Illinois High School Association (IHSA) member schools approved eleven amendment proposals in the annual by-law referendum that ended December 17, 2018, including a proposal to implement a district scheduling system for football starting with the 2021 season. The online ballots were tabulated and certified in the IHSA Office on Tuesday, December 18. 

Proposal 23 (passed 324-307-69): Directs the IHSA to implement a football scheduling system for regular-season varsity games that would involve the following: (a) a 9-week regular season, (b) playoff classes determined in advance of the season; (c) schools from each class placed into 8 geographic groups by the IHSA Office to play a round-robin schedule; (d) the remaining games on the regular season schedule to be arranged by the individual schools at their discretion; (e) the top 4 teams in each of the 8 groups qualify for the playoffs, based on games played within each group. This proposal will take effect starting with the 2021 football season.

That means beginning in 2021, Mt. Carmel will no longer play football in the Big 8 Conference.