From The Houston Chronicle

Aug. 26, 2004, 1:25AM

Reliant invites high school games

Doubleheader kicks off what coaches, players hope will become business as usual

By SARAH HORNADAY

Playoff games in the Reliant Astrodome have been a time-honored tradition. And with the Astrodome's future as a football stadium in doubt, high school teams have hoped Reliant Stadium would open its doors to them. This season, it has.

Saturday marks the first two high school football games at Reliant Stadium, the home of the Texans that opened in 2002. Defending Class 5A Division II state champion Katy plays A&M Consolidated in the 2 p.m. first game. In the 5 p.m. game, Class 5A Division I state finalist The Woodlands meets Eisenhower.

"I think it's going to be a good game," Katy senior James Aston said. "It will be similar to the Alamodome, but bigger."

Aston has seen his share of big stadiums; the Tigers have played in the Astrodome and San Antonio's Alamodome. But those experiences don't make playing in Reliant less special.

"You get a buzz out of it each time you run out on the field, no matter how many times you've done it," Aston said. "It gets you pumped up."

Limited window

When Reliant Stadium opened, it raised the hopes of high school fans for a new playoff venue. That first year, the only open week for a game was the week of the Division II state championship game. But no Class 5A team from this area played in that game.

Last season, the only possible date was the week of the Division II state championship game, but Katy and Southlake Carroll wanted a neutral site.

Despite the small scheduling windows of the last two seasons, SMG-Reliant Park, the company that books events at Reliant Park, has worked toward scheduling high school games such as the doubleheader this weekend. It hopes to make the kickoff event an annual affair and expand it to out-of-area teams in 2006.

"We have been looking at a high school football classic at Reliant Park for a while," said SMG-Reliant Park president and general manager Shea Guinn. "Now that the field has matured, this looked like a great year. To the extent the scheduling works, we want to give schools the opportunity to play in the stadium."

Scheduling challenge

Area high school fans hope a big crowd will encourage Reliant officials to schedule more games. Maintenance of the grass field and working in between other Reliant events always will make scheduling games at Reliant a challenge. But for this year — and next when the four teams switch opponents and return — the players and coaches are excited.

"I don't know if it will lead to more games," The Woodlands coach Mark Schmid said. "But I'm tickled to play Saturday."

The doubleheader is a low-profile answer to the Texas Football Classic at the Alamodome. The Alamodome hosts five games over three days, including Kempner vs. Pearland at 3:30 p.m. Saturday. The event, which began in 1999, annually has scheduled some of the marquee teams from each region for a kickoff event.

Baytown Lee played in San Antonio in 2002.

Port Arthur Memorial played its first football game in San Antonio in 2002.

And Katy is no stranger to events like the one Saturday at Reliant. The Tigers played in the first Texas Football Classic in 1999. Coach Gary Joseph just wants to make sure his players are focused on the game and not the stadium.

"A&M Consolidated will give us all we can handle," Joseph said. "This is a neat deal (for the players). Sometimes you can make too big a deal out of it and not do well. I have to make sure they don't get too hyped up."