SPRINGDALE — College football isn’t the only place where conferences are expanding and changing formats.
The Northwest Arkansas Junior High Conference will split into two divisions with the addition of two teams this season from Springdale and Harrison. The expansion was necessary with the addition of the Lakeside Screaming Eagles, the new junior high in east Springdale. Lakeside has been placed in the East Division along with Harrison, which agreed to be placed in the league on a noncompeting basis for scheduling purposes only.
The conference needed another team to avoid a quirky 11-team membership that can make scheduling difficult and lead to open playing dates. Other teams in the East Division include Bentonville Gold, Springdale Southwest and Rogers Heritage. The West Division will consist of Bentonville Black, Springdale Central, Springdale George, Fayetteville Ramay, Rogers High and Siloam Springs.
“It’s exciting any time you do something differently, but there is also some apprehension,” Bentonville Black coach Chris Hutchens said. “We’ve had a lot of discussions back-and-forth, and this is the best solution we could come up with.”
Play will begin Sept. 5 with Rivalry Week, where teams from the same town play one another. Week 10 is Championship Week, where the first-place teams in each division play each other. The format continues in descending order with the second-place teams playing each other, then third place, fourth place and so on.
The winner between the first-place teams is the overall NWA Conference champion. Only games between teams within a division will be counted in the standings. Those games will occur during the second half of the season after teams open with nonconference opponents.
“I like this format where only division games count in deciding the league championship,” Fayetteville Woodland coach Bobby Crockett said. “This way, if you have some injuries or bad games early, you can still come back and regroup. It makes it exciting and gives the kids something to continue playing for.”