Marching Band Advancement and Ranking Procedures

To determine a state marching band champion the UIL advancement process consists of *five rounds:

1. Region contest (all bands)
2. Area contest preliminary round (open class)
3. Area contest final round (open class)
4. State contest preliminary round (open class & military class)
5. State contest final round (open class & military class)

*1A open class bands and all military class bands have only three rounds: 1) region contest, 2) state contest preliminary round, and 3) state contest final round. Also, in cases where there are less than 10 bands at the area contest there will be only four rounds: 1) region contest, 2) area contest preliminary round, 3) state contest preliminary round, and 4) state contest final round. 

Region Contest

Each music region shall hold a marching band contest every year and each participating band shall perform for ratings. There shall be no designation of class (open or military).  Each year when entering the region contest each band intending to advance beyond the region contest shall declare either open class or military class for the next round(s) of competition. Any varsity marching band that has followed the procedures established by the region executive committee to indicate to the region executive secretary the intent to advance beyond the region contest and that receives a Division 1 rating at the region contest shall be certified for advancement.

*There is no 1A area contest. Should three or fewer 1A varsity bands in a region receive a division 1 rating, any conference 1A varsity band that has followed the procedures established by the Region Executive Committee to indicate to the Region Executive Secretary the intent to advance to state and that receives a Division 1 rating at the region contest shall be certified for advancement to the state contest. Should four or more 1A varsity bands in a region receive a division 1 rating, all 1A varsity bands in the region receiving a division 1 rating shall be ranked using the procedures outlined on the UIL website and the three 1A varsity bands receiving the highest ranking shall be certified for advancement to the state contest. In addition, one band for each two bands receiving a division 1 rating ranked below third place shall be certified for advancement to the state contest. 

Area and State Contest: Preliminary Round and Final Round

If there are 9 or fewer bands that qualify for an area contest the preliminary round will stand as the final round. 

If there are 9 or fewer bands in a state contest the top 5 bands will advance from the preliminary round to the final round. In addition, in the five-judge system only, any band below fifth place that receives a ranking of three or higher from at least two of the music judges and one of the visual judges will also advance to the final round. 

If there are 10 to 19 bands that qualify for an area contest or 10 to 19 bands in a state contest the top 7 bands will advance from the preliminary round to the final round. In addition, in the five-judge system only, any band below seventh place that receives a ranking of three or higher from at least two of the music judges and one of the visual judges will also advance to the final round. 

If there are 20 to 29 bands that qualify for an area contest or 20 to 29 bands in a state contest the top 10 bands will advance from the preliminary round to the final round. In addition, in the five-judge system only, any band below tenth place that receives a ranking of three or higher from at least two of the music judges and one of the visual judges will also advance to the final round. 

If there are 30 or more bands that qualify for an area contest or 30 to 39 bands in a state contest the top 12 bands will advance from the preliminary round to the final round. In addition, in the five-judge system only, any band below twelfth place that receives a ranking of three or higher from at least two of the music judges and one of the visual judges will also advance to the final round. 

If there are 40 or more bands in a state contest the top 14 bands will advance from the preliminary round to the final round. In addition, in the five-judge system only, any band below fourteenth place that receives a ranking of three or higher from at least two of the music judges and one of the visual judges will also advance to the final round.

Advancement from Area Contest to State Contest

The State Marching Band Contest will be held on the following schedule:

(1) Odd Numbered Years: Conferences 5A, 3A and 1A.

(2) Even Numbered Years: Conferences 6A, 4A and 2A.

1. 2A/3A/4A Certification. In conferences 2A/3A/4A the music area shall certify the three bands receiving the highest ranking in each conference to the state marching band contest. Should twenty or more bands qualify for advancement in a single conference for the area contest, one band for each five bands that qualifed for advancement to the contest shall be certified for advancement to the state contest.
2. 5A/6A Certification. In Conferences 5A/6A the music area shall certify the two bands receiving the highest ranking in each conference to the state marching band contest. Should fifteen or more bands qualify for advancement in a single conference for the area contest, one band for each five bands that qualifed for advancement to the contest shall be certified for advancement to the state contest.
3. In addition, in area contests advancing two bands, any band that receives a ranking of two or higher from at least two of the music judges and one of the visual judges shall also advance to the state contest.  In contests advancing three or more bands, any band that receives a ranking of three or higher from at least two of the music judges and one of the visual judges shall also advance to the state contest.

