Conference Challenges: at the high school level?

[PanthersWildcats86]

In college basketball,one of the staples which has developed over the last 20 years is the conference challenge - where one week in late November or early December all the schools from conference A play the schools in conference B. Prime examples would be the Big 10 - ACC Challenge, or the Missouri Valley - Mountain West.

As scheduling seemingly becomes more and more difficult for high school football, might the conference challenge concept be viable for some conferences? Some regular playoff opponents might benefit from playing a regular season game against each other, improving their schedules and filling schedule slots they might otherwise have problems filling. Games like St. Joe Ogden at Wilmington a couple years ago might be easier to schedule in this format...Sure, the concept doesn't work with a 10 team round robin conference, but some of the 6 & 7 school conferences might benefit....

Even better, some of these matchups might benefit from a neutral site...I've always thought that the opportunity to play in a big stadium shouldn't just be for a state title. Maybe do the Challenge at one of the big U's...kind of like the Kickoff at NIU/previously at Soldier Field...Six games at NIU or ISU on Labor Day Weekend perhaps if the U is on the road?

Some possible matchups, probably poorly thought out and perhaps even dumb:

DuPage Valley v. Catholic Blue...2 five team conferences with scheduling issues

Big Northern v. I-8...regular playoff opponents; at NIU?

Illini Prairie v. I-8...again, regular playoff opponents; at ISU?

(Of course, problem no. 1 here is that Big Northern & Illini Prairie are 10 team round robins...)

 

[crusader_of_90]

It makes sense reading it ... I’m sure there will be some opposed to being locked in to possible duds. Can’t just look at marque matchups for this concept to work. Gotta do something with the turds.

Oh - thought of something - maybe it’s a ranking method that determines these matchups after seven weeks and opponents remain fluid - good prep for the coaches too to game plan quickly for a possible unknown.

 

[n2f88]

Weeks 3&4 is CSL - MSL crossover. Not positive but I think they also rank it so each year, the top 2 teams in each conference play each other those 2 weeks. I like it.

 

[Cross Bones]

Is scheduling that much of a problem? How often do we see schools with 8 game seasons because they can't find an opponent? I don't like or dislike the idea, I've thought of it myself but more out of a "wouldn't it be cool" place and not a remedy to scheduling because I don't think it remedies that. Schools that avoid certain matchups will still want to avoid certain matchups whether it's a conference challenge or not. And I could be mistaken but when I hear "we can't find an opponent" HERE I always add "that we want to play" after it because I can usually find better teams finding opponents, just not the tomato cans the school may be looking for.

That said I like a West Suburban v SouthWest Suburban line up.

GBW v LWE
HC v HF
OPRF v LWC
Lyons v LWW
DGN v Sandburg
Hinsdale S v The Brook
Etc

 

[PanthersWildcats86]

It makes sense reading it ... I’m sure there will be some opposed to being locked in to possible duds.

That's part of the point of the crossover...which conference is better at the top, and which conference is better at the bottom...Is otherwise 0-9 Stanford Olympia of the Illini Prairie better than Westmont of the I-8 last year...It gives those teams a realistic shot at a win...without scheduling some CPS dreg...Nobody questions how good Wilmington is, but for years the quality of the rest of the I-8 small was in question...This is a possible comparison opportunity.

 

[woody6]

How about SWSC paired with the SW Prairie?

 

[Wilmatucky]

Starting next year when the I8 is back to just 8 teams again and one conference instead of the stupid big/small split won’t they just use weeks 1-2 for non-con games? Except for Ottawa and St. Joes the last two years it has been since ‘01 since Wilmington has seen an out of conference team. I look forward to playing new teams. I want the competition. I want the road trip to a new site.

I think Ottawa was a great team to play. They aren’t typically good but they were still a 6a school. Spring valley (‘01) was always tough as hell back then so it was great to see where you stand.

 

[PanthersWildcats86]

Starting next year when the I8 is back to just 8 teams again and one conference instead of the stupid big/small split won’t they just use weeks 1-2 for non-con games? Except for Ottawa and St. Joes the last two years it has been since ‘01 since Wilmington has seen an out of conference team. I look forward to playing new teams. I want the competition. I want the road trip to a new site.

When Manteno & Peotone joined the I-8 in 2002, the conference went to the 10 team round robin. The next expansion, adding Herscher & Westmont, and going to two divisions, was all crossover non-conference games. But once some schools started to shrink while others were still growing, some schools wanted tomato cans for non-conference games to try and make the playoffs...Others wanted competition...Wilmo could get the competition it wanted by playing the crossovers (note....Streator never was a crossover or choice, they play for the first time this year). Manteno has never played a regular season game against anyone but an I-8 school...

Seeing Wilmo & Manteno searching for opponents on the IHSA site was interesting...I look forward to them playing different opponents...Manteno at least has played a variety of opponents in the playoffs, having been sent north and south (Rochester, Effingham, Johnsburg)...Wilmo-Byron has almost become an annual playoff event...

