Conference realignment hits Lenawee County
Conference realignment hit Lenawee County last fall and it might not be over.
All of the area conferences were affected with the exception of the Southeastern Conference, which has remained intact from last season in both the red and white divisions.
Here’s a look at the changes in the other conferences:
The biggest change came in the Cascades Conference, which leaped from eight schools to 12 by adding Brooklyn Columbia Central, Jonesville, Homer and Leslie.
“We were being proactive, not setting back waiting for something to happen,” said Addison athletic director and football coach Joshua Lindeman. “The smaller schools were worried that some day maybe the bigger schools in our conference would maybe join together with a different set of schools and then we’d be left without a league.
“We saw expansion as a way to protect our conference.”
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Once the chips fell into place and the Cascades had its 12 teams, they split into two divisions, making scheduling simpler and creating a true conference championship game.
Addison is part of the West Division, which includes Columbia Central, Jonesville, Hanover-Horton, Homer and Vandercook Lake, although Vandercook Lake does not have an 11-man football team this season.
On the East side are East Jackson, Grass Lake, Leslie, Manchester, Michigan Center and Napoleon.
Lindeman said the conference will crown one league champion for football.
“If individual schools want to celebrate or hang a banner that says ‘West Division Champions’ then the league is OK with that," Lindeman said. "But we aren’t going to recognize it per se. The league champion will be the winner of the game between conference leaders. We think that will create a lot of buzz, a lot of excitement.”
The first season in the new format should have a great battle for the top of the conference in football. Addison returns a lot of veterans and, although it is missing some pieces, should contend for a league title and probably be in the mix for a state ranking.
LENAWEE COUNTY ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION
Columbia Central bolting for the Cascades Conference meant the LCAA was looking for one team to fill the void. That team was Madison.
It seems a natural fit for Madison, which has been growing in its number of students for years. Other schools applied to the LCAA, but the league officials remained steadfast on eight schools.
Scott Gallagher, Madison football coach, said the Trojans are excited to get started in a new league.
“It’s different, but the kids are excited for it,” he said. “We want to be competitive, come to play every night. We know it is not going to be easy.”
Moving conferences means some new rivals. Blissfield and Madison, for example, are about 10 miles apart but have never played varsity football.
“That should be a great rivalry,” Blissfield coach Ron Estes said. “We’re close by. Why not?”
TRI-COUNTY CONFERENCE
The TCC replaced Madison with Lenawee Christian for all sports except football, which leaves the league hanging on with just five 11-player football teams – Sand Creek, Erie Mason, Summerfield and Whiteford. That means each TCC team had to find five non-conference opponents.
Several of the league teams found some connection with the Big 8 Conference or the Toledo Area Athletic Conference, although there is no official partnerships or alignment with those conferences.
TRI-RIVER 8
There will be a new conference champion in the Tri-River 8 because Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian, who went undefeated a year ago, is no longer part of the conference. Also gone is Vandercook Lake, who didn’t field a team last year for most weeks.
That leaves the league with Britton Deerfield, Morenci, Concord and Vermontville Maple Valley.
BD and Concord will play twice this season – one in a non-league game.
SCAA
Another league to go through a realignment is the Southern Central Athletic Association, who have now split into an East and West for 8-player football. That means a new schedule for Lenawee Christian who is in the East with Camden-Frontier, Litchfield, North Adams-Jerome, Pittsford, Tekonsha and Waldron.
For all other sports, LCS will be in the TCC.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: Conference realignment changes Lenawee County sports
