SHARK Conference

Last updated

SHARK Conference
Conference IHSA
WIAA
Founded1946
Ceased1982
No. of teams17
RegionNorth-central Illinois and South-central Wisconsin (Boone, DeKalb, Lee, McHenry, Stephenson and Winnebago counties in Illinois and Rock in Wisconsin)
Locations
SHARK Conference Illinois Wisconsin.png The SHARK Conference within Illinois and Wisconsin

The SHARK Conference was a high school conference in north central Illinois and south central Wisconsin. The conference participated in athletics and activities in the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) and the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA). The conference included private and public high schools with enrollments between 75 and 2,000 students in Boone, DeKalb, Lee, McHenry, Stephenson and Winnebago counties in Illinois and Rock in Wisconsin. [1]

Contents

History

The name SHARK is an acronym representing the first letter of its 5 charter members. (S outh Beloit, H arlem, A quin, R ockton Hononegah and K irkland-Hiawatha) The SHARK originated as a collection of schools in northern Illinois based primarily on proximity and not on enrollment. By 1953, Kirkland-Hiawatha left the conference and was replaced with Harvard and Marengo, taking the total number of teams to six. In 1955 Freeport Aquin left the conference, however Rockford St. Thomas High School took their place. The conference continued to morph as the 1950s came to a close with North Boone High School joining in 1957 and Richmond-Burton in 1958. Also in 1958, based on the completion of Boylan Catholic High School, St. Thomas dropped out of the conference as their students began transitioning toward a new high school, and Harlem left the league in order to join the Big 8 Conference with the intent of playing competition with similar enrollments.

As the 1960s began, Alden-Hebron High School joined, however, it quickly left in 1964 along with Richmond-Burton. The following season, Winnebago High School and two Beloit, Wisconsin schools joined the conference. The two schools from Wisconsin included; Beloit Catholic High School and Turner High School. Winnebago remained a member of the league until 1972 but left for the Mid Northern Conference. Amboy High School quickly replaced them in 1972, but left after the 1975 season, heading to the newly formed Three Rivers Conference. In 1978, Johnsburg High School joined the league and in 1981, the conference's final season, Woodstock Marian would be added. However, North Boone, Beloit Catholic, and South Beloit all left the conference before the start of the season, leaving the conference with only five teams in its final season. [2]

All-Time Membership

The SHARK Conference had various teams throughout its history, this list of schools encompasses all of the schools which were once a part of the conference.

SchoolLocationCountyMascotColorsYear JoinedYear LeftTotal YearsStill openCurrent Conference
Alden-Hebron
High School
Hebron, IL McHenry Giants   
Green, White, Black
1960 (football)

1959 (other sports)

19645Yes8-Man Football North Division (football)

Northeastern Athletic Conference (other sports)

Amboy
High School
Amboy, IL Lee Clippers   
Red, White, Black
197219753Yes8-Man Football North Division (football)

Northwest Upstate Illini Conference (other sports)

Aquin Catholic
High School
Freeport, IL Stephenson Bulldogs  
Navy Blue, Gold
194619559No*
Beloit Catholic
High School
Beloit, WI Rock Crusaders  
Green, Gold
1964198117No**
Harlem
High School
Machesney Park, IL Winnebago Huskies  
Black, Orange
1946195812Yes Northern Illinois Conference (NIC-10)
Harvard
High School
Harvard, IL McHenry Hornets  
Black, Gold
1953 (football)

1952 (other sports)

198230Yes Kishwaukee River Conference
Hononegah
High School
Rockton, IL Winnebago Indians   
Purple, Gold
1946198236Yes Northern Illinois Conference (NIC-10)
Johnsburg
High School
Johnsburg, IL McHenry Skyhawks  
Blue, Gold
197819824Yes Kishwaukee River Conference
Kirkland-Hiawatha
High School
Kirkland, IL DeKalb Hawks  
Navy Blue, Gold
194619537Yes8-Man Football North Division (football)

Little Ten Conference (other sports)

Marengo
High School
Marengo, IL McHenry Indians  
Maroon, White
1953 (football)

1952 (other sports)

198230Yes Kishwaukee River Conference
Marian Central Catholic
High School
Woodstock, IL McHenry Hurricanes   
Columbia Blue, White, Red
198119821YesIndependent;

Joining the upcoming Chicagoland Christian Conference in 2023

North Boone
High School
Poplar Grove, IL Boone Vikings  
Green, White
1957198124Yes Big Northern Conference
Richmond-Burton
High School
Richmond, IL McHenry Rockets  
Maroon, Gold
195819646Yes Kishwaukee River Conference
St. Thomas Catholic
High School [3]
Rockford, IL Winnebago Tommies  
Purple, White
195519583No***
South Beloit
High School
South Beloit, IL Winnebago Sobos  
Scarlet Red, White
1946198135Yes8-Man Football North Division (football)

Northeastern Athletic Conference (other sports)

Turner
High School
Beloit, WI Rock Trojans  
Blue, Gold
1965 (football)

1964 (other sports)

19695YesRock Valley Conference
Winnebago
High School
Winnebago, IL Winnebago Indians  
Orange, Black
196419728Yes Big Northern Conference

*Aquin Catholic High School would close in 2024.
**Beloit Catholic High School would close in 2000.
***St. Thomas Catholic High School would close in 1962.
Sources:IHSA Conferences, [4] IHSA Coop Teams, [5] and IHSA Member Schools Directory [6]

Membership timeline

SHARK Conference

Full membersNon-football members

References

  1. IHSA.org Enrollments
  2. "IllinoisGloryDays.com". Archived from the original on April 23, 2016. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
  3. IllinoisGloryDays.com
  4. IHSA.org Conferences
  5. IHSA.org Cooperative Agreements
  6. IHSA.org Schools Directory