But this could be the opportunity for a conference challenge...challenging another 3A/4A conference could be really cool...

 

[Cross Bones]

How about SWSC paired with the SW Prairie?

The marquee matchups wouldn't be as compelling IMO. How would you schedule it?

 

[woody6]

The marquee matchups wouldn't be as compelling IMO. How would you schedule it?

I agree the match-ups might lack pizzazz, but the proximity of schools looks like a natural pairing. The numbers in each conference do not mesh, but the league with the greater number of schools could establish a known rotation so the others out for the year would know they need non-con. Also, some seeding could occur on the cross-over based on last year's record. Probably too involved to actually adopt, however. Won't see it.

 

[MunyonMustGo]

Scheduling isn't really that much of an issue. It's a narrative out their that was created so schools had an excuse to bolt to a lesser level of competition to bolster their win total to try and get a playoff spot.

Look at Westmont, a small school surrounded by nothing but big schools and was forced into becoming an independent without much notice with ease were able to get 9 games. If coaches and AD's do a little work its fairly easy. In fact, its one of the easier things they do in their job.

Conference challenges is a cool idea if you can find conferences with a similar level of play with the exact same number of teams. The SEC/Big XII do their basketball challenge in late January. It gives fans and teams a nice break from conference play. Perhaps a Week 7 challenge would be a nice break for teams in IHSA football.

 

[Irish LB]

Scheduling isn't really that much of an issue.

With all due respect you have no idea what you’re talking about.

 

[MunyonMustGo]

With all due respect you have no idea what you’re talking about.

Name me schools who haven't played 9 games because they couldn't find someone to play?

 

[MunyonMustGo]

How about SWSC paired with the SW Prairie?

SW Prairie has no non-cons. Next season when Yorkville and Aurora West join it may make sense, but the competition level really isn's similar.

 

[Magnum Opus]

With all due respect you have no idea what you’re talking about.

Nor do you Felice!

 

[Magnum Opus]

SW Prairie has no non-cons. Next season when Yorkville and Aurora West join it may make sense, but the competition level really isn's similar.

Go Naz!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[godfthr53]

Name me schools who haven't played 9 games because they couldn't find someone to play?

If it was so easy there wouldn't be so many OOS matchups.

 

[PanthersWildcats86]

Scheduling isn't really that much of an issue...
Look at Westmont, a small school surrounded by nothing but big schools and was forced into becoming an independent without much notice with ease were able to get 9 games.

Westmont was not forced out of the I-8 this year...Seneca left, no one could agree on a new 12th member, and suddenly the Kankakee area six schools and Lisle decided to leave after this year presumably to form a new conference...Streator joined them shortly thereafter...Westmont could have stayed this year instead of playing schools from all over the state and Canada...A school can't screw over conference members the way Westmont did without expecting to get dumped eventually...The Sentinels surely, however, were left homeless after this year.

Manteno, prior to going full varsity in 2002, played three varsity games in 2001 against truly desperate to fill out a schedule opponents. Christ the King is listed on the IHSA website as trying to fill weeks 7&8 this fall, and practice has already started...of course, they could pick up some of the games CPS schools now have open because of other CPS schools dropping football...Or the Northeastern Athletic Conference school who just dropped football (I'm assuming its Rockford Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, enrollment listed at 20...).

 

[Irish LB]

Nor do you Felice!

Close but no cigar. I do know Joe very well as I went to school with him, we talk daily. Should I pass along a message to him?

 

[MunyonMustGo]

Westmont was not forced out of the I-8 this year...Seneca left, no one could agree on a new 12th member, and suddenly the Kankakee area six schools and Lisle decided to leave after this year presumably to form a new conference...Streator joined them shortly thereafter...Westmont could have stayed this year instead of playing schools from all over the state and Canada...A school can't screw over conference members the way Westmont did without expecting to get dumped eventually...The Sentinels surely, however, were left homeless after this year.

Manteno, prior to going full varsity in 2002, played three varsity games in 2001 against truly desperate to fill out a schedule opponents. Christ the King is listed on the IHSA website as trying to fill weeks 7&8 this fall, and practice has already started...of course, they could pick up some of the games CPS schools now have open because of other CPS schools dropping football...Or the Northeastern Athletic Conference school who just dropped football (I'm assuming its Rockford Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, enrollment listed at 20...).

So forced out. You just explained it in more detail. Lol.Stay this year but your done next year. That's a force out. They just expedited the process.

 

[MunyonMustGo]

If it was so easy there wouldn't be so many OOS matchups.

What's wrong with playing OOS schools?

 

[Gene K.]

CCL versus ESCC

 

[PanthersWildcats86]

And I read an article on the Missouri Valley Football site today talking about their challenge with the Big Sky...makes sense for them because the Dakota schools closest non-conference FCS opponents would be Big Sky members...but the amusing thing is, a couple of schools have two games against the other conference...