Central State Eight Conference

The Central State Eight Conference is a high school athletic conference in the Illinois High School Association (IHSA), based in Central Illinois. While the name implies that the conference has eight schools, there are actually ten schools currently active, due to other schools changing conference affiliations. The conference was established in time for the 1993-1994 school calendar year.

The impetus of the conference formation can be traced as far back as 1981-1982, originating from the remnants of the defunct Capitol Conference. At that time, the existing Big Twelve Conference membership of Bloomington, Champaign Central, Danville, Stephen Decatur, Lincoln, Mattoon, Springfield & Urbana voted to drop Springfield and add existing Capitol Conference members Champaign Centennial, Decatur Eisenhower, Decatur MacArthur & Normal Community, as well as Rantoul. As a result, the Capitol Conference dissolved, leaving its remaining members (Jacksonville, Springfield Lanphier, Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin & Springfield Southeast), as well as Big Twelve Conference castoff Springfield, to find new homes.

Jacksonville joined the short-lived Greater Midwestern Conference (along with Chatham Glenwood, Hannibal (Missouri), Macomb & Quincy Notre Dame) for five years, then become an independent. Springfield, Springfield Lanphier & Springfield Southeast joined Pekin, Peoria Bergan, Peoria Central, Peoria Manual, Peoria Richwoods, Peoria Spalding & Peoria Woodruff in the Mid-State # Conference (where # indicated the number of active members at that given time). Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin competed as an independent. With these five schools desiring to re-establish local rivalries and reduce travel expenses, the Central State Eight Conference came to fruition.

Original membership included Chatham Glenwood, Jacksonville, Lincoln (from the Big Twelve Conference), Springfield, Springfield Lanphier, Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin, Springfield Southeast & Taylorville (from the Apollo Conference). Since its inception, Taylorville (following 2013-2014, returning to the Apollo Conference) has departed and Rochester (from the Sangamo Conference, starting 2010-2011), Decatur Eisenhower (from the Big Twelve Conference, starting 2014-2015) & Decatur MacArthur (from the Big Twelve Conference, starting 2014-2015) have entered. Lincoln has departed for the Apollo Conference following the 2016-2017 school year, with Normal University joining at that beginning of the 2017-2018 school year from the Corn Belt Conference.

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