The Allegheny Mountain League and Keystone Shortway Athletic Conference voted Wednesday to dissolve their varsity football leagues in order to create one District IX Football League Association. The new football league schedules and constitution will take effect at the conclusion of the 2017 PIAA Football Championships. After several years of discussion and observation, the majority of administrators across District IX voted to establish one league as a step in helping to establish a more equitable playing field among the football-hosting schools.
While the new league didn’t announce its structure in the release, sources tell WESB that there would be a Large School Division consisting of 10 schools playing a nine-game league schedule and a Small School North Division and a Small School South Division with each division having six schools in it. The Small School Division teams would play every school in their division once and “crossover” to play schools in the other division for four games. The Large School Division would include Bradford, Kane, Punxsutawney, St. Marys, Brockway, Brookville, Clarion, Karns City, Moniteau, and Ridgway. The Small School North Division would include Otto Eldred, Smethport, Port Allegany, Sheffield, Coudersport and Cameron County.
Former Bradford Athletic Director and current District 9 Football board member Tim Walter was instrumental in the process.