Football-only conference proposal revealed
If the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association football-only conference plan that was revealed Monday is passed in its current form, football in southeast Wisconsin will have a much different look in 2020.
Catholic Memorial, one of the Classic 8’s most storied programs would move to the Woodland West. Port Washington and Grafton, long-standing members of the North Shore, would be shifted to the East Central and Woodland East, respectively. West Allis Central would depart the Woodland West and, much to its chagrin, return to the Greater Metro.
Those are some of the shifts that would be in line for southeast Wisconsin if the proposal receives final approval from the WIAA Board of Control. In all 19 of the area’s 92 schools (20.7%) would moved. That percentage is slightly higher than the statewide rate of 18.5% (72 of 390).
The plan’s announcement is the latest attempt to solve one of the trickier issues the WIAA has on its plate: competitive balance in football. The sport is the only one the WIAA offers that requires teams to play their way into the postseason. As a result the organization has been hit with a number of foot-
ball-related conference realignment requests over the years.
The plan is similar to the one the WIAA proposed in 2009, however, with concern over some of the groupings and the process by which it was crafted, that plan failed to get the necessary support. This time, with the coaches leading the charge for the plan there is a much greater chance of it being adopted.
Uniformity sought
Success in football is tied greatly to participation numbers, and schools of similar enrollments often have rosters that are similar in size. The WFCA ad hoc committee that formed the leagues kept that in mind.
The objective of the plan is to bring uniformity to the conference model for the sport so most leagues have eight teams. Those conferences that don't have eight teams will have a nearby league to play crossover games against and those games will count toward a the conference record. The exceptions to that rule will be the Midwest Classic and Big East, nine-team leagues that will still play seven-game conference schedules.
Conference games and crossovers would be played in Weeks 3 through 9 statewide. The format means all teams playing 11-man football in the state will have seven conference results, needing to win four to automatically qualify for the playoffs. With the current conference alignments, teams can qualify for the postseason with as few as two conference wins or needing as many as five.
The proposal calls for a re-evaluation or realignment of the football-only leagues every two years with realignment request to be made by Feb. 1 of the odd number year of the cycle. The requests would be heard by a committee made up of WIAA members, WFCA Board of Directors and athletic directors or administrators.
What’s next?
The plan will be discussed at area meetings around the state in September. Adjustments to the plan can be made by the WIAA Board of Control. The plan could be voted on for final approval by the board as soon as December.
Who could benefit?
Here are a couple of thoughts. Catholic Memorial: It could be argued that Crusaders, who won a state title in Division 3 as recently as 2016, don’t need to leave the Classic 8. However, a move makes sense given the criteria the WFCA followed. Plus there is a physical toll to be paid for a school that faces schools twice as large or more each week. Memorial has a great track record of beating the big boys, but how long will it continue to beat the odds?
Grafton: The Black Hawks have had teams in recent years talented enough to compete in Division 3. The program has been getting into the playoffs in the North Shore, primarily a Division 2 league these days. Grafton hasn't been to the playoffs since 1997. It will still be one of the smallest schools in the Woodland East, but should have a better chance of achieving success.
Wauwatosa East and Wauwatosa West: Formerly split into different conferences, the Wauwatosa district requested its schools be placed in the same league, the Woodland, during the last round of realignment. Instead the two were played into the Greater Metro, a conference where Tosa East’s football program struggled to compete for a number of years. Tosa West and Tosa East finished seventh and eighth, respectively, in the nine-team league this past season. Success won’t be guaranteed in the Woodland, but there a greater potential to build there.
Who will be looking for relief?
Not every school is going to be happy with the results. This is just an educated guess of what schools will be among the first looking for relief if the proposal passes in its current form.
West Allis Central: The Bulldogs return to the Greater Metro in the plan. The school, which is a member of the Woodland West, was moved out of the GMC before last year, a change made to address the socioeconomic issues that made it difficult for the school to compete in the Greater Metro. Central's football team had an especially tough time.
Waukesha North and Waukesha South: These two schools have traditionally faced an uphill battle in football in the Classic 8. Not only is the league filed with districts with single high schools that don’t have to worry about spreading the talent of their youth programs, but within the Waukesha district the two have to compete with Waukesha West for students.