UIL offers updates on coach participation in 7-on-7, future of state basketball tournament

Texas State 7-on-7 is an annual event and the organization is comprised of current and former high school coaches around the state from May until the end of June. UIL coaches are not allowed to coach their respective teams in the event. Teams are coached by volunteers and fund raise for travel. “There’s always conversations around it, but I don’t find any momentum behind it,” UIL executive director Jamey Harrison said. “By allowing them to do it, in some ways we require them to do it because if their neighbors are and they’re not, it puts them under pressure from their local community as to why aren’t we doing that.” The UIL now allows basketball coaches to coach their teams in the annual Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Showcase over the summer, but Harrison said that situation was only allowed after adjustments were made to the NCAA recruiting calendar. The evaluation period for basketball recruiting allows coaches to attend the showcase since it is now a state governing body sanctioned event and allows high school and college coaches to connect directly in the recruiting process. Harrison stated the goal was to cut out the middle-man or "street agent" and maintain a coach-to-coach communication process. Right now, the football recruiting calendar does not allow college coaches to attend Texas State 7-on-7 in an official scouting capacity. Football's evaluation periods extend from September to November and, over the summer, college coaches are only allowed to connect with recruits on-campus. “Us allowing basketball is because that was a nexus in those other sports,” Harrison said. “So that has not occurred yet and when I say ‘yet’ I don’t suggest we're expecting it to occur. I haven't even heard talk.” When asked about the possibility of state basketball moving from San Antonio and the Alamodome, the UIL said they believe their contract runs through the 2026-27 and 2027-28 seasons. “They've done a tremendous job of taking care of us, taking care of the kids,” Zepeda said. “We hope we continue to have conversations with other venues as we kind of countermeasure the experience that we have, as we do with every event.”