As for Region 8 i would not surprised if we have several bands at least attempt to attend BOA in some way during 2019. I’m pretty sure the one we had from Region 8 in 2018 was Robinson, and i wouldn’t be surprised to see them do BOA again especially since it is a non state year for 4A. We also have 6A schools such as Belton. From what I recall, Belton was scheduled for a few BOA events in 2018 but could not perform in any due to issues such as weather. With this Being a non state year i would assume they would be headed for BOA again. My band (Midway) looks poised to begin taking steps toward BOA, it might not be logistically sound for us to host both Region 8 UIL and also attend BOA Waco, but we could attend other BOA contests depending on how our schedule shakes out.
But overall your main point about region 8 still stands. Most of our region is smaller programs who have little to no interest in BOA, and i don’t see the contest being held on a weekday anytime soon.