DARLINGTON - The Darlington football team's play in the Southwest Activities League will be history after next season.

The WIAA Board of Control approved a football-only conference realignment plan Tuesday that affects seven conferences and 48 schools in southwest Wisconsin. In the plan, Darlington (207 students) will play in an eight-team conference beginning in 2019 with Mineral Point (199), La Crosse Aquinas (289), Cuba City (238), Fennimore (238), Iowa-Grant (172), Lancaster (270) and Onalaska Luther (222).

"I think it is a good thing for most of the schools in the plan," Darlington Activities Director Kurt Cohen said. "There is some opposition from some schools in the plan because of the increased travel. It's our thought that the plan would do more good than harm. Once the schools get over being happy or sad for each school, hopefully we can see that it's for the good of the group."

A driving force for the conference realignment in southwest Wisconsin arose from dwindling football numbers in some schools and a need to have more competitive teams in various conferences, Cohen said.

"A real fear when we started considering this plan was that many schools would end up without a team and having programs die out and losing football," Cohen said.

The WIAA Board amended its football-only realignment plan for the region at a January meeting after giving initial approval in March. The board issued a one-year moratorium on conference plans, according to a WIAA release.

The Wisconsin Football Coaches Association is working on a statewide conference realignment plan it is hoping to unveil and have ready by 2020, Cohen said.

"It will be a challenging conference," Cohen said, referring to the potential one year before the state plan takes effect. "Our new coach (Travis Winkers of Markesan) is looking forward to it. He's not shy about the competition."

The Six Rivers and Ridge and Valley conferences will also be affected by the realignment. Both Belmont (99) and Highland (82) will leave the Six Rivers Conference and join the Ridge and Valley for 2019. The WIAA has the Six Rivers as an eight-team conference in 2019, but Shullsburg (117) approved a switch to eight-man football in January for 2019, which could mark the first year of the Black Hawk-Warren football co-op.

"I think you can kind of be nostalgic down the line, but change is inevitable," said Cory Milz, Black Hawk principal and football coach. "In southwest Wisconsin, each school's enrollment numbers are dropping. Schools like Belmont, Highland, Shullsburg and Black Hawk are finding it difficult to field two teams with a junior varsity and varsity. I think they (Belmont and Highland) felt it was a competitive and safety advantage to move with Pecatonica-Argyle and larger teams in our conference."

Both the Black Hawk and Warren school boards have approved of the football co-op to start with the 2019 season.

The Six Rivers Conference and WIAA have not yet approved of the co-op, which has to be submitted to the WIAA by February 2019.

"The Six Rivers Conference has done a straw poll of superintendents and it looks like if the straw poll stands, it would be approved," Milz said. "It's not a done deal yet."

Milz said Shullsburg will likely not be a part of the Six Rivers Conference in 2019.

"That will be another problem because now we will have to get three nonconference games," Milz said.