A week after Alabama agreed to use instant replay for all high school football games with the proper equipment, the University Interscholatic League is announcing that it will use instant replay for its state championship games.
The UIL, which uses NCAA rules, will utilize the college football guidelines except for the fact that there will not be coaches’ challenges and targeting will not be called as the result of a review. All reviews will take place in a replay booth with a collegiate replay official reviewing plays.
“With all UIL State Championship football games at a single location, we have the technology and ability to utilize these powerful tools to make the state championships the best possible experience for coaches, players, officials and fans,” UIL Executive Director Dr. Charles Breithaupt said. “Instant replay will help ensure that the calls during the biggest games of the year are as correct as possible.”
“Because we play football by NCAA rules, which allow for instant replay, we have this opportunity. We are extremely excited to add instant replay to our state championship games,” UIL Director of Athletics Dr. Susan Elza said. “We’ve studied this topic thoroughly, and have had many conversations with officials and coaches. The consensus we’ve heard is that our game is ready for this and it will be a valuable addition.”
Last year, Minnesota used instant replay for its state championship games. New Jersey will also be testing instant replay this season on a limited basis.
