Board Approves Football-Only Conferences
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The Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Board of Control passed a statewide football-only conference realignment proposal and supported a raise in ticket prices for Sectional and State Tournaments at its April meeting.
The Board unanimously approved its final consideration of the football-only conference proposal crafted by the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association. First approval of the plan was granted by the Board with a 9-2 vote at its meeting in March. Membership rules required a 40-day window for schools involved in realignment plans to appeal the first consideration of the Board before it took final action today. Fifteen schools filed concerns or appeals of the initial vote by the April 10 deadline and were presented to the Board.
The plan, which will be implemented in the 2020 season, gives uniformity to the number of schools affiliated with a conference and makes certain programs have enough conference games for playoff qualification. The Belleville Wildcats football team will be a part of the SWAL conference, along with Parkview/Albany, Lancaster, Fennimore, Cuba City, Darlington and Mineral Point. New Glarus/Monticello will join River Valley, Platteville, Dodgeville, Brodhead/Juda, Richland Center and Prairie du Chein in the Southwest conference. The full realignment proposal may be viewed at https://www.wiaawi.org/Portals/0/PDF/News%20Releases/2018-19/fbconferences_final.pdf.
“As I indicated when the Board gave its initial support of the plan, this was an enormous undertaking and a groundbreaking venture for the WIAA,” Executive Director Dave Anderson said. “This was a good-faith effort, and there was openness to alternative ideas, ‘big-picture’ thinking, and widespread acceptance of the final decision. It’s also important to convey that at any time there is 100 percent agreement of all impacted members, relief can be fast-tracked.”
In the future, football-only realignment will follow the conference realignment procedures approved by the Board at its meeting in January.
The Board voted to increase the ticket price of sectional tournament events by $1 from $5 to $6, and to increase State Tournament tickets $2 for those tickets currently priced at $6 and $8. It’s the first ticket increase at the sectional level since 2014 and at the State level for a majority of sports since 2004. Ticket prices for the State Boys and Girls Basketball Tournaments remain unchanged.
Revenue from the increase in ticket prices will allow for an increase in game fees paid to regional and sectional contest officials and tournament game managers, as well as an increase in school State Tournament travel reimbursement, tournament game officials travel reimbursement and WIAA Board and committee travel expenses.
The membership of the WIAA oversees interscholastic athletic programs for 511 senior high schools and 49 junior high/middle level schools in its membership. It sponsors 27 championship tournament series for boys and girls in 2018-19. For more information, please contact the WIAA office at (715) 344-8580.
