The Friday Night Lights are coming to a computer near you this fall.
It has been just over two weeks since the UIL announced, for the second year running, that it will allow the live streaming of high school football games over the internet, a practice that was previously banned in large part to protect the ticket revenue of home teams.
And with anticipation for the 2021 season growing, so is the excitement about having another year of Texas high school football available over the internet.
“I think being able to live stream games on Friday nights last year during the pandemic was a game-changer for Texas high school football fans,”
said Todd Robison, the Hutto Hippos play-by-play man on the SHN Sports Network.
“I’m excited that the UIL has agreed to allow schools to continue streaming on Fridays.”
The ban was originally lifted last season in order to compensate for the capacity restrictions in place across much of the state due to the COVID-19 pandemic. And while Robison noted that there is a risk that some fans will continue to choose to stay home and live stream a game rather than pay for a ticket at the stadium, it seems as if the consensus across the state is that the benefits outweigh the risks.
Some of the biggest winners of this decision appear to be family and friends who don’t live locally. Texas High School head coach Gerry Stanford said that the live web streams allow for programs to be viewed on a wider scale than ever before.
“I think it’s great for kids and communities; it allows for kids to be seen by family who can’t travel or possibly afford to go,”
Stanford said.
“It allows for you to sell your program and all the hard work kids put in.”
In Boerne ISD, both Boerne High School and Boerne Champion had their own respective TV networks that live streamed athletic events on YouTube this past season. Boerne ISD Athletic Director Stan Leech agreed with Stanford and said that the district’s two high schools don’t expect to experience a downturn in ticket revenue even with the live streaming option available.
“We are looking forward to streaming our home football games and other athletic contest throughout the 2021-2022 school year,”
Leech said.
“This has made it possible for more to enjoy our product and has not hurt attendance.”
Robison also pointed out that there are plenty of opportunities provided by a live webcast both for the football players on the field and other students working on or off-camera.
“Student-athletes have a better chance to showcase their skills to colleges that might not be able to send a scout,”
Robison said.
“[The webcasts] also give students a chance to potentially be involved: maybe a student who one day wants to be a broadcaster or one interested in the engineering of a game. What a great experience for them!”
Robison also said that plenty of options are available for schools and districts to consider for their streams that would help offset any decrease in ticket revenue.
“Schools can increase revenue by making the games pay-per-view at a reasonable cost, like the cost of a ticket to the game, and can sell advertising within the community,”
Robison said.
“Schools can [also] use the platform to promote great things happening in the district to a captive audience.”
That model has played out across the state, including on the Chargers Sports Network, which showcases the sporting events for Boerne Champion High School. At halftime during the team’s football games last year, “The Boerne Insider” gave a glimpse into the happenings inside Boerne ISD’s classrooms while the broadcasts’ sponsors were also provided air time to showcase their products.
One thing of note is that linear TV broadcasts are still banned, so games are only allowed to be live streamed over the web. Furthermore, once the playoffs begin, the UIL and its partner Fox Sports Southwest own the rights to the broadcasts. This means schools are not allowed to stream video of playoff games without permission, restricting schools to radio-only broadcasts in most scenarios.
Until then though, expect a regular helping of Texas high school football live streams across the internet on a weekly basis.
“This change by the UIL has been a long-time coming, and it’s crazy that it took a pandemic to change it,”
Robison said. “
There are many opportunities to make this a positive thing for all involved, [and I’m] looking forward to another great Texas high school football season.”
CLICK HERE to see our article: “UIL to Allow Live-Streaming of Texas HS Football Games in 2021”
