Football and money remains the driving force behind decisions made by school administrators and board members when considering how their school and programs can thrive in the current climate of athletics. The NFL considers expansion in the states and abroad nearly offseason. College football shook up the scene with conference realignments earlier this year. It was only a matter of time for high school sports to follow suit. On Monday, the MIC principals voted to remove Carmel and Center Grove from the conference amid conversations taking place behind closed doors by Carmel and Center Grove seeking to find a new conference home. The two schools may have rubbed MIC members the wrong way with their use of “culturally aligned” preference when considering leaving the MIC. For the near future the MIC will remain with six schools, Ben Davis, Lawrence Central, Lawrence North, North Central, Pike and Warren Central. There’s been rumbling that MIC is looking to get back to eight teams if not ten. Schools to be considered are Asrenal Tech, Franklin Central, Southport or Perry Meridian. All of these schools fit the class 6A size, and travel wouldn’t be a burden for school districts. The MIC could try to lure Indianapolis Cathedral or Decatur Central to join.

As with anything new, there creates a domino effect. The Conference Indiana situation has long been on the table for school administrators over the last ten years. The conference continues to bleed with teams seeking new homes. It was once considered a top three conference for football when Pike and Lawrence Central called Conference Indiana home. Lawrence Central did win the 2012 5A state championship, the largest class at the time in its final season in the conference. Columbus North is an intriguing school for many conferences. The Columbus North athletic program has nearly 40 state championships, coming in at fourth all-time behind Cathedral, North Central and Carmel. Although, none of the titles are in football, the North program did reach the final four three times in the largest classification during the late 2000’s. A push by the Mid-State Conference could add the likes of the Columbus schools and the Bloomington schools. The Mid-State conference has experienced many changes since 1942. Center Grove, Brownsburg and Avon were once apart of the conference. Look for the Mid-State to not sit still and make some noise by creating an even more competitive conference. Could New Palestine and Mount Vernon be on the move? The two programs have football state championships and their addition would immediately create a mega balance to the Midstate.