MORGANTOWN — There are big changes on the horizon for the Super Six state football championships.
For starters, it can’t be called Super Six anymore as the WVSSAC has introduced a fourth classification for football, meaning eight teams will now compete in the event.
A change in location could also be imminent, as the contract that kept the championships at Ohio County’s Wheeling Island Stadium has run out.
On Wednesday, the Monongalia County Commissioners voted to support a letter asking the WVSSAC to consider holding the state championships at WVU’s Milan Puksar Stadium in Morgantown and Marshall’s Joan C. Edwards Stadium in Huntington.
“Our state’s two flagship Universities have pursued a strong partnership to ensure this is a successful event for the WVSSAC, the high school athletes, fans and families, as well as the host communities,” reads the letter written by Mon County Commissioner Jeffrey Arnett. “This partnership reflects our athletic departments’ dedication to supporting and promoting high school sports in the state of West Virginia.”
The letter does not outline the details of the partnership between WVU and Marshall but does outline the time frame of 2024-26. Bids to the WVSSAC are due by Jan. 12.
“I think it’s time we be considered,” commissioner Tom Bloom said Wednesday. “At one time it was because we didn’t have enough hotels, but now we have the infrastructure and the facilities, and I think it would be an excellent addition to our community.”
Super Six weekend has been held in Wheeling for three decades. The non-central location in the northern panhandle and aging facilities at Wheeling Island Stadium have drawn criticism from around the state that has intensified in recent years.
“I think it would also be great for the student-athletes to get the opportunity to play at the premiere facility in the state,” Arnett said Wednesday, “and to be part of that Super Six would be a great thing for the county.”
In addition to Morgantown and Huntington, Bluefield is also expected to make a bid to host the championships. Bluefield made a bid in 2020 to host the event in a rotation format that would have alternated between the northern and southern parts of West Virginia every other year.
Having all three state championship games at the same site, dubbed “Super Six”, began in 1978. From 1978-87, they were held at Laidley Field in Charleston. Super Six was held at WVU for one year in 1988 when work was being done at Laidley Field and then returned to Charleston from 1989-1993. Super Six has been held in Wheeling since 1994.
TWEET @DomPostSports
