Sikeston has experienced many decades of success

1908-1909

(3-0-0)

Little information was kept about the first two seasons but it is locally known that Sikeston played none other than Charleston in the Bulldogs first high school football game in October of 1908. Sikeston Superintendent R.E. Bailey was Sikeston's coach for the first two seasons and began the storied program with a 3-0 record during his two years. Charleston did not field a team in 1909 which would end up being the only year that the two rivals did not meet.

1910-1919

(45-10-3)

1910 was the first year that the Bulldogs had a full-time coach. George Kirk took over the Sikeston program and led his team to a 3-1 record with wins over Charleston, Jackson and Cape Normal. Sikeston's 5-0 win over Jackson was the first loss that Jackson High School suffered in their history.

Sikeston went undefeated for the first time in 1911 with a 7-0 record by outscoring their opponents 178-0. The stout Sikeston defense did not allow any opposing offense inside the 15-yard line all season long.

Earl Van Horne took over as head coach in 1912 and lasted until 1917. In 34 games, Horne guided the Bulldogs to 23 wins and eight losses with three ties. From 1910-12, the Bulldogs went on a 12-game winning streak with all wins being shutouts.

Charleston posted its first win against Sikeston in 1913, beating the Bulldogs 14-3.

And in 1916, Sikeston completed its second undefeated season.

In 1919, Sikeston pummeled Caruthersville 148-0 in one of the most lopsided Sikeston victories in history. That year's leading scorer, Pleas Malcolm, scored 85 points in that single game.

1920-1929

(42-27-4)

After an undefeated season in 1921 and a 7-1 record in 1922 under coach Leland Lingle, the next year saw the first losing season for the Bulldogs going 2-6 with both wins coming at the expense of Morehouse. Things started turning around for the Bulldogs in 1925 when Herbert Moore took over the coaching duties.

In his first of three years at Sikeston, Moore guided his team to a 8-1 finish with the only loss against Blytheville, Ark. Moore's second year wasn't as successful as his first, going 2-4-1. But in 1927, the Bulldogs finished another undefeated season going 7-0 capped off by a Thanksgiving Day win over Charleston, 27-13. Dick Swaim rushed for a school record of 250 yards against Charleston. The record stood for 64 years.

In 1929, Sikeston had problems with everyone they faced. It was the first and only winless season in school history, while Charleston was proclaimed the best team in Southeast Missouri. Charleston beat Sikeston twice outscoring them by a combined 61-0. They would also enjoy one of the longest winning streaks ever against Sikeston by winning seven in a row from 1929-31.

1930-1939

(53-30-3)

W.E. "Peg" Mahew began his seven-year tenure as head coach in 1932. Mahew had a 42-17-3 career record at Sikeston with 1934 being the best year out of the 1930s for the Bulldogs. The only loss came from Jonesboro, Ark., in a 18-7 game. The Sikeston quarterback at the time was Venson Jones. Jones was selected as an All-American for his efforts on the field. He was the first Bulldog to achieve that honor. Jones also selected as the All-SEMO and the league's Most Valuable Player in the same year.

The 1934 season also marked the last time that Sikeston and Charleston would see each other twice in a season.

1940-1949

(59-20-8)

The Bulldogs started the 1940s with a 9-1 record under head coach Vernon Green. Dexter handed Sikeston its only loss of the year in a tight 7-6 contest with Dexter ending a 55-yard drive seconds before the final buzzer. Although, Sikeston did beat Dexter later in the year to clinch the SEMO Conference championship in a 26-7 game.

A team that historically Sikeston has owned in the win column finally snuck in a win during the 1941 season. East Prairie defeated Sikeston 6-0 in the first and only win that they would ever have over the Bulldogs.

Another undefeated season happened in 1945, their fifth in school history and first since 1927, with Lou Bona in his third year as head coach.

In 1946, Sikeston and Poplar Bluff squared off in what would be a very physical game that eventually ended up getting a little out of hand. Despite the rough play, Sikeston won the contest 19-0. Afterwards, the state of Missouri discontinued a Sikeston-Poplar Bluff match-up as a penalty. They would not face each other again until the 1952 season.

After the 1947 season, Bona passed over the reigns to one of the best Sikeston coaches in Kenneth Knox, who coached from 1948-1951.

The 1949 Sikeston Bulldogs is considered one of the best football teams in school history, if not the best. They scored 332 points throughout the season, while only giving up 19 to their opposition in their perfect 10-0 season.

With the addition of Knox at the helm, the Sikeston Bulldogs began a winning streak of 51 games at the start of the 1948 season with a 20-0 win over Chaffee.

The 1948 and 1949 seasons were just the beginning of what was to come as far as superiority on the gridiron for Sikeston football. One of the most astounding high school football decades in the United States would begin in 1950.

1950-1959

(89-6-3)

Domination. That is the only word that can even remotely describe what the Sikeston Bulldogs accomplished through the years of 1950 and 1959.

Coach Knox continued his unbeaten streak with a 9-0 record in 1950 by outscoring their opponents 267-19.

In Knox's final year as Sikeston's coach, he took the Bulldogs to a 9-0-2 record with ties against Farmington and Southwest, which was a school out of St. Louis.

1951 also saw the Bulldogs defeat Charleston 68-6, which is the most one-sided victory against their rival.

Knox finished his Sikeston career with 35 wins, no losses and three ties to become the second Sikeston head coach with no losses to claim. R.E. Bailey, who started the Sikeston football program was 3-0.

As Knox said farewell to the Bulldogs after the 1951 season, a new head coach would have to step into the pressures of trying to continue the dynasty that the legendary Knox had started.

Fortunately for Sikeston, the legend, Bill Sapp, was his replacement.

Sapp began his 17-year coaching career in 1952 leaving off just where Knox had with another undefeated season.

The 51-game winning streak that started in 1948 under coach Knox, ended in 1953.

Sikeston had a chance to take over the lead with time dwindling with the ball on Poplar Bluff's 4-yard line and was looking to punch it in for the touchdown. But a fumble on the first play was grabbed by a Poplar Bluff defender and the 51-game winning streak was over.

Sapp continued the dominance in 1954 and 1955 with back-to-back 10-0 seasons, which is the only time that happened in school history.

The Bulldogs opened the 1956 season in an upsetting fashion falling to Chaffee in a 12-6 game ending the 25-game win streak. Two games later, Sikeston would again taste defeat at the hands of Cairo (Ill.). They would finish the season 8-2.

Throughout both the 1957-58 seasons, Sikeston lost two games while winning 17.

As the 1950s came to a close, coach Sapp achieved career victory 100 against Fredericktown and Sikeston won the last Thanksgiving day game against Charleston, 7-6, as the Bulldogs finished their dominating decade with an 8-1 record in 1959.

The Bulldogs went undefeated five times during the 1950s: 1950, 1951, 1952, 1954 and 1955. Counting every game between 1950-59, they scored 2,604 points while holding their opponents to only 578. Proving how dominate Sikeston Bulldog football was during the 1950s.

1960-1969

(68-19-6)

Just because it was a new decade didn't mean that Sikeston would stop their winning ways. The 1960 Bulldogs offense was as potent as ever by scoring 369 points during their 9-1 season.

The winning continued into 1961 with a 8-1-1 record and in 1962 with a 6-1-2 finish. Cape Central defeated Sikeston for the first time since 1947 in 1962 in a 32-0 romp against the Bulldogs.

Something happened in 1963 that hadn't happened in almost 20 years. The Bulldogs lost back-to-back games. One was to Kennett and the other Poