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14 judges over two rounds with incredible resumes and experience had them first in both rounds. UIL isn't whispering in their ear to somehow magically align their numbers to make Celina win. This panel thought overall that Celina was the best. It's not that complex. I saw them from field level. INCREDIBLE sounds and phenomenal VP with an understated but cohesive product. You may not necessarily like the story they were trying to tell with their show, but they communicated it masterfully. Panther Creek was incredible too. And Davenport. And everyone. 4A is deeper than ever. Our favorite show doesn't always win and that's okay. We don't have the discredit the work of other bands to say we think someone else should have won.

I though they had a fun show - and geez those kids can play. Wonder why they don't get any credit - this was their 12th time at the State contest. I went to a TMEA thingy that Hanna did as a highlighted program - their wind ensemble was stunning! This is what I learned; No private lesson program No extra teaching staff (no marching techs, no drum techs, no specialists) Most kids don't own an instrument. The band fee thingy is like $100 I was talking to a few of their parents at the contest -they do a lot of fund raising -the band directors teach the TMEA all-state music - no private lessons -band fee - they pay what they can -the head director has been there a long time -they don't focus on the "were gonna win" thingy - they focus on "let's give our personal best every time" How can programs like these expect to compete against the huge, well funded bands up state? Why don't these kids get a shout out too- everyone only talks about the big programs - but these kids are accomplishing a lot with very little Flame away

I completely disagree. I think its delusional thinking that every band goes to the state marching contest with the mindset that they are going to win state. I don't even think every band believes they have a chance at making finals. The bands with a chance to win state know who they are...and everyone else has the mindset of trying to get the highest placement possible.

i am confident that all 6 texas bands will at least make semifinals, with cedar park, leander, and bridgeland being locks for finals imo. i feel like argyle, prosper, and friendswood are all finals caliber bands as well but I think that it'll be tougher for them to break into that upper ceiling.

As my user name implies, my kid's in the Vandegrift band. It was definitely not their best performance. And it weighed heavily on them. But to their credit, they picked themselves up and rocked it at the UIL State Finals.

The UIL scoresheets and metrics aren't secret, all directors have free access to them at the start of each season. It's true that some bands do more than others to tailor their shows specifically to maximize scoring against those metrics-- that's simply what it takes to place well, and win, the competition. If the goal is to win UIL competitions then that is the smart and correct thing to do. I'm not sure why anyone would be surprised or upset about that? I feel like some people expect BOA-style scoring at UIL, and it's just not going to happen. The BOA scoresheets are different, they reward some aspects of a show more than the UIL sheets do, and they reward some aspects less than the UIL sheets do. This is why we see things like Vandegrift placing 5th in BOASA finals, but 2nd at State. It wasn't just that they had "better runs" at State, it's that their show and their style of play and marching is more aligned to the UIL metrics. Some people prefer the BOA style scoring and some people prefer the UIL style scoring, but either way, the fact remains that they are different, and emphasize different aspects of a marching band and its show. And I don't agree that there's any such thing as "the best show." That's entirely subjective and fans' opinions and judges' opinions will vary significantly on that. There's not ever going to be a consensus and that's fine.

Vista Ridge is from Cedar Park. From Google - Wealthiest suburb: Cedar Park has the wealthiest ZIP code among suburbs in the Austin metro. There are definitely differences that help all the Leander ISD schools to dominate at state. Besides “hard work and believing that they can win state”, their schools can afford top tier uniforms and props, etc. Leander ISD doesn’t offer orchestra, so the band programs benefit from additional funds that might have been otherwise spent on orchestra, and the bodies of the musicians who might have otherwise chosen orchestra if it was an option. Again, I don’t wish to detract from the elite band programs, but I only wish that they would acknowledge that there are external factors that make them elite besides the hard work of their musicians. The Hanna parent made a good point that the lower ranked bands that consistently make state don’t get recognized for their consistent appearances. Maybe that could be something that’s added to the distribution of the participation awards at prelims. In addition to introducing schools, the UIL should add details of how many consistent appearances the schools have made at the SMBC. There are a lot of “really good, consistent bands” throughout the ranks, but only the ones at the top get full credit for their accomplishments.

I disagree. Outside the top 5-6 bands, nobody has a chance of being crowned champion. Why even show up? Why isn't state just the top 5 bands? Why bother ranking the rest? It's because those bands outside the top 5 are jockeying to be better than the other bands in their peer group and are wanting to maybe move up to the next peer group. My kid's school, Bridgeland, had zero realistic aspirations of being crowned champion. But could they maybe have beat Pearland like they did at BOA Webster (prelims)? Maybe Ronald Reagan? Those were possibilities, and they matter to bands outside the top 5.

