Beginning fall of 2024, Marion's football conference undergoes a major change for the third consecutive two-year cycle. After rolling up a 15-7 combined overall record in 2022 and 2023 in the state's largest conference, the 10-team 6A East, Marion's league returns to some semblance of familiarity in 2024 and 2025. The Arkansas Activities Association released its new football leagues Thursday afternoon, and Marion will play conference games this fall against Benton, El Dorado, Jonesboro, Little Rock Catholic, Sheridan, Sylvan Hills, and West Memphis. Jonesboro spent the past two football seasons in Class 7A, but after Pulaski Academy and Little Rock Christian moved up to the state's largest classification, the Golden Hurricane dropped back to Class 6A. Marion played every other conference foe over the past two seasons. The conference shuffling allows Marion to play three non-conference games in '24 and '25 after only being able to play one non-league tilt the past two seasons. Marion's complete 2024 football schedule, complete with dates and sites, will be named at a later date. Marion has won four of the past five meetings with Jonesboro, including a 50-43 conquest of the 6A East co-champions on Marion's Senior Night in 2021. The 6A West will consist of existing members Greenwood, Lake Hamilton, Mountain Home, Russellville, Siloam Springs, and Van Buren, and will add Fort Smith Southside, which dropped down from Class 7A, and Shiloh Christian, which bumps up from Class 5A. The format of the Class 6A football playoffs will remain the same, with the top six teams from each conference advancing to the postseason. The top two finishers from the 6A East and West will receive first-round playoff byes, while playoff seeds Nos. 3-6 will match up in the opening round of the postseason.