Last Thursday, the Board of Directors of the Arkansas Activities Assocation voted on classifications and new football conferences for the 2024-26 cycle.
Classifications are based on enrollment and in the cases of private schools, what the AAA calls “competitive equity,” which means if the private school is good, it gets moved up a classification. Then schools are roughly sorted by geography into eight-school leagues.
The wrinkle, for this cycle, is that if a private school got bumped rather then playing in a larger conference, a public school gets moved down a class. As is the case across the state. But more on that later.
The classifications and conferences can be viewed by clicking here.
For North of the River schools, it means Maumelle, Central Arkansas Christian and North Little Rock will all be facing different schools this coming football season and the one after.
Little Rock Christian, Pulaski Academy, Shiloh Christian and Harding Academy each accrued enough points to move up one classification based on Competitive Equity.
Maumelle, fresh off the 5A playoffs, stays in the 5A-Central and the Hornets will welcome Searcy, down from 6A, to the league. Searcy has the enrollment of a 6A school but private schools shuffling into 7A and 6A meant some schools dropped and Searcy is but one example.
The rest of the league will look familiar but Mills dropped to 4A while Morrilton went to the 5A-West.
5A Central
Beebe
Jacksonville
Maumelle
Pine Bluff
Robinson
Searcy
Watson Chapel
White Hall
North Little Rock also remains in the 7A Central but Little Rock Christian and Pulaski Academy have both been moved to the state’s largest classification due to their success in football over the year.
Those schools coming in meant Fort Smith Southside and Jonesboro – the two smallest schools in 7A are headed to 6A and the previous awkward split of having Fort Smith Northside playing in central Arkansas ends as the Grizzlies will be back in the 7A-West.
7A Central
Bryant
Cabot
Conway
LR Central
LR Christian
LR Southwest
Pulaski Academy
North Little Rock
CAC’s sensational season didn’t earn the Mustangs enough equity points to move them into 5A but the team is still on the move.
This past season, CAC was in the 4A-4 with mostly River Valley schools. That won’t be the case as the school will be in the 4A-2 for the next two seasons.
That doesn’t mean the foes won’t be familiar as Lonoke and Riverview in Searcy are back on the conference schedule. The Mustangs will also welcome Mills to 4A. Travel is also reasonable with the longest road trip for a conference game will be Forrest City.
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New conference football foes for Maumelle, CAC, North Little Rock
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Last Thursday, the Board of Directors of the Arkansas Activities Assocation voted on classifications and new football conferences for the 2024-26 cycle.
Classifications are based on enrollment and in the cases of private schools, what the AAA calls “competitive equity,” which means if the private school is good, it gets moved up a classification. Then schools are roughly sorted by geography into eight-school leagues.
The wrinkle, for this cycle, is that if a private school got bumped rather then playing in a larger conference, a public school gets moved down a class. As is the case across the state. But more on that later.
The classifications and conferences can be viewed by clicking here.
For North of the River schools, it means Maumelle, Central Arkansas Christian and North Little Rock will all be facing different schools this coming football season and the one after.
Little Rock Christian, Pulaski Academy, Shiloh Christian and Harding Academy each accrued enough points to move up one classification based on Competitive Equity.
Maumelle, fresh off the 5A playoffs, stays in the 5A-Central and the Hornets will welcome Searcy, down from 6A, to the league. Searcy has the enrollment of a 6A school but private schools shuffling into 7A and 6A meant some schools dropped and Searcy is but one example.
The rest of the league will look familiar but Mills dropped to 4A while Morrilton went to the 5A-West.
5A Central
Beebe
Jacksonville
Maumelle
Pine Bluff
Robinson
Searcy
Watson Chapel
White Hall
North Little Rock also remains in the 7A Central but Little Rock Christian and Pulaski Academy have both been moved to the state’s largest classification due to their success in football over the year.
Those schools coming in meant Fort Smith Southside and Jonesboro – the two smallest schools in 7A are headed to 6A and the previous awkward split of having Fort Smith Northside playing in central Arkansas ends as the Grizzlies will be back in the 7A-West.
7A Central
Bryant
Cabot
Conway
LR Central
LR Christian
LR Southwest
Pulaski Academy
North Little Rock
CAC’s sensational season didn’t earn the Mustangs enough equity points to move them into 5A but the team is still on the move.
This past season, CAC was in the 4A-4 with mostly River Valley schools. That won’t be the case as the school will be in the 4A-2 for the next two seasons.
That doesn’t mean the foes won’t be familiar as Lonoke and Riverview in Searcy are back on the conference schedule. The Mustangs will also welcome Mills to 4A. Travel is also reasonable with the longest road trip for a conference game will be Forrest City.
4A - 2
Bald Knob
CAC
Forrest City
Heber Springs
LR Hall
LR Mills
Lonoke
Riverview