I'm a new band parent this year, and I've already observed and learned so much. My kid is in one of the bands that no one really talks about, and I could not be more proud of him and our band program. Thanks for bringing this to light...there are absolutely external factors. The kids in the "non elite" band programs work just as hard and also deserve recognition. All of these kids are amazing, from the varsity band gold medal kids down to the ones wearing 10 year old uniforms who are just so excited to take the field with their band friends. What a fun season we had and I can't wait for next season already! 🐾

Cedar Park 78613 is not even close to being one of the Austin-area's wealthiest zip codes. Vista Ridge wears the same uniforms year after year while many other programs are in new uniforms every year (including some with uniform changes during their shows). There are much better examples out there of successful, wealthy programs than VR or Cedar Park HS.

Hello my fellow flops! I am extremely excited about all of the bands' performances, and the results that everyone got. Nagasaki Mitsubishi Okinawa Suki CHan Ducky Doo. Eat a taki moss! And namaste! Type "Yes" to affirm 2025 State Bound!

not a lot compared to last year. will definetly be cheering for Leander and Cedar Park

Clean and boring will always beat clean and ridiculously hard. To be honest I almost think that they refuse to let that difficult of a show win because of what it would do to 4A. The standard would be through the roof and most bands would be left in the dust. Again just my opinion. You can and probably will disagree.

And bands can now break ranks and end the season. It’s been awesome to commentate on the many BOA and UIL events this fall! I will be back next year with even more negativity and Hebron glazing!

Wow what an exciting state competition. After the finals performances and results here are some stats and information I found interesting as a band nerd. - The finalist group was made up of 10 different ISD's and 7 Area champions (B, D, E, F, H, I, and J) - this is now Hebron's second time being crowned 6A state champion (2021 & 2024) and ties Vandegrift with he most wins in 6A (2022 & 2023). - Hebron's scoring was pretty consistent in finals besides the 9th place ranking from the perc judge. - Vandergrift ties in numbers with Hebron and makes 2nd place after getting 5th at BOA SA - Flower Mound places third one day after winning BOA SA. Could this be because their show was more BOA-oriented or did Hebron and Vandegrift just have a better run? - 6th place Marcus took 1st place in percussion - Coppell pushes Pearland out of top half in finals. - Cedar Ridge returns to finals after not making state the previous year - Seven Lakes makes their first appearance in 6A state finals after also making BOA SA finals for the 1st time - Bridgeland proves they plan to stay in state finals for years to come with their second state finals appearance at only 8 years of existence. - After not making BOA SA finals, Keller manages to secure a state finalist spot in 12th place - The finalists this year are all the same except for the addition of Cedar Ridge and Seven Lakes who replaced Waxahachie and Cy-Fair from last year.

Fantastic performance China Spring!! Just such an amazing and fun show. Lovely sounds from the entire group, those soloists play on such a high level, and there's so much smiling going on in the drill. Really love this show so much, and I don't see them going anywhere anytime soon except for up, wow wow wow, amazing job China Spring!!

China Spring - I am of course biased. Dang good warmup. I don’t really know what to say about that. So I think I won’t say anything at all. Congratulations on a great season. An incredible performance from 4A finalist China Spring HS!

To be honest, it’s unrealistic for most of the bands competing in the 6A SMBC to have any aspirations of being crowned state champion or to even make it into the top ten. Most bands lack the size or financial resources that it takes to be an elite band. For them, just making it to state marching competition is their reward. I don’t mean to take anything away from the top bands because they have definitely earned their placement. However, it would be nice if the 6A marching band competition was split into two divisions like football. After four years of attending the competition, it’s become obvious that after the top twenty or so, the lower ranked bands don’t get the same attention by the judges in prelims because the judges priority is to select the top bands for finals. Would a BOA metric like 10th through 12th grade school population be a good way to divide the field, or should the divisions be decided by band size? Comments?

I'd be a little shocked if Prosper didn't get in, at least imo. I feel like it's more of a Boa than UIL show and seeing how they did at state with a really strong performance in semis I see them getting in fs. Argyle and F-Wood should definitely make semis, at least I hope so. If Tarpon wasn't here, I feel like Argyle would have a really strong shot at the 2A rep, hopefully their at least second or 3rd in class. Also, good luck to all our Tx bands today and tomorrow, as well as everyone else! Will be watching semis and finals, super excited for the weekend!!

There are many, many schools that are considerably wealthier than Vista Ridge who have never won State or don't consistently place in the upper half of Finals in major competitions. Seems curious, huh?

