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Texas State High School Football Finals Notebook: 191K Fans, Record Viewership, Multiple Arrests at AT&T Stadium

Victory+ Debut: 2.1 Million Viewers Tune Into UIL Finals

Cody Thorn

The UIL held 12 state championships at AT&T Stadium from Dec. 17-20 in Arlington.
The UIL held 12 state championships at AT&T Stadium from Dec. 17-20 in Arlington. / Cody Thorn

There was a jump in attendance this year for the UIL football state championship games, held from Wednesday to Sunday, Dec. 17-20, at AT&T Stadium.

The total number for the 12 championships was 191,185, up 19.8%, compared to the attendance of 159,560.

The final day of finals drew the largest crowd, 93,620, buoyed by having three Houston vs. Dallas showdowns. The middle game drew 39,464, between Duncanville and Galena Park North Shore.

The Saturday tripleheader drew 93,620 fans, up 15% compared to last year’s total.

Both 5A and 6A games had more than 20,000 fans.  

There were many games where the attendance dwarfed the combined city population.

Here are some examples

  • Class 3A Division I finals — 10,236 fans. Yoakum population 5,908; Grandview’s 2,487
  • Class 3A Division II finals — 9,721 fans. Wall population 329; Newton’s 2,246
  • Class 2A Division 1 finals — 7,582 fans. Hamilton population 3,100; Joaquin’s 734.

The Wall vs. Newton game, a 25-24 win by Wall, also outdrew a game at the same time across town in Frisco — the Xbox Bowl. That gam between Arkansas State and Missouri State drew 7,782 fans.

This marked the third year in a row that fewer than 200,000 fans attended the UIL finals.

Since moving to Arlington in 2016 to 2021, not counting the COVID-19 finals in 2020, each year had more than 200,000 fans. In 2021, the games drew 211,337.

2. A victory for viewers

The UIL Texas High School football finals had a new television partner this year.

Victory+ announced more than 2.1 million fans watched the UIL site championship games, which ran Dec. 17-20 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington.

This was the first year for the contract with Victory+ to broadcast playoff games and then the state championships through the app on phones, television or through streaming online. In the past, games were broadcast on Fox Sports Southwest, which required a subscription to watch

According to Victory+, the most-watched game over the week was the Class 6A Division I state title between Duncanville and Galena Park North Shore, with a peak audience of 207,320 viewers.

3. Winning Streaks

The playoffs saw some long winning streaks end, like Celina’s 30-game streak that ended against Stephenville in the semifinals.

Heading into the 2026 season, the longest active winning streak belongs to Gordon at 44 in a row. The Longhorns have won the past three 6-man Class 1A Division 1 titles.

Jayton, another 6-man school, will have a 30-game streak going into next year. The Jaybirds repeated as the Class 1A Division 2 champions, but will move up to Division 1 next year.

At the 11-man level, Carthage will have the longest streak at 31 in a row. The Bulldogs have won the past 2 state titles and the streak dates back to Week 2 in the 2024 season.

Stephenville and Wall, both state champs last weekend, will carry 16-game winning streaks into the season.

4. New Champs

A few teams took home titles in repeat fashion — Jayton, Gordon, Carthage, Smithson Valley and Muenster.

There were also a few historic and first titles for teams.

Wall won the Class 3A Division 2 title, the first for a program that started in 1966.

The wait for others was much longer.

Hamilton started playing football in 1914, according to the Texas High School Football History website. Yoakum, the Class 3A Division 1 champions, won for the first time for a program that started in 1910.

5. WWE tryouts?

One of the underlying impacts of the UIL finals was the social media buzz created by a number of fights throughout the final day of the finals.

The Arlington Police Department issued the following statement regarding the High School on SI.

“We can confirm that several disturbances occurred on Saturday during the UIL State Championship games at AT&T Stadium. Officers and stadium staff responded to multiple incidents involving large groups of attendees in the interior concourse areas. Due to numerous disturbances and the large number of individuals involved, the decision was made to clear the affected sections to ensure the safety of all guests. We can also confirm that a significant number of individuals were ejected from the facility as officers dispersed the crowd. Multiple arrests were made for offenses that included Fighting in Public, Interference with Public Duties, Assault on a Public Servant, Resisting Arrest, Criminal Trespass, and active Felony and Misdemeanor warrants. 10 arrests were made during this incident.”

Most of the fights seemed to happen in the 200 levels, inside what is generally a suite area during Dallas Cowboys games.

Fans running at AT&T Stadium
Fans run away from a fight during the Class 6A Division 2 finals on Saturday, Dec. 20 at AT&T Stadium. / Cody Thorn

During the first quarter of the DeSoto vs. C.E. King game, one fight led to a man getting taken out in handcuffs. About 10 minutes later, another fight broke out near a concession stand that sent fans running outside of the area.

Here are a few videos that were posted about the fights.

6. Tough to beat

Scott Surratt helped Carthage secure a milestone 11th state title on Friday.

Now, the Bulldogs are only one behind Aledo for the most in UIL history.

Carthage has been to the postseason all 19 years he’s been the head coach, won 17 district titles and now 11 state titles.

Overall, Surratt is 87-8 in the postseason, so more state titles than postseason losses.

7. Wait until February

The day before the first day of state, UIL released the classification cutoff numbers for the 2026-27 and 2027-28 school years for reclassification and realignment, which is set for February.

6A (2,215 and up)

5A Division I (1,830-2,214)

5A Division II (1,305-1,829)

4A Division I (896-1,304)

4A Division II (550-895)

3A Division I (367-549)

3A Division II (246-366.9)

2A Division I (175.6-245.9)

2A Division II (105-175.5)

1A Division I (57.6-104.9)

1A Division II (57.5 and below)

What does that mean? While it is not official until February, it looks like some teams will be in different classes next year. Frisco Wakeland looks to become the first 6A school for the district. DeSoto, which turned in a number of 1,932 students, could play in Class 5A Division 1. But, last time the realignment happened, DeSoto opted to stay in Class 6A. Will they do it again this time?

Celina, a semifinalist this year and state champion last year, will bump up to 5A due to growth.

Wollforth Friendship will drop from 6A to 5A Division I. Melisa, a semifinalist in Class 5A Division I, appears to be headed to Class 5A Division 1.

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Cody Thorn
CODY THORN

Cody Thorn is a veteran journalist who covers high school sports across the state of Texas and Missouri. He is based in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and has covered sports and news since 1999.

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