Procedure for Ranking Bands

The following procedure will be used to rank the bands at area and state: 

1. In the five-judge system the adjudication panel will consist of 3 music judges and 2 visual judges. In the seven-judge system the adjudication panel will consist of 4 music judges, 2 visual judges, and 1 content/design judge. 
2. At the conclusion of each contest round (prelims and finals) each judge's raw score will be used to determine that judge's ranking of the bands. In each conference the band receiving the highest numerical score from a judge will be assigned first place by that judge, the next highest score will be assigned second place and so on until a ranking (ordinal) for each band is determined by all judges.
3. Each judge's ranking (ordinal) for each band will then be added together. The high and low will NOT be eliminated. All scores will count.
4. The final ranking will then be determined by assigning the band with the lowest ranking (ordinal) total first place, the next lowest ranking (ordinal) total second place and so on until the band with the highest ranking (ordinal) total is listed last.
5. A two-way tie will be broken by using judge's preference. For example:

   	Music Judge 1	Music Judge 2	Music Judge 3	Visual Judge 1	Visual Judge 2	Rank (Ordinal) Total
   Band A	1	2	3	4	5	15
   Band B	2	3	1	5	4	15

    

   Both Bands end up with an ranking (ordinal) total of 15 resulting in a tie. However, the tie can always be broken by determining which band was ranked highest by at least three judges. In this case, Band A would be selected because judges 1, 2 and 4 ranked Band A over Band B.
6. A 3-way or 4-way tie will be broken using judge's preference. Thus, the ranking (ordinal) that each judge gave each band involved in the tie is used to determine which band each judge "preferred".  The following example details how this procedure was applied in a 4-way tie that occurred in an actual UIL state finals.  
   At the conclusion of the contest the results were as follows:

The first three places are clear. However, places 4 through 7 are locked in a 4-way tie with a rank of 24 for each of the 4 bands. The issue now becomes a matter of determining what is the "preferred" ranking of each judge for the 4 bands involved in the tie. The following procedure will apply.

The first step is to determine which band each judge preferred. That band will be assigned a rank 1 for that judge and all other bands will receive a rank 2. The results are as follows:

Heritage has a total rank of 8 and the other three bands have a total rank of 9, thus Heritage is ranked first and there is now a 3-way tie between the remaining three bands. The procedure is applied again:

Fossil Ridge has a total rank of 9 and the other two bands have a total rank of 8, thus Fossil Ridge is ranked fourth and there is now a 2-way tie between the remaining two bands. The procedure is applied again:

Dickinson is preferred by three of the judges and the final tie is now broken.

Final Rank for the four bands is:

• Colleyville: Heritage
• Dickinson
• Poteet
• Keller: Fossil Ridge

In the rare event that an unbreakable 5-way tie occurs the final ranking
will be determined by the rank score of the three music judges.

G. Ties need not be broken unless they affect a band selected to advance to the next round or the band selected as an alternate.
H. At the conclusion of each round, there may be a verification period during which directors will have the opportunity to review the tabulation of the final rankings. The following procedure will be observed:

1. One representative from each school will be permitted to review the tabulation and ranking recap.
2. If all present agree that there is no error in the tabulation process, then the results will become official and will be made public.
3. If there is a protest regarding the tabulations, the rankings will be held and a final judgement made by the State office.
4. There can be no future protest of rankings after the results are announced as official.
5. A director not present during the verification period forfeits the opportunity to protest.

I. All tabulations and other results will be made available to the directors after the contest is completed.

Area Contest Champion and State Contest Champion

As in area prelims and state prelims, ranking in area finals and state finals will be determined by adding each judge's ranking (ordinal) for each band.  The band with the lowest rank (ordinal) total will be declared the champion of the contest. Exception: In the five-judge system only, a band that receives a first place ranking from at least two of the music judges and at least one of the visual judges, will be declared the champion of the contest. Second place and below will then be determined by rank (ordinal) totals.