As area coaches crowded into a room at the Region IV Educational Service Center awaiting the release of the University Interscholastic League's biennial realignment Friday morning, only one thing was certain: There would be some surprises.

Perhaps Cypress Ridge football coach Gary Thiebaud summed it up best.

"We've done this so much now that we know it's going to happen. You can't change it. You just take what they give you and go make the best of it," he said.

Now that the dust has settled and the UIL's football and basketball alignments are official for the 2008-09 and 2009-10 school years, coaches will begin work on scheduling. But one thing has become crystal clear — the Houston area continues to grow at a rapid pace.

Growth appears to be is happening across the state as well, and that is evident when looking at the enrollment cutoffs for each classification. Class 5A schools begin at an enrollment of 2,085 and up, which is significantly higher than the cutoff at the 2006 realignment (1,985 and up). Class 4A schools range from 980-2,084, 3A ranges from 430-979, 2A is 200-429 and 1A will be 199 and below. Every classification saw an increase in its cutoff number.

Schools that made classification changes include Dickinson, Seven Lakes and New Caney (4A to 5A); Kingwood Park (3A to 4A); Lee, Magnolia, Stratford and Westbury (5A to 4A); Huffman (4A to 3A); and the North Houston High School for business (2A to 1A).

Greater Houston picked up an extra Class 5A district. Region III (Districts 17-24) is still an all-greater a greater Houston region, and three districts (13-5A, 14-5A and 15-5A) reside in Region II. District 13-5A consists of Klein ISD, Spring ISD and Tomball, while 14-5A houses Conroe ISD, Lufkin and New Caney. which moved up from 4A. District 15-5A is Cy-Fair ISD, which returns to Region II for the first time since 2003.

"We've done that before (as a district)," Theibaud said. "We didn't think it would happen though because of travel. I know my (athletic director) is not real happy right now."

Other notable surprises include a pair of six-team 5A districts in Region III. The new 17-5A is all Katy ISD — Cinco Ranch, Katy, Katy Taylor, Mayde Creek, Morton Ranch and Seven Lakes. District 21-5A consists of Baytown Lee, Baytown Sterling, Beaumont West Brook, Channelview, North Shore and Port Arthur Memorial.

"That was a real surprise," Galena Park ISD athletic director Ed Warken said. "When you have a six-team district, you have to have five non-district (football) games. It's not always easy to find those."

Katy ISD athletic director Rusty Dowling saw some positives in his six-team district.

"That's a good deal," Dowling said. "The only disadvantage (of a six-team district) is today — trying to find (non-district) games. Administratively, we like it. We make our own district decisions, and we basically control everything."

Strake Jesuit moves to its third new district since joining the UIL, and it became a convenient move for the Crusaders, as they joined 18-5A with Alief ISD and Spring Branch ISD minus Stratford, which dropped to 4A.

"I think it's good. It's a closer location for us," Strake Jesuit football coach Ron Counter said. "For travel time it's fantastic, especially for varsity and sub-varsity games on Tuesday nights (for non-football sports)."

Aldine ISD, currently is in 18-5A with Spring Branch ISD, now joins Humble ISD 5A schools (Atascocita, Humble, Kingwood) in the new 19-5A. Districts 20-5A, 22-5A and 23-5A saw little change — 20-5A remains all Houston ISD and loses Lee and Westbury to 4A. District 22-5A loses North Shore but gains Pearland, and 23-5A is still all Fort Bend ISD. Dickinson is in the new 24-5A, which also adds new school Clear Springs to current 24-5A members Alvin, Ball, Brazoswood, Clear Brook, Clear Creek and Clear Lake.

In Class 4A, the area retained districts 18 through 24, and there were fewer wholesale changes than in Class 5A. District 18-4A brings in Magnolia and Magnolia West while losing Livingston to 20-4A, where the Lions will join Golden Triangle-area schools. District 19-4A looks similar to the current 21-4A with Barbers Hill, C.E. King, Crosby, Galena Park, Forest Brook and Smiley joined by Dayton, Kingwood Park and new school Goose Creek Memorial.

Houston ISD comprises Districts 21-4A and 22-4A, while 23-4A looks like the current 24-4A and vice versa. In 23-4A, Stratford joins Bay City, El Campo, Foster, Lamar Consolidated and Terry. District 24-4A consists of Angleton, Brazosport, Friendswood, La Marque, Manvel, Santa Fe, Texas City and the new Pearland ISD school, Dawson.

Stratford may very well have the toughest transition in terms of travel. The Spartans go from being with their fellow Spring Branch ISD schools and Aldine ISD to schools as far as 70 miles away.

Because of that, Spring Branch ISD is appealing Stratford's move, hope to get the Spartans, who were 29 students below the cutoff, in 18-5A with the remainder of the school district. The deadline to file an appeal is Feb. 14. The UIL will hear all appeals Feb. 21.

"It's a big concern," Stratford football coach Eliot Allen said. "Financially, it'll be a strain on the district, and it'll be tough on our kids to go play a basketball game in Bay City on a Tuesday night."