IPS Football

With low participant numbers is IPS Football facing extinction?

With a long lineage of great teams as well as great players and coaches the reality is the once very competitive schools of IPS have diminished. This year the IPSAC Conference was disbanded and now all that play football are now considered Independents. Tech, Northwest, John Marshall, Broad Ripple, Shortridge, and George Washington are the only IPS schools standing while Howe, Manual, and Arlington have been taken over by the state and are no longer affilitated with IPS. Crispus Attucks does not field a football team.

What has happened to a system that has produced over 90 Indiana Football All Stars since 1969? Gone are the epic backyard and crosstown battles between George Washington and Northwest, Arlington and Broad Ripple, Manual and Howe, Tech and Attucks, John Marshall and Attucks.




Coach Watford

Coach Springer



Coach Schultz

Last IPS Team to reach a Sectional Championship game. 2004 Northwest 9-2



Delmario Lasley of Northwest



Dr. White and a pair of Hornets 2011

Enoch DeMar, Tech 1999



James Brewer, Arlington 2005



Manual Redskins 2007



1939 Tech Titans



Paul Spicer, Northwest 1994



Rosevelt Colvin, Broad Ripple 1995



Stacy Toran, Broad Ripple 1980

Arlington's Mr. Football Derrick Ellis



Game Changer McMichel , Northwest 1985





Jimmy Adams Northwest 2004



Changing times and socio-economic conditions have both been the root cause for the decline not on in IPS football, but the entire IPS system. Gone are the days were families wanted to live in the inner city. It seemed back in the early 90's the suburb bug was rampant and this only hurt IPS, because during this time Ben Davis, Warren, North Central, the Lawrences all had pretty competitive athletics. You can say the shift was on and many did not look back. IPS during this time was still quite competitive, but today the proof is in the product being put on the field on friday nights! The Tech Titans, Broad Ripple and  John Marshall are the  IPS football teams with a winning records (2-0) (1-1) and (1-1) respectively. Northwest and  Washington are both (0-2) and probably will not see a victory until they play one another. Just think these two once very respected football progams battling to see who will not go winless...heart wrenching!

Let's hope that this is a trend that will see IPS football rise from the ashes and again become competitive as a whole.