Northern Wisconsin Conference

The Northern Wisconsin Conference is a former high school athletic conference in north central Wisconsin. The conference only existed for one season (1955-1956), and all members were affiliated with the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association.

History

{{OSM Location map

| title =

| coord = {{coord|45.1000|-89.7500}}

| float = right

| zoom = 7

| width = 250

| height = 250

| mark-size1=10

| mark-title1=Antigo

| mark-coord1 = {{coord|45.1339|-89.1756}} | mark-description1=Location:

| shape-color1=#6f2c3f | shape1=circle

| mark-title2=Marshfield

| mark-coord2 = {{coord|44.6714|-90.1546}} | mark-description2=Location:

| shape-color2=#e35205 | shape2=circle

| mark-title3=Merrill

| mark-coord3 = {{coord|45.1911|-89.6710}} | mark-description3=Location:

| shape-color3=#0032a0 | shape3=circle

| mark-title4=Rhinelander

| mark-coord4 = {{coord|45.6482|-89.4000}} | mark-description4=Location:

| shape-color4=#00843d | shape4=circle

| caption = Location of Northern Wisconsin Conference Members

| auto-caption=

| wrap=wrap}}

The origin of the Northern Wisconsin Conference lies in the competitive imbalance that developed in the Wisconsin Valley Conference. The WVC was formed in 1921{{Cite news |date=30 September 1921 |title=Antigo Giants Here Saturday for First Game |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/451042764/?match=1&terms=%22wisconsin%20river%20valley%20conference%22 |access-date=20 November 2024 |work=Marshfield News-Herald |pages=7}} and is one of the oldest conferences still operating in Wisconsin. It consisted of the largest high schools in the north central part of the state, and Wausau High School was widely considered the most powerful school in the conference from an athletic standpoint. Their football program, led by Hall of Fame coach Win Brockmeyer,{{Cite web |last=Wisconsin Sports Network |date=1 March 1980 |title=Win Brockmeyer |url=https://www.wifca.org/news_article/show/141392 |access-date=18 January 2025 |website=Wisconsin Football Coaches Association}} had produced numerous conference championships, a record 46-game winning streak, two Hall of Fame players (Elroy "Crazylegs" Hirsch and Jim Otto) and a Heisman Trophy winner (Bruce Smith, Minnesota, 1941). The smaller schools found it difficult to compete, and by the early 1950s, schools like Nekoosa and Tomahawk began to leave the WVC to seek out more competitive options elsewhere.{{Cite news |last=McCormick |first=Henry J. |date=3 April 1955 |title=Playing the Game with Henry J. McCormick |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/404759162/?match=1&terms=%22lumberjack%20conference%22%20standings%20tomahawk |access-date=20 November 2024 |work=Wisconsin State Journal |pages=53}}

In 1955, the four smallest schools in the Wisconsin Valley Conference (Antigo, Marshfield, Merrill and Rhinelander) left to form the Northern Wisconsin Conference.{{Cite news |last=Associated Press |date=30 June 1954 |title=Northern Wisconsin Conference Formed |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/250363620/?match=1&terms=%22northern%20wisconsin%20conference%22%20standings |access-date=20 November 2024 |work=Stevens Point Journal |pages=13}}{{Cite news |date=28 March 1955 |title=Expect Discussion on Valley's Future |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/250408591/?match=1&terms=%22lumberjack%20conference%22%20standings%20tomahawk |access-date=20 November 2024 |work=Stevens Point Journal |pages=6}} The three remaining schools (Stevens Point, Wausau and Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln) continued interscholastic competition under the WVC banner, and the Northern Wisconsin Conference schools continued to schedule Lincoln and Stevens Point as regular non-conference opponents.{{Cite news |date=11 November 1954 |title=Point, Rapids Domination of Valley Cage Race Threatened |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/267690625/?match=1&terms=%22northern%20wisconsin%20conference%22%20standings |access-date=20 November 2024 |work=Marshfield News-Herald |pages=16}} The four NWC schools excluded Wausau from any athletic competition, and scheduling became difficult due to their size. In 1956, Wausau joined with four other large high schools (Eau Claire, La Crosse Central, Marinette and Menominee (Michigan)) to form the Big Rivers Conference,{{Cite news |last=Associated Press |date=24 April 1956 |title=Wausau, Four Other Schools to Play Next Fall |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/12450672/?match=1&terms=wausau%20%22big%20rivers%20conference%22 |access-date=20 November 2024 |work=The Rhinelander Daily News |pages=6}} and the two remaining WVC schools (Lincoln and Stevens Point) rejoined with the four NWC schools to reform the Wisconsin Valley Conference.{{Cite news |last=Lewis |first=Ben |date=13 April 1956 |title=WVC Reorganization Is Almost Certainty |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/12447965/?match=1&terms=%22northern%20wisconsin%20conference%22%20standings |access-date=20 November 2024 |work=The Rhinelander Daily News |pages=6}}