Some Ill. Coaches Hope Title Games Stay Central

Some Illinois high school football coaches hope the departure of half of the state's high school championship games from Champaign doesn't mean they will move to Chicago.

Tuscola coach Rick Reinhart's team won the Class 1A championship last November at Memorial Stadium on the University of Illinois campus. He told The News-Gazette in Champaign that's where the games should be played.

But that's no longer possible every year. The Illinois High School Association said this week that it will need to look for new locations because Big Ten expansion means Illinois will need its stadium over the championship weekend every other year.

Reinhart and St. Joseph-Ogden coach Dick Duval both say they hope a central location can be found rather than settling on Chicago.