WFAA announced Tuesday that the station will broadcast the Plano Senior High School vs. Eastwood High School of El Paso football game live on Thursday, September 5 from 7-10 p.m. on the station.
The game will be played at The Ford Center at The Star in Frisco. It is the first time that WFAA has aired a local high school football game in its entirety during primetime on the station.
“It’s been a sensitive time between these two cities since the massacre in El Paso,” said Carolyn Mungo, WFAA vice president/station manager.
The accused shooter in the El Paso killing spree graduated from Plano Senior High School. “This football game will be about healing, and WFAA is proud to take part in that effort,” added Mungo.
Longtime WFAA sports icon Dale Hansen will provide color commentary for the broadcast, and Mike Leslie will handle the play-by-play. WFAA sports anchor Joe Trahan, and news anchor Cynthia Izaguirre, are scheduled to report from the sidelines.
In addition, WFAA will stream the game on its digital platforms. The live stream will appear on all TEGNA Texas station websites across the state. TEGNA owns stations in 11 Texas markets including: KHOU (Houston), KENS (San Antonio), KVUE (Austin), KXVA (Abilene), KBMT/KJAC (Beaumont), KIII (Corpus Christi), KWES (Midland-Odessa), KIDY (San Angelo), KYTX (Tyler-Longview), KCEN (Waco-Temple) and KAGS (Bryan-College Station).
WFAA has been raising money to benefit victims of the violence in El Paso through the sale of a specially designed “Don’t Hate in My State” t-shirt designed locally by Bullzerk. T-shirt sales will continue during the game. 100-percent of the proceeds will go to the El Paso Victims Relief Fund, established by the Paso del Norte Community Foundation. The station plans to make a check donation during the broadcast.
CLICK HERE TO ORDER SHIRT: 'Don't hate in my state' T-shirt proceeds to go to El Paso victims relief fund
KVIA, the ABC affiliate in El Paso, is also planning to carry WFAA’s coverage of the football game live on the station’s main channel.
“This means the entire El Paso market will have an opportunity to cheer on their local team,” added Mungo. “It can be difficult to come together on many things these days,” she added. “But there is something about football in Texas. We hope this will be more than just a game.”
Preempted network programming (The LEGO Movie) the evening of the football game will be scheduled late night on the station. Check WFAA.com/TV for listings and details.
