Lebanon to the HHC

[1st_and_10]

Edited December 9, 2025 by 1st_and_10

[Frozen Tundra]

1 hour ago, 1st_and_10 said:

Uh oh. What does this mean for Danville?

[1st_and_10]

14 minutes ago, Frozen Tundra said:

Uh oh. What does this mean for Danville?

No idea, but one has to think they are actively looking to move.  McCutcheon, Harrison, Terre Haute North, & Terre Haute South…. And the Terre Haute schools are consolidating…

[Frozen Tundra]

31 minutes ago, 1st_and_10 said:

No idea, but one has to think they are actively looking to move.  McCutcheon, Harrison, Terre Haute North, & Terre Haute South…. And the Terre Haute schools are consolidating…

Yeah every other school is essentially double their size if not more. I wonder if they might try to go to the HHC as well.

Edited December 9, 2025 by Frozen Tundra

[temptation]

This intrigues me.  Lebanon is in the midst of some growth and could very well be the northwest equivalent of New Pal in the next decade.

[Muda69]

Goodbye Sagamore Conference, you were a good one for many years. 

 

[Coach Nowlin]

Danville to Hoosier ??   Hoosier has been wanting to get bigger and bigger:    

Next year:  as of right now:   Hoosier is: 

West Lafayette

Western 

Hamilton Heights

Logansport 

Twin Lakes 

Benton Central 

Tipton 

Central Catholic 

 

MY OPINION ONLY:   There will come a time where Tipton and BC and maybe even LCC will ask themselves does this make sense anymore.....   It didn't for Delphi, Northwestern, Cass, and Rensselaer

[wabashalwaysfights]

1 hour ago, Coach Nowlin said:

Danville to Hoosier ??   Hoosier has been wanting to get bigger and bigger:    

Next year:  as of right now:   Hoosier is: 

West Lafayette

Western 

Hamilton Heights

Logansport 

Twin Lakes 

Benton Central 

Tipton 

Central Catholic 

 

MY OPINION ONLY:   There will come a time where Tipton and BC and maybe even LCC will ask themselves does this make sense anymore.....   It didn't for Delphi, Northwestern, Cass, and Rensselaer

Danville to Twin Lakes and Tipton seems like a heck of a drive, but travel time seems to matter less and less these days...

Years ago when I was at BC (my goodness, it's been 14 years?), we talked as a coaching staff about getting out of the Hoosier and were always told that BC would never because they were a founding member.  I don't know how true that is or if that attitude persists, but I've always felt that BC would be a good fit in the WRC... and not just in football. 

That said, look at me complaining about drives: BC to SV sounds like torture... I mean, it's a relatively straight shot down 63, but that is a BORING stretch of road...

[EasyEJay]

The Monon members should tell Frankfort to kick rocks in favor of Monrovia whose probably not thrilled with 2 more 4A schools (Shelbyville and Greenwood) being added to the new Legends conference and then a space for Danville to follow their old rival TW . Or Danville takes the vacated Mid-State spot left by Greenwood . Tougher from a competition standpoint but makes a lot of sense . 

[Coach Nowlin]

31 minutes ago, wabashalwaysfights said:

Danville to Twin Lakes and Tipton seems like a heck of a drive, but travel time seems to matter less and less these days...

Years ago when I was at BC (my goodness, it's been 14 years?), we talked as a coaching staff about getting out of the Hoosier and were always told that BC would never because they were a founding member.  I don't know how true that is or if that attitude persists, but I've always felt that BC would be a good fit in the WRC... and not just in football. 

That said, look at me complaining about drives: BC to SV sounds like torture... I mean, it's a relatively straight shot down 63, but that is a BORING stretch of road...

Hour 37 to TL 

Though yes, Hour 45 ish to Western/Heights area 

 

[Frozen Tundra]

20 minutes ago, EasyEJay said:

The Monon members should tell Frankfort to kick rocks in favor of Monrovia whose probably not thrilled with 2 more 4A schools (Shelbyville and Greenwood) being added to the new Legends conference and then a space for Danville to follow their old rival TW . Or Danville takes the vacated Mid-State spot left by Greenwood . Tougher from a competition standpoint but makes a lot of sense . 

Bloomington North already took Greenwood’s spot.

[Muda69]

50 minutes ago, EasyEJay said:

The Monon members should tell Frankfort to kick rocks in favor of Monrovia whose probably not thrilled with 2 more 4A schools (Shelbyville and Greenwood) being added to the new Legends conference and then a space for Danville to follow their old rival TW 

I would support this.  Then the Hot Dogs can join the Hoosier Heartland where they belong.

