The Northwest 8 Conference was a high school conference in northwest and north central Illinois. The conference participated in athletics and activities in the Illinois High School Association. The conference included small public high schools with enrollments between 75-600 students in Boone, Carroll, DeKalb, Jo Daviess, Lee, Ogle, Stephenson, and Winnebago counties.
History The conference was composed of teams from the short-lived original Upstate Illini Conference (1974 to 1976). The first year of competition was 1977 with eight charter schools: Ashton, Durand, Franklin Center, Leaf River, Milledgeville, Mt. Carroll, Pearl City and Rockford Lutheran. The primary reason for the creation of the league was football-based. All of the teams from the Upstate Illini with football, except for Orangeville High School, merged into a conference of like sized schools. Prior to the 1982 season Rockford Lutheran left the conference, moving to the Prairie Conference. In 1985, a significant change in structure occurred as Kirkland-Hiawatha left the Trailblazer Conference and joined the Northwest 8, Ashton and Franklin Center began their coop and Leaf River dropped football, leaving the league with 6 teams for football. In 1987, the conference began talks with the Upstate Illini to create a league that would be divided into divisions with equal numbers for all sports, including football. In 1988, North Boone, South Beloit, Warren and River Ridge joined the conference while Rockford Lutheran rejoined. Even though the league was re-branded in 1988, the official final year of competition was 1990 in order to realign football schedules.
Based on the fact that there were originally 8 teams, the conference maintained the name Northwest 8 even when the total number of schools dropped below or increased beyond that total. The league eventually rose to 12 teams and due to the increased number, talks for a re-branding of the Northwest 8 took place in 1987. In 1988, the idea of moving back to the Upstate Illini provided an opportunity to eliminate a conference name that included a number, and competition for all sports, with the exception of football, was established. In 1991, football schedules were set with 6 teams in the North Division: Durand, North Boone, Pearl City, Rockford (Lutheran), Elizabeth (River Ridge)-Warren (coop) and South Beloit and the South Division: Ashton-Franklin Center, Kirkland-Hiawatha, Milledgeville, Mt. Carroll, Mt. Morris and Polo.
Member schools
School Location Mascot Colors Year Joined Year Left IHSA Classes A/AAIHSA.org Enrollments IHSA Music ClassIHSA.org Music History IHSA Football ClassIHSA.org Football History AshtonHigh School Ashton, IL Aces Green, Gold 1977 1985* A - 1A Ashton-Franklin Center Ashton, IL Raiders Black, Gold, White 1985* 1991 A - 1A DurandHigh School Durand, IL Bulldogs Royal Blue, White 1977 1991 A C 1A Franklin CenterHigh School Franklin Grove, IL Eagles Maroon, Gold 1977 1985* A A 1A Kirkland-HiawathaHigh School Kirkland, IL Hawks Navy Blue, Gold 1985 1990 A D 1A Leaf RiverHigh School Leaf River, IL Demons Royal Blue, White 1977 1990 A C 1A MilledgevilleHigh School Milledgeville, IL Missiles Orange, Black 1977 1991 A D 1A Mount CarrollHigh School Mount Carroll, IL Hawks Purple, Gold 1977 1991 A D 1A Mt. MorrisHigh School Mt. Morris, IL Mounders Red, Black 1990 1991 A C 1A North BooneHigh School Poplar Grove, IL Vikings Green, White 1989 1991 A C 2A Pearl CityHigh School Pearl City, IL Wolves Red, White, Black 1977 1991 A D 1A Polo CommunityHigh School Polo, IL Marcos Blue, Gold 1990 1991 A C 1A River RidgeHigh School Elizabeth, IL** Wildcats Navy Blue, Grey 1988 1991 A D Coop w/Warren Rockford LutheranHigh School Rockford, IL Crusaders Purple, White 1977, 1986 1982, 1991 A C 2A South BeloitHigh School South Beloit, IL Sobos Scarlet Red, White 1989 1991 A C 1A WarrenHigh School Warren, IL Warriors Orange, Black 1988 1991 A D 1A * Ashton and Franklin Center began a sports CoOp in 1985, creating a new mascot and school colors. Sources:IHSA ConferencesIHSA.org Conferences, IHSA Coop Teams,IHSA.org Cooperative Agreements and IHSA Member Schools DirectoryIHSA.org Schools Directory
Membership timeline
River Ridge became a consolidated school district in 1986, combining Elizabeth High School and Hanover High School, both coming from the Upstate Illini Conference
References
External links Ashton-Franklin Center High School Durand High School Kirkland-Hiawatha High School Milledgeville High School North Boone High School Pearl City High School Polo High School River Ridge High School Rockford Lutheran High School South Beloit High School Warren High School West Carroll High School