Genesee Area Conference
The Genesee Area Conference (GAC) is a high school athletic conference in Genesee County, Michigan. It was original called the Genesee Eight Athletic Conference.[1] Since 2002, the GAC operates with two divisions: Blue and Red.[2] In 2019, all members of the red division left to join the Flint Metro League conference, leaving the GAC with only four teams.
| Formerly | Genesee Eight Conference |
|---|---|
| Sport | high school |
| Founded | 1978 |
| Country | {USA} |
History
The Genesee Eight Athletic Conference began in 1978[1] with three high schools from the Genesee County B League[3] and five from the Mid-Eastern Eight Conference.[4] Beginning in 1999, the Conference renamed itself to Genesee Area Conference with the addition of Genesee High School bring up the number of High Schools to ten. The Genesee Wolves also took the Football championship that year.[5] With the 2002 football season, the GAC split the Conference into two divisions (Blue and Red) of six high schools [6] with the addition of Mt. Morris and Lakeville High Schools.[2] In recent years, however, it has lost a large number of members, as in 2018, six of its members broke off from the conference to form the Mid-Michigan Activities Conference, and three of its members left to join the Flint Metro League. 2019 saw it gain a member in Flint Southwestern, but also lose a member in Bentley.
Member schools
Current members
| Team | Location | Class | Enrollment | Joined | Previous Conference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Burton Bendle Tigers | Burton | C | 393 | 1978[1] | Mid-Eastern Eight Conference[4] |
| Flint Southwestern Knights | Flint | B | 772 | ||
| Flint Hamady Hawks | Mt. Morris Township | A | 944 | 2019 | Saginaw Valley League |
| Flint Beecher Bucs | Mt. Morris Township | C | 327 | 2009[7] | Independent |
Former members
| Team | Location | Joined | Previous Conference | Departed | Successive Conference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linden Eagles | Argentine Township | 1978[1] | Genesee County B League[3] | 1982 | Independent[8] |
| Montrose Rams | Montrose | 1978 | Mid-Eastern Eight Conference | 2018 | Mid-Michigan Activities Conference |
| New Lothrop Hornets | New Lothrop | 1982 | Independent | 2018 | Mid-Michigan Activities Conference |
| Byron Eagles | Byron | 1991 | Mid-State Athletic Conference | 2018 | Mid-Michigan Activities Conference |
| Goodrich Martians | Atlas Township | 1978 | Mid-Eastern Eight Conference | 2019 | Flint Metro League |
| Corunna Cavaliers | Corunna | 2014 | Capital Area Activities Conference | 2019 | Flint Metro League |
| Lake Fenton Blue Devils | Fenton Township | 1978 | Genesee County B League | 2019 | Flint Metro League |
| Burton Atherton Wolverines | Burton | 1978 | Mid-Eastern Eight Conference | 2019 | Defunct |
| Pontiac Notre Dame Prep Fighting Irish | Pontiac | 2018 | Independent | 2019 | Independent |
| Genesee Wolves | Genesee Township | 1999 | Southern Thumb Athletic Association | 2018 | North Central Thumb 8-Man League |
| Otisville LakeVille Falcons | Otisville | 2002/2017 | Flint Metro League/Tri-Valley Conference | 2013/2018 | Tri-Valley Conference/Mid-Michigan Activities Conference |
| Mount Morris Panthers | Mount Morris | 2002 | Flint Metro League | 2018 | Mid-Michigan Activities Conference |
| Durand Railroaders | Durand | 2005 | Mid-Michigan Athletic Conference - B | 2018 | Mid-Michigan Activities Conference |
| Dryden Cardinals | Dryden Township | 2010 | North Central Thumb League | 2013 | North Central Thumb 8-Man League |
| Webberville Spartans | Webberville | 2010 | Independent | 2013 | Southern Michigan 8-Man Football League |
| Morrice Orioles | Morrice | 2010 | Independent | 2014 | Central Michigan 8-Man Football Conference |
| Perry Ramblers | Perry | 2012 | Capital Area Activities Conference | 2014 | Greater Lansing Athletic Conference |
| Burton Bentley Bulldogs | Burton | 1978[1] | Genesee County B League[3] | 2019 | Independent |
Football
This conference championship list goes through the 2018 season. Morrice and Webberville complete in the Central Michigan 8-Man Football Conference.
| # | Team | G8/GAC Championships | State Division Championships |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Montrose | 1981, 1983-1985, 1988-1996, 1998-2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2011-2013 | 1998 (Class CC), 2002 (Division 5) |
| 2 | New Lothrop | 1983, 2002-2006, 2010-2017 | 2006 (Division 8), 2018 (Division 6) |
| 3 | Lake Fenton | 1978, 2005-2007, 2016-2017 | |
| Goodrich | 2003, 2004, 2008, 2010, 2015, 2018 | ||
| 4 | Flint Hamady | 1979, 1980, 1982, 2007, 2018 | |
| 6 | Burton Bendle | 1986, 1987, 1997 | |
| 7 | Mt. Morris | 2003, 2005 | |
| Genesee | 1999, 2009 | ||
| Flint Beecher | 2009, 2014 | ||
| 10 | Linden | 1981 | |
| Burton Bentley | 2008 | ||
| Corunna | 2015 |
References
- Genesee Eight Athletic Conference 1978 Football Season
- 2002 Michigan High School Football Standings: Genesee Area Conference Red Division
- Michigan High School Football: 1977 Michigan High School Football Standings -- Genesee County "B" League
- Michigan High School Football: Michigan High School Football Standings -- Mid-Eastern Eight Conference 1977
- 1999 Michigan High School Football Standings: Genesee Area Conference
- 2002 Michigan High School Football Standings: Genesee Area Conference Blue Division
- 2018 Michigan High School Football Standings: Genesee Area Conference
- Michigan High School Football: Linden Eagles