 

[crimsonace1]

1 hour ago, EasyEJay said:

The Monon members should tell Frankfort to kick rocks in favor of Monrovia whose probably not thrilled with 2 more 4A schools (Shelbyville and Greenwood) being added to the new Legends conference and then a space for Danville to follow their old rival TW . Or Danville takes the vacated Mid-State spot left by Greenwood . Tougher from a competition standpoint but makes a lot of sense . 

Bloomington North has already taken the vacated Mid-State spot. 

[Titan32]

On 12/10/2025 at 6:57 AM, temptation said:

This intrigues me.  Lebanon is in the midst of some growth and could very well be the northwest equivalent of New Pal in the next decade.

Great staff....a program that will rise quickly.

[foxbat]

On 12/9/2025 at 5:12 PM, 1st_and_10 said:

No idea, but one has to think they are actively looking to move.  McCutcheon, Harrison, Terre Haute North, & Terre Haute South…. And the Terre Haute schools are consolidating…

Not sure what the future brings for McCutcheon and Harrison in terms of conferences.  Harrison is a low-enrollment 6A that plays like a mid-level 5A and McCutcheon is a higher-enrollment 5A that plays like a lower-range 5A.  There were barely a fit for the NCC.  Guess they could try to go north into that Portage area, but not sure that works.

[HoopsCoach]

23 hours ago, foxbat said:

Not sure what the future brings for McCutcheon and Harrison in terms of conferences.  Harrison is a low-enrollment 6A that plays like a mid-level 5A and McCutcheon is a higher-enrollment 5A that plays like a lower-range 5A.  There were barely a fit for the NCC.  Guess they could try to go north into that Portage area, but not sure that works.

It’s too bad Harrison and McCutcheon are so far from the rest of the Hoosier Heritage Conference schools Lebanon is joining.  They would be a pretty good fit in terms of their level of competition.  Even though Yorktown is quite a bit smaller, they play above their enrollment in most sports.  Very similar to West Lafayette.  If the schools were not so far apart, a 12 team, 2 division conference like this could be interesting.

Division 1

Harrison (West Lafayette) 2193

McCutcheon 1835

Pendleton Heights 1502

Mount Vernon (Fortville) 1470

Greenfield-Central 1413

New Palestine 1246

Division 2

Lebanon 1067

Danville 848

Yorktown 836

Western 799

West Lafayette 752

Hamilton Heights 709

[foxbat]

19 minutes ago, HoopsCoach said:

It’s too bad Harrison and McCutcheon are so far from the rest of the Hoosier Heritage Conference schools Lebanon is joining.  They would be a pretty good fit in terms of their level of competition.  Even though Yorktown is quite a bit smaller, they play above their enrollment in most sports.  Very similar to West Lafayette.  If the schools were not so far apart, a 12 team, 2 division conference like this could be interesting.

Division 1

Harrison (West Lafayette) 2193

McCutcheon 1835

Pendleton Heights 1502

Mount Vernon (Fortville) 1470

Greenfield-Central 1413

New Palestine 1246

Division 2

Lebanon 1067

Danville 848

Yorktown 836

Western 799

West Lafayette 752

Hamilton Heights 709

I don't know that it would be a huge issue on the distance issue.  I mean those distances are like traveling out to Richmond, Anderson, and Marion when Harrison was back in the NCC.  They'd still likely retain Jeff on their schedule and they could possibly keep West Lafayette and Lebanon on their schedule, so they'd have basically three games in the Lafayette area every season regardless of whether they were home or away, an under 1-hour drive out to Lebanon and probably two 1.5 hour drives a season; assuming bi-annual split with the rest of the big schools.  It'd be something like the following for any two-year cycle:

Year 1

 

• Lafayette Jeff - Lafayette
• West Lafayette - West Lafayette (Home)
• McCutcheon -  Lafayette
• Lebanon - West Lafayette (Home)
• New Pal - New Pal (90 minutes)
• Pendleton Heights - Pendleton Heights (90 minutes)
• Greenfield Central - West Lafayette (Home)
• Mount Vernon -  West Lafayette (Home)
• One of the Catholic Schools like Chatard, Brebeuf or Roncalli - West Lafayette (Home)

Year 2

• Lafayette Jeff - West Lafayette (Home)
• West Lafayette - West Lafayette (Away)
• McCutcheon -  West Lafayette (Home)
• Lebanon - Lebanon (45 minutes)
• New Pal - West Lafayette (Home)
• Pendleton Heights - West Lafayette (Home)
• Greenfield Central - Greenfield Central (90 minutes)
• Mount Vernon - Mount Vernon (90 minutes)
• One of the Catholic Schools like Chatard, Brebeuf or Roncalli (Away - 75, 60, and 80 minutes respectively)

This is just for general illustration as you'd certainly try to avoid playing three games on the road in a row where you'd possibly travel close to 80-90 minutes each week there, but you get the gist.  It's not really as brutal as it seems given that they used to make that Richmond, Anderson, and/or Marion trek in the NCC.  The biggest drawback for Harrison that I see is that the schedule does little to get them ready for 6A post season outside of New Pal, Jeff, and the Catholic schools, but realistically, being in the lower-enrollment ranks of 6A and in a sectional with Carmel, Westfield, and Zionsville, that may well be a moot point for several years to come any way.

