Athletics
The Monmouth Warren High School Warriors competed in many different sports. Boys were offered baseball, basketball,
track & field, and (as you will see) the pride and joy of the school, football. Girls were offered volleyball,
track & field, softball, and basketball.
Conference information, as listed by alumnus Jason Linger (2001), is as follows:
WHS became a member of the Lincoln Trail Conference (LTC) in the 1998/99 school year and prior to that
it's entire existance had been as a member of the Bi-County Conference. Several football titles had been won in the
Bi-County.
The Bi-County ceased to exist as a football conference after the end of the 1997 season. It's members
at the end were the Warren Warriors, (Stronghurst) Southern Rebels, (London Mills) Valley Vikings, (Sciota)Northwestern/LaHarpe
Thunder co-op, Avon/Roseville Cougars co-op, Alexis Cardinals, (Biggsville) Union Yankees, and the Yorkwood Golden Bears.
The Lincoln Trail Conference during Warren's tenure with the conference consisted of WHS, Alexis Cardinals,
Annawan Braves, Union Yankees, (Joy) Westmer Warriors, and the (Woodhull) AlWood Aces in the West division and (Toulon)
Stark County Rebels, Princeville Princes, (Kewanee) Wethersfield Flying Geese, Galva Wildcats, Cambridge Vikings, and the
(Oneida) R.O.W.V.A. Tigers in the East. Football was the only sport in which divisions existed.
The successes at the school, as listed on the IHSA web site (
www.IHSA.org), are listed below.
Football
Warren County and western Illinois are definately parts of a football "hotbed". The Warren High School Warriors
excelled in this sport for the entire 46 years of its existence. Most noteably, the boys of the late 1980s, 1990s, and
early 2000s truly excelled. Beginning in 1986, the Warren High School boys made an incredible 18 straight
appearances in the IHSA Class A Football Playoffs!! The team was extremely competitive to the very end,
making it to the Final Four in the school's last solo season, 2003. Three coaches engineered the Warrior success,
with Coach Tim Engebretson leading MWHS the longest and deepest into the playoffs. The best of Warren
Warriors grid iron successes are listed below.
1962-63 6 - 2 - 1 Coach
Harold "Bud" Davis
1963-64 7 - 1 - 1 Coach
Harold "Bud" Davis
1964-65 6 - 2 - 1
Coach Harold "Bud" Davis
1965-66 4 - 2 - 2 Coach Harold
"Bud" Davis
1966-67 6 - 2
Coach Harold "Bud" Davis
1967-68 7 - 0 - 1 Coach
Harold "Bud" Davis
1968-69 8 - 1
Coach Harold "Bud" Davis
1970-71 7 - 2 Coach
Harold "Bud" Davis
1975-76 8 - 1 Coach
Dick Rowley
1981-82 6 - 3 Coach
John Van Kirk
1982-83 6 - 3 Coach
Dan Dillard
1986-87 7 - 3 Qualified for Class 1A Playoffs
Coach Don Billington
Lost to Wyoming 14 - 21
1987-88 10 - 1 Qualified for Class 1A Playoffs
Coach Don Billington
Undefeated Regular Season (9-0)
Beat Carthage 12 - 8
Lost to Roseville 0 - 43
1988-89 7 - 3 Qualified for Class
1A Playoffs Coach Don Billington
Lost to Alexis 0 - 13 in 1st Round
1989-90 8 - 2 Qualified for Class 1A
Playoffs Coach Don Billington
Lost to Sciota NW 11 - 22 in 1st Rd.
