This is a list of former high school athletic conferences in the Northwest Region of Ohio, as designated by the OHSAA. If a conference had members that span multiple regions, the conference is placed in the article of the region most of its former members hail from. Because the names of localities and their corresponding high schools do not always match and because there is often a possibility of ambiguity with respect to either the name of a locality or the name of a high school, the following table gives both in every case, with the locality name first, in plain type, and the high school name second in boldface type. The school's team nickname is given last.
The league was created when Columbian, Fremont Ross, and Sandusky left the Little Big 7 league to join with Bowling Green, Findlay, and Fostoria. When Bowling Green and Fostoria left for the Great Northern League (and Tiffin went to the NOL), the league added two schools from the Lake Erie League and rebranded as the Buckeye Conference. The league ended in 1987 as most schools joined either the Buckeye Central Conference or the Erie Shore League.
Bowling Green Bobcats (1934–54, to Great Northern)
Tiffin Columbian Tornadoes (1934–54, to Northern Ohio)
Findlay Trojans (1934–87, to Buckeye Central)
Fostoria Redmen (1934-35.1939–54, to Great Northern)
Fremont Ross Little Giants (1934–87, to Buckeye Central)
Sandusky Blue Streaks (1934–39, 1954–87, to Erie Shore)
Tiffin Junior Order Home Juniors (1938–43, closed)
Marion Harding Presidents (1947–87, to Ohio Heartland)
Elyria Pioneers (1954–87, to Erie Shore)
Lorain Steelmen (1954–87, to Erie Shore)
Lorain Admiral King Admirals (1962–87, to Erie Shore)
Mansfield Senior Tygers (1962–81, to Ohio Heartland in 1987)
A small-school county league, the CCL was organized in 1935 and did not have a change in membership until 1958. Nevada joined in 1961, after the Wyandot County League folded, with the CCL only having four remaining schools. Buckeye Central and Colonel Crawford, two recent consolidations, left for the North Central Conference the following year, with the three remaining schools consolidating into Wynford in 1963.
Chatfield Tigers (1935–60, consolidated into Buckeye Central)
Brokensword Holmes-Liberty Pirates (1935–63, consolidated into Wynford)
Leesville Trojans (1935–58, consolidated into North Robinson)
Lykens Panthers (1935–61, consolidated into Holmes-Liberty)
Monnett Mount Zion Bulldogs (1935–63, consolidated into Wynford)
New Washington Indians (1935–60, consolidated into Buckeye Central)
North Robinson Robins (1935–60, consolidated into Colonel Crawford)
Sulphur Springs Yellow Jackets (1935–60, consolidated into Colonel Crawford)
Tiro Tigers (1935–60, consolidated into Buckeye Central)
New Winchester Whetstone Hornets (1935–58, consolidated into North Robinson)
New Washington Buckeye Central Bucks (1960–62, left for North Central Conference)
North Robinson Colonel Crawford Eagles (1960–62, left for Johnny Appleseed Conference (joined in 1961) and North Central Conference)
Nevada Knights (1961–63, consolidated into Wynford)
(1956–2003)
The GLL existed from fall of 1956 until spring of 2003 before essentially transforming into the Greater Buckeye Conference. It had been born off of the old Great Northern Conference's Orange Division. The following schools were members at some point:
Bowling Green Bobcats (1956–60, 1969–78, to Northern Lakes)
The Great Northern Conference was created shortly after the end of World War II with the inaugural members of Clay, Maumee, Perrysburg, Rossford, Whitmer, and Sylvania. Anthony Wayne would join in 1953 after recently being consolidated. The GNC eventually added several members in 1956, splitting into a big schools division (Orange Division) and small schools division (Blue Division), both which would later split off into the Great Lakes League and Northern Lakes League, respectively.
This conference, the direct precursor to the Firelands Conference, was formed in 1953, as the Huron County League merged with two Erie County members of the old Firelands League, causing the remaining members to form the Lakeland Conference. With four members (and one new consolidation) remaining, the league dissolved and found new members to form the FC.
(1963–1972; 1979–1985)
The Lakeshore Conference were two separate leagues made-up of schools that were in both loops. The original conference was formed in 1963 and folded in 1972 when four of its six members left. The second Lakeshore Conference came into existence around 1979 and folded after the 1985 football season.
The league folded after the 1985 football season when Hopewell-Loudon, North Baltimore, St. Wendelin and Seneca East left for the Midland Athletic League. This left Danbury, Northwood, and Ottawa Hills as independents until Northwood joined the Suburban Lakes League in 1986 and the other two joined the Toledo Area Athletic Conference in 1988.