[Muda69]

The Harrison/McCutcheon problem?  Easy, split the two high schools into four.   Now you have four schools with enrollment of approx.  900-1000 students which opens up more flexibility for closer conference affiliations with other high schools that are closer in enrollment. 

 

 

 

[crimsonace1]

On 12/10/2025 at 11:57 AM, EasyEJay said:

The Monon members should tell Frankfort to kick rocks in favor of Monrovia whose probably not thrilled with 2 more 4A schools (Shelbyville and Greenwood) being added to the new Legends conference and then a space for Danville to follow their old rival TW . Or Danville takes the vacated Mid-State spot left by Greenwood . Tougher from a competition standpoint but makes a lot of sense . 

I don't see this happening, because the Monon Conference was basically formed because the Sagamore members wanted to stay together, but couldn't kick larger/growing schools Lebanon, Tri-West and Danville out of the league, so they formed their own. 

The Sagamore, unfortunately, is going to end up like Conference Indiana. It's been a marriage-of-convenience conference after the Monon split much like Conference Indiana was for many years, but when members begin to find other homes, the league falls apart. 

[HoopsCoach]

1 hour ago, crimsonace1 said:

I don't see this happening, because the Monon Conference was basically formed because the Sagamore members wanted to stay together, but couldn't kick larger/growing schools Lebanon, Tri-West and Danville out of the league, so they formed their own. 

The Sagamore, unfortunately, is going to end up like Conference Indiana. It's been a marriage-of-convenience conference after the Monon split much like Conference Indiana was for many years, but when members begin to find other homes, the league falls apart. 

Cascade was an interesting choice to include in the new Monon Conference.  I am sure it was based upon proximity to the other schools, but Cascade has been following a similar growth trend to the three schools the SAC members were trying to get away from.  Frankfort has also experienced growth just like the exiled members, but they probably led the charge to get away from the schools with stronger athletic programs.  Here is the 15 year enrollment trend for the schools (growth %).

Saga-No More

Danville +5.66

Lebanon +4.50

Tri-West -1.97

Monon

Frankfort +4.99

Cascade +4.47

Crawfordsville +0.15

Western Boone -15.22

Greencastle -20.52

North Montgomery -25.23

Southmont -35.71

North Putnam -46.60

[Muda69]

12 hours ago, HoopsCoach said:

Frankfort +4.99

And practically zero % of that growth is in students who can/want to participate in extracurricular athletics.  Which is why FHS is a "4A" school with a small 2A/large 1A athletic talent base.  

Edited December 16, 2025 by Muda69

[1st_and_10]

29 minutes ago, Muda69 said:

And practically zero % of that growth is in students who can/want to participate in extracurricular athletics.  Which is why FHS is a "4A" school with a small 2A/large 1A athletic talent base.  

We all know, Muda.  

[Muda69]

1 hour ago, 1st_and_10 said:

We all know, Muda.  

Not even competative:

Membership in the Hoosier Heartland Conference is looking like a better move all the time........

Edited December 16, 2025 by Muda69

[Gipper]

On 12/10/2025 at 8:54 AM, Coach Nowlin said:

Danville to Hoosier ??   Hoosier has been wanting to get bigger and bigger:    

Next year:  as of right now:   Hoosier is: 

West Lafayette

Western 

Hamilton Heights

Logansport 

Twin Lakes 

Benton Central 

Tipton 

Central Catholic 

 

MY OPINION ONLY:   There will come a time where Tipton and BC and maybe even LCC will ask themselves does this make sense anymore.....   It didn't for Delphi, Northwestern, Cass, and Rensselaer

The Hoosier is too big geographically.  BC, LCC, Twin Lakes, and WL would be wise to parter up with Rensselaer to form a new league

[superjay]

Danville needs to apply for membership to the Circle City Conference.  Roncalli, Chatard, Guerin, Brebeuf.  TRI-WEST should do the same once our enrollment reaches 800-1000.  These schools will anyways be in the way come tournament time.  We should both jump into the fight.