South Seven Conference

Last updated

South Seven Conference
Conference IHSA
Founded1939
No. of teams6
Region Southern Illinois and Metro East

The South Seven Conference is a high school athletic conference comprising five schools in the southern Illinois.

Contents

History

The South Seven was formed in 1939 when Centralia and Mt. Vernon departed the North Egyptian Conference and joined Marion, Benton, Harrisburg, Herrin and West Frankfort (hence, the name of the conference since it only had 7 members). Carbondale joined the conference in 1965, but the name of the conference was not changed. [1]

In 1993, the four smallest schools (Benton, Harrisburg, Herrin and West Frankfort) departed for the River-to-River Conference. Edwardsville and O'Fallon were added, with the former being a short-term replacement while a permanent member was sought. In 1995, Edwardsville left for the Southwestern Conference and was replaced by Cahokia. Over the next couple of years, O'Fallon would continue to grow to the point that it was much larger than the rest of the schools, and in 2000 the Panthers also left for the Southwestern Conference, replaced by Belleville Althoff. Throughout the changes, the "South Seven" moniker has remained even though the conference never had exactly 7 member schools in almost 50 years. That was to change for the 2018-19 season, when Granite City was due to leave the Southwestern Conference and join the South Seven, but a vote in March 2018 (a 3-3 tie) denied Granite City's entry into the conference until at least 2020. This vote was based heavily on scheduling issues and the amount of traveling for most of the teams in the conference. [2] [3]

In 2023, Althoff Catholic High School left the conference to join the Gateway Metro Conference.

In 2025, it was announced that Highland High School will be joining the South Seven Conference, effective the 2026-27 school year. Highland, which sports an enrollment of 897, is presently a member of the Mississippi Valley Conference,

Member schools

USA Illinois location map.svg
Blue pog.svg
Cahokia
Black pog.svg
Carbondale
Red pog.svg
Centralia
Green pog.svg
Highland
Blue pog.svg
Marion
Orange pog.svg
Mount Vernon
South Seven Conference Members (clickable map)
SchoolLocation
(City Population)
EnrollmentMascotColorsMembershipFormer Conference
Cahokia High School Cahokia, Illinois
(13,500)
950Comanches  Blue
  White
1995–Present Bi-County Conference
Carbondale Community High School Carbondale, Illinois
(25,000)
1,000Terriers  Black
  White
1965–Present South Egypt Conference
Centralia High School Centralia, Illinois
(12,500)
1,050Orphans/Annies  Red
  White
1963–Present North Egypt Conference
Highland High School Highland, Illinois
(9,800)
890Bulldogs  Red
  Black
2026–Present Mississippi Valley Conference
Marion High School Marion, Illinois
(17,000)
1,100Wildcats  Blue
  Gold
1963–Present South Egypt Conference
Mount Vernon Township High School Mount Vernon, Illinois
(15,277)
1,190Rams/Lady Rams  Orange
  Black
1939–Present North Egypt Conference

Former members of the South Seven Conference

SchoolNicknameColorsLocationYears MemberCurrent Conference
Benton Consolidated High School Rangers   Benton, IL 1939–1993 Southern Illinois River-to-River Conference
Edwardsville High School Tigers   Edwardsville, IL 1993–1995 Southwestern Conference
Frankfort Community High School Redbirds   West Frankfort, IL 1939–1993 Southern Illinois River-to-River Conference
Harrisburg High School Bulldogs   Harrisburg, IL 1939–1993 Southern Illinois River-to-River Conference
Herrin High School Tigers   Herrin, IL 1939–1993 Southern Illinois River-to-River Conference
O'Fallon High School Panthers   O'Fallon, IL 1993–2000 Southwestern Conference
Althoff Catholic High School Crusaders   Belleville, Illinois 2000–2023Gateway Metro Conference

Membership timeline

South Seven Conference

Full membersSouthwestern ConferenceSouthern Illinois River-to-River Conference

See also

References

  1. The Great Conferences/Illinois High School Glory Days
  2. Winston, Curtis (March 27, 2018). "Granite City denied spot in South Seven Conference". The Daily Republican. Retrieved October 13, 2021.
  3. Belleville News-Democrat