After the dust settled this morning at Region 17 Education Service Center, Brownfield found themselves going south in the UIL realignments, Meadow and Wellman-Union are back together in all UIL competitions. At 9:00 a.m. Thursday Feb. 1, 2024, UIL released the full realignments and now everyone knows what district they are in and who they will be competing with from academics to sports, from band to choir.
BISD already knew they would stay 3A and 3A DI in football, but what were the districts going to look like? Some rumors had Brownfield heading north in football with Bushland, Dalhart, River Road, and Shallowater, however, that was not the case. Brownfield will be in the same football district it was in the past two years, minus Slaton. Here the district:
Dist. 2-3A DI
- Brownfield
- Denver City
- Kermit
- Lamesa
In Basketball, Brownfield got to keep Denver City and Lamesa, but now heads further south adding four district foes they have not seen in a while. Here is the basketball district:
Dist. 3-3A
- Brownfield
- Coahoma
- Crane
- Denver City
- Lamesa
- Odessa Compass
- Stanton
TownTalk’s prediction was almost correct on the basketball district. We had Sweetwater instead of Crane. So now the Lady Cubs and Runnin’ Cubs will travel about two hours south.
The Lady Cubs Volleyball squad is already familiar with the schools they were put with this time. In the last realignment, UIL put Brownfield Volleyball with Coahoma, Denver City, Lamesa, Merkel, and Odessa Compass. This time, UIL added Crane and moved Merkel over to District 6. Here is Brownfield’s volleyball district:
Dist. 3-3A
- Brownfield
- Coahoma
- Crane
- Denver City
- Lamesa
- Odessa Compass
NOTE: Stanton does not have volleyball. Also, most likely baseball, softball, spring sports, and spring meet (UIL Academics) will be the same as the Basketball District 3-3A
Moving on to the small schools of Terry County. UIL did well bringing Meadow & Wellman-Union together again for basketball, spring sports, and spring meet. They will both stay together in football, although, a familiar and regional powerhouse will be joining them. Here is the football district:
Dist. 3-1A DI
- Borden County
- Meadow
- O’Donnell
- Wellman-Union
- Whiteface
Borden County comes back after a two-year hiatus in being in a different district. Also, Meadow & Wellman-Union not only got BC added, but they also went from District 5 in Region II to District 3 in Region I. UIL moved some east and northeast schools to Region II.
On the basketball and spring sports side of things, UIL placed cross-county rivals back together. Wellman-Union will be the new kids on the block as Meadow will stay in the same district, minus Morton and Whiteface. TownTalk predicted this district correctly. Here is Meadow & Wellman-Union’s basketball, spring sports, and spring meet district:
Dist. 5-1A
- Amherst
- Anton
- Cotton Center
- Meadow
- Wellman-Union
- Whitharral
Unlike their cross-county rivals, Meadow does not have volleyball like Wellman-Union. On the last realignment, UIL decided to split 1A & 2A. For a while, 1A schools with volleyball played district against 2A schools, however when playoffs came around they would then split. UIL changed that and caused several three-team districts. This realignment, Wellman-Union stays the same, however, Grady now has volleyball and was added to the Lady Cat’s district. Here is Wellman-Union’s volleyball district.
Dist. 2-1A
- Klondike
- Grady
- Loop
- Wellman-Union
Wellman-Union AD/Head Girls Basketball Coach Josh Bailey was glad to see the volleyball district. “I think having four teams is better than three. This will help with scheduling and continuity. Basketball will be great as well and as always football will be very competitive this time, even if Borden County wasn’t in the district, I would still be competitive.”
Brownfield AD/Head Football Coach Taheric Brantley was a bit surprised saying, “It is a bit different than what a lot of people expected. We are excited, and not worried about who we’re up against. In football, district will be tough as usual, but I believe if we take care of business we can make a run at it.” With only four teams in the football district, Brownfield automatically will make the playoffs.
Meadow AD/Head Football Coach Jacob Guzman echoed Coach Bailey’s thoughts. “We’re excited and still young. Our district was already strong without Borden County, but, we will play. Looking at the basketball side, we are excited about that too.” said Coach Guzman.