A short-lived triangular league started by independent schools, the conference lasted five years before two of the three schools joined more established leagues.[2]
Bowling Green Bobcats (1964–69, to Great Lakes League)
Lima Central Catholic Thunderbirds (1964–69, to Miami Valley League)
Defiance Bulldogs (1964–69, to Western Buckeye League 1973)
Formed as Northern Ohio League in 1911 and then renamed Little Big 6 after Bellevue and Fremont Ross join in 1912. Renamed Little Big 7 after Oberlin joins in 1921. Elyria and Lorain replaced by Tiffin Columbian and Willard in 1927. Renamed Little Big 5 after Fremont Ross, Sandusky and Tiffin Columbian leave to form Buckeye Conference and are replaced by Port Clinton. Became Little Big 4 once Oberlin moved to the Southwestern League in 1937, most of the league grouped with other schools under the NOL banner in 1944.
Elyria Pioneers1 (1911–26, to Lake Erie)
Lorain Steelmen1 (1911–26, to Lake Erie)
Norwalk Truckers (1911–44, to Northern Ohio League)
Sandusky Blue Streaks (1911–34, to Buckeye League)
Bellevue Redmen (1912–44, to Northern Ohio League)
Fremont Ross Little Giants (1912–34, to Buckeye League)
Oberlin Indians (1921–37, to Southwestern League)
Tiffin Columbian Tornados (1927–34, to Buckeye League)
Willard Crimson Flashes (1927–44, to Northern Ohio League)
Port Clinton Redskins (1934–44, to Sandusky Bay 1948)
The MVL began in 1931, as four of the larger schools of the Lucas County League joined with Perrysburg and Rossford, two of their larger neighbors nearby in Wood County. In 1945, all of the schools except for Holland (who jumped from the LCL when Point Place closed) left to join the Great Northern Conference, along with LCL team Oregon Clay. The remaining Lucas County teams merged into the MVL. Three of these schools merged to form Anthony Wayne in 1951. After some changes, the league entered its last leg in 1957, when Delta and Swanton left, leaving four members. Within the next three years, three of the four found other conference homes.
Sylvania Burnham Wildcats (1931–45, left to form Great Northern Conference)
Maumee Panthers (1931–45, left to form Great Northern Conference)
Perrysburg Yellow Jackets (1931–45, left to form Great Northern Conference)
Point Place Pirates (1931–37, school consolidated into Toledo City Schools)
Rossford Bulldogs (1931–45, left to form Great Northern Conference)
Toledo Whitmer Panthers (1931–45, left to form Great Northern Conference)
Holland Blue Zippers (1937–60, became Springfield 1960, joined Northern Lakes League 1962)
Delta Panthers (1945–57, to Northwest Ohio Athletic League)
Monclova Cardinals (1945–51, consolidated into Anthony Wayne)
Ottawa Hills Green Bears (1945–59, to Seaway Conference)
Swanton Bulldogs (1945–57, to Northwest Ohio Athletic League)
Waterville Wildcats (1945–51, consolidated into Anthony Wayne)
Whitehouse Tigers (1945–51, consolidated into Anthony Wayne)
Whitehouse Anthony Wayne Generals (1951–53, left for Great Northern Conference)
Temperance (MI) Bedford Kicking Mules (1952–60, to Great Lakes League)
Archbold Blue Streaks (1953–60, to Northwest Ohio Athletic League)
Archbold, Liberty Center, Montpelier, and Wauseon were dual members of the NBL and the NWOAL during the league's entire existence. Evergreen was for the first two years of the league's existence until fully staying in the NBL. See NWOAL for the league history.
The football-only league dissolved in May 1952, prior to the 1952 football season. Distance and low gate receipts were cited as reasons for folding the league. Toledo Waite representatives also mentioned that having to play conference newcomer Toledo Macomber in the Toledo City League would have made it impossible for them to continue playing in both leagues.
An interest in joining the league was expressed by Hamilton, Middletown, Springfield, and Toledo Libbey in 1949, but those schools ultimately decided the travel was too much for them to consider as well.
While containing only Sandusky County teams for most of its existence, at one point the conference had members from four different counties. The league disbanded in 1967, as three of its four remaining schools already had ties with the Lakeshore League, starting in 1963.
Clyde Fliers (192?-34, to Firelands League, 1939–49, to Sandusky Bay Conference)
Gibsonburg Golden Bears (192?-48, to Sandusky Bay Conference)
Green Springs Bobcats (192?-67, to Lakeshore League)
Burgoon Jackson Bruins (192?-60, consolidated into Lakota)
Vickery Townsend Trojans (192?-52, consolidated into Margaretta)
Woodville Panthers (192?-67, to Lakeshore League)
York Panthers (192?-67, consolidated into Bellevue)
Elmore Bulldogs (1948–67, to Lakeshore League)
Jackson-Liberty Bullpups (1959–60, consolidated into Lakota)
Risingsun Tigers (1959–60, consolidated into Lakota)
The smaller schools in Wood County started to organize into leagues in the early 1930s, originally competing in three separate leagues: the Northern Wood County League, Southeast Wood County League, and Western Wood County League. By 1959, consolidation and schools leaving for other leagues had whittled the three leagues down to two, with the Northern and Southeast leagues combining into the Eastern Wood County League. This would only last for one year, as further consolidation caused a merger into a single league. The league ended in 1963, as the number of schools was whittled to three.