Darren Kinnard
Section618.com

Less than two weeks from the kickoff of the 2023 high school football season, a pair of schools in the 618 have announced they will not be fielding varsity teams this fall.

Due to low numbers, Sparta and Vienna/Goreville both made the decisions to forego varsity campaigns this year and play only junior varsity contests.

That leaves 18 teams with decisions to make–take the forfeit win or try to find another opponent for that week.

Sparta plays in the Illinois Division of the Cahokia Conference. The Bulldogs have five conference and four non-conference games. Vienna/Goreville plays in the closed Black Diamond Conference, which means all nine opponents are conference games.

The two schedules are largely comparable, and several teams have already used that to book replacement dates.

In week two, Pinckneyville will now make the short trek east on Rt. 154 to take on Sesser-Valier/Waltonville. Week six will see Wesclin face Eldorado, and week nine West Frankfort will host Hamilton County.