1990-91 11 - 1 Qualified for Class 1A Playoffs
Coach Don Billington
Undefeated Regular Season (9-0)
Elite
Eight Finalist
Beat Hamilton 30 - 16
Beat Alexis 28 - 6
Lost to Annawan 32 - 33
1991-92 10 - 1 Qualified for Class 1A Playoffs Coach
Jeff Wrede
Undefeated
Regular Season (9-0)
Beat Carthage 12 - 8
Lost to Hamilton 0 - 18
1992-93 9 - 2 Qualified for Class 1A
Playoffs Coach Jeff Wrede
Beat Hamilton 38 - 20
Lost to Carthage 13 - 42
1993-94 10 - 3 Qualified for Class 1A Playoffs Coach
Tim Engebretson
Final Four Finalist
Beat Westmer 32 - 16
Beat Avon 31 - 0
Beat Annawan 21 - 20 (2 O/T)
Lost to Sterling Newman 14 - 26
1994-95 9 - 1 Qualified for Class
1A Playoffs Coach Tim Engebretson
Undefeated Regular Season (9-0)
Lost to Lexington 19 - 20
1995-96 8 - 2 Qualified for Class
1A Playoffs Coach Tim Engebretson
Lost
to Wethersfield 12 - 14
1996-97 10 - 2 Qualified for Class 1A Playoffs Coach
Tim Engebretson
Elite Eight Finalist
Beat Abingdon 46 - 14
Beat Carthage 33 - 8
Lost to Sciota NW 13 - 20
1997-98 9 - 2 Qualified for Class
1A Playoffs Coach Tim Engebretson
Beat Abingdon 34 - 18
Lost to Tuscola 28 - 53
1998-99 11 - 1 Qualified for Class 1A Playoffs
Coach Tim Engebretson
Undefeated Regular Season (9-0)
Elite Eight Finalist
Beat
Wethersfield 39 - 12
Beat Stark County 21 - 0
Lost
to Carthage 20 - 28 (2 O/T)
1999-00 6 - 4 Qualified for Class 1A Playoffs Coach
Tim Engebretson
Lost to Freeport Aquin 14 - 47
2000-01 7 - 3 Qualified
for Class 1A Playoffs Coach Tim Engebretson
Lost to Girard 6 - 10
2001-02 8 - 5 Qualified for Class 1A
Playoffs Coach Tim Engebretson
Final Four Finalist
Beat
Hardin Calhoun 28 - 0
Beat Abingdon 35 - 8
Beat Yorkwood 35 - 8
Lost
to Wethersfield 12 - 27
2002-03 10 - 1 Qualified for Class 1A Playoffs
Coach Tim Engebretson
Undefeated Regular Season (9-0)
Beat Hamilton 49 - 20
Lost to Wethersfield 14 - 18
2003-04 11 - 2 Qualified for Class 1A Playoffs Coach
Tim Engebretson
Final Season as Warren High School
Final
Four Finalist
Beat Cambridge 38 - 13
Beat Princeville 21 - 11
Beat Annawan 34 - 14
Lost to Galena 6 - 16
The Football program won the Lincoln Trail West Conference championship in 1998, 2000, 2002 and 2003.
As you can see for yourself, the history of the Warren Warrior football program speaks for itself. Three
Final Four appearances, Three Elite Eight appearances, 18 consecutive playoff appearances, and a 46 year overall record
of 289 - 147 - 7 (.660 winning %)!!
By The Numbers:
5 - Interceptions by Craig Robertson against Roseville in 1980. This is good for third best
in Illinois H.S. Football history.
6 - Interceptions against Hardin Calhoun in the first round of the 2001 playoffs
10 - Total Interceptions by Robertson in 1980.
97 - Longest rush in school history by Mick Kaywood against Cambridge in the first round of the
2003 playoffs against Cambridge.
100 - Longest interception return for a touchdown in school history by Bret Smith in the first
round of the 1999 playoffs against Freeport Aquin, despite a losing effort.
622 - Number of offensive yards accumulated against Stronghurst Southern on October 9, 1992.
Great Players:
In the mid-to-late 1980s, when the Warren Warrior program was just starting to heat up and become a name for themselves,
one player by the name of Jim O'Brien (Class of '89) placed his name all over the record books. Here
are his accomplishments on the gridiron "by the numbers" all of which are school records:
8 - Games with over 200+ yards in his career (5 in 1988)
20.85 - Rushing average per carry in his career
22 - Punts returned in his career
23 - Games with over 100+ yards rushing in his career
58 - Rushing touchdowns scored
61 - Career touchdowns scored
183.7 - Rushing average per game in 1988
394 - Career points scored
449 - Yards on punt returns in his career
709 - Rushes attempted in his career
5,001 - Total yards rushing
5,151 - Total offensive yardage
Great Job Monmouth Warren High School Warrior Football!
Football Memories:
From B.D. Collins:
"Coach Mac (Ben McIntosh), has recently been accepted into the Illinois
High School Football Coach Hall of Fame. During his time at Warren he also was very active with the academic competitions
ICTM and WYSE. He took many teams to state level competitions, I don't have the specifics on that but I think it would
crack a smile on some faces if it was mentioned in the write up about him pestering students to take practice exams for WYSE
and ICTM when not coaching."
Side Note: How could we not mention that the base of successful football teams developed at Monmouth
Warren and Alexis high schools carried on after the consolidation. In fact, it carried the newly consolidated United
Red Storm to a Class 1A Football Championship in its first year of existence (2004-05)!!
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