Guest Editorial: North Central Conference Marks 100 Years

In November of 1924, Superintendents from Algona, Clarion, Eagle Grove, Hampton, Humboldt, and Webster City met in Eagle Grove where an official agreement was reached to form a new athletic activity conference, initially called the “North Central Six”. Although the first trophies awarded were engraved “North Central Six”, over the following months, the word “Six” was occasionally omitted, leading to the permanent name becoming simply the “North Central Conference”. 

The idea of a new competitive grouping appears to have been hatched a month earlier, in October of 1924, when the Northern Iowa Electric Company of Humboldt offered to present a championship trophy to the school whose basketball team earned the “highest standard” in the upcoming 1924-25 season. Five of the six original NCC members were included in this challenge, with only Hampton omitted. A month later, Hampton was included in the Superintendent’s November gathering at Eagle Grove where the conference was officially formed. Interestingly, one of the first decisions made was to issue a football championship trophy, retroactively, to the school with the highest winning percentage in the then all-but-completed 1924 season. 

Initial activities sponsored by the NCC in 1924-25 were football, boys basketball, and boys track and field. Over the years, fifteen other sports have been added, with Girls Wrestling becoming a new conference sport this year. NCC champions are now crowned in Volleyball, Softball, and Baseball, along with Girls and Boys Cross Country, Wrestling, Basketball, Track, Golf, Tennis, and Soccer. Current NCC members are: Algona, Clarion-Goldfield-Dows, Clear Lake (joined in 1936), Hampton-Dumont-CAL, Humboldt, Iowa Falls-Alden (joined in 1934), St. Edmond (joined in 1993), and Webster City. Charles City will become a transitional member of the NCC in 25-26.