guidelines with an implementation plan to be presented at the June 2027 legislative council meeting. The program would include a state championship in each conference, with district, regional or other qualifying events.
Additional support for adding the sport emerged in a fall 2026 survey of Texas school district superintendents, which found that 52% of respondents from Class 5A and 6A schools favored sanctioning girls flag football. Additionally, 165 schools indicated they already participate in the sport.
The council passing the proposal marks a significant step toward bringing girls flag football into the UIL's athletics structure, but several decisions remain before competition begins. Among the key considerations for UIL staff are the cost of adding a new sport, the structure of competitions, the timing of the season and the potential impact on other school activities. Availability of game officials, playing fields and coaches were also considerations brought forth in discussion during Monday's meeting.
UIL executive director Jamey Harrison said his staff would carefully evaluate all of that before recommending when the sport should be played, which is perhaps the most important factor of all.
"We will consider all 12 months on the calendar," Harrison said. "From the time we start the first day of volleyball practice in early August until the last pitch of the state softball tournament at the end of May, there is not a single day in between those two that there is not at least one team sport in process."
Harrison said staff has heard suggestions for a fall season as well as options in early and late spring. Determining the best fit will require further evaluation and input from groups affected by the decision.
"I've heard late spring, I've heard early spring, I've heard fall - I've heard a lot of different things," Harrison said. "We're going to have to look at all of them and really work with all of the stakeholder groups to figure out where to best fit this, if in fact you guys tells us it's time to move forward."
According to the Houston Texans - whose efforts have been spearheaded by chief community officer Hannah McNair - 96 Houston-area schools are participating in their flag football program, which launched in 2023. McNair has been one of the leading voices pushing for the UIL to sanction the sport. She noted during the June legislative meeting that the Texans and Cowboys are expecting to have a footprint of more than 270 schools and nearly 6,000 athletes in their programs by 2027.
The UIL currently has 13 sanctioned sports. The most recent one to be added was boys and girls water polo, which started as a pilot program in 2022 and was granted full-sanction status in 2025.
Mandated shot clock coming
In addition to the girls flag football pilot program, the UIL also approved a mandated 35-second shot clock for basketball, beginning with Class 6A and 5A schools in 2028-29. The decision to implement the rule - which has been deliberated for years - will add Texas to a list of 35 states that have adopted it.
The implementation will be done in phases, and it will be optional for 6A and 5A schools starting in 2027-28 with mandatory status coming the following year. Schools in 4A and 3A could potentially add a shot clock in 2030-31, and 2A and 1A could follow in 2032-33. The UIL stated that the proposed schedule for implementation across the smaller classifications is tentative and could be adjusted.
During the June legislative meeting, the athletics committee approved a pilot program for the shot clock that would be optional for all classifications during the 2026-27 season. But that program also limited the use to varsity tournaments and showcases with mutual agreement between coaches required.
Proposals for adding a shot clock have been presented to the UIL as far back as 2016, but with numerous surveys conducted in recent years by the UIL and Texas Association of Basketball Coaches, it's finally gained enough support with advocates arguing that it aid player development and college readiness and snuff out stalling tactics. The National Federation of State High School Associations approved the use of shot clocks in 2021, leaving implementation decisions up to individual states.
Home-field advantage expanded
The UIL is expanding the use of home-field or home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs to volleyball, basketball, soccer and team tennis, as well as to football teams in smaller classifications. Under the previous rules, only Class 6A and 5A football teams across the state could earn home-field advantage for the first round of the postseason based on their finish in the district standings.
The change will go into effect for the 2027-28 school year.
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There’s more to Houston with the Chronicle. Subscribe today for just 25¢.This article originally published at UIL approves girls flag football pilot program, eyes 2028-29 debut.