Oh my god yes

To be honest Celina did not deserve that win whatsoever. Yes the kids work hard and have talent. Their brass sound is heavenly and so pure but so is Panther Creek's and their was waaaaay more demanding. It's frustrating that UIL can't move past the rigid shows and always rewarding those types of shows instead of the more fluid shows like Panther Creek. It's whatever but the best 4a band this year was Panther Creek by a long shot. The UIL is just to stubborn...

I agree, super excited to see how many can get into Finals!

Cywoods was robbed I think they should have been in bottom 7 in finals I loved the show all those judges I pray that they find God before I find them.

Thanks😊

Dude I’m here to celebrate everyone! I’m sorry you are so upset. Every band should be proud of their accomplishments. So many bands this year qualified for the competition for the first time, made finals for the first time, and maybe medaled for the first time (Davenport?). I’m thrilled for everyone.

Also to panther creek, your guys show was so incredibly difficult and you guys played it so cleanly. Keep your head up and be proud of your accomplishments.

To davenport, yall did amazing, I love your guys shows.

yall were tied with panther creek so amazing job, i REALLY loved your show this year

we were cheering bc we made state for the first time in school history

8. Gatesville

The cs band kids have taken over this chat

Hebron is now the Hebro HS band

Good job china spring. Yall left it all on the field and played y'all's heart out. Incredible season

My brother in Christ I literally just saw the cleanest show in finals and it came from Celina. The only reason I didn’t put them first is because PC both impressed me and made me cry, which is really hard to do.

They did. By a big margin. Calling them not clean is bizarre.

Lots of great 4A bands in competition today! Davenport, Canyon, Lumberton, Sulphur Springs, and Farmersville all stood out in my opinion. All of those shows were done very well. Definitely thinking a new champ will be awarded tonight, but everyone should be proud. Davenport and Sulphur Springs likely to do very well in finals. Big surprise of the day seems to be Lumberton not advancing to finals. That show was tremendous. Congrats to all and go Davenport!

Panther Creek - great preshow to set the mood. Soprano. Yes. Oh my god woodwinds. Oh my god brass. Oh my god everybody. Yeah Niagara Falls! Oh good lord the brass choir moment with those visuals has me choking up. What a ballad. Oh the closer is just fantastic. I said it last year and I was wrong, but I’ll say it again this year. You’ve just witnessed the State-winning performance. What an incredible performance from 4A State finalist Panther Creek HS!

Davenport - tasty euph solo here. Great opening if not a little top-heavy. Good woodwind feature. Little fuzz in the trumpet double tonguing. Incredible brass choir sound during the flugel solo. Ah, the PR kick out. Man there’s some clarinets. Great woodwind ensemble sound. Wow, what an ending! An outstanding performance from 4A State finalist Davenport HS!

Celina - oh crap that tuning note was tasty. This is undeniably a very talented ensemble. Woodwinds are cleeeeeean. So is brass. Great clarinet choir in the ballad. Solid stuff in Howl’s. Rimsky-Korsakov is going. Okay, there’s the sound you want at the end. An outstanding performance from 4A State finalist Celina HS!

Canyon had a blast in finals. Thanks for all your commentary!

Congratulations to Gatesville on your first finals appearance!! Such a lovely show, that ballad is just so so pretty, love the dance break, that Sax solo is killer, and the Let's go Fly a Kite ending really brings the whole show together. Some really cool visual moments as well, great effect with the props there at the end, great job Gatesville!!

Gatesville - it’s all about the jam with Gatesville. Drumset laying down beats during a PR reference. Even Benedictus is a jam. Then comes the Steven Bryant Bari sax. The ultimate jam. A great performance from 4A State finalist Gatesville HS!

To all my CS friends, lock in, don’t get complacent, put your all on the field, nothing is guaranteed. Go out there and show them why you deserve it. Do not get complacent, go cougs.

What makes North Shore especially impressive is that it is an economically disadvantaged school (I believe title 1) with the vast majority of students considered "low income." And yet, with the disadvantages they face, they field an amazing show.

I’m not sure what the purpose of this post is. But I feel like we can acknowledge that some areas are especially competitive to make state in without dismissing the accomplishments of bands from other areas.

Here is the multicam of all finalists bands except for cedar park. Couldn't get a recording of them. https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1FOiAiEe-iIh_IT9pxxM_wchmgEcAhHqE

I got that placement from a Lumberton band parent's post on Facebook.

Performing in Finals: 7:15: Canyon 7:30: Gatesville 7:45: West Plains 8:00: Calallen 8:15: North Lamar 8:30: Celina 8:45: Davenport 9:00: Panther Creek 9:15: China Spring 9:30: Sulphur Springs congrats to all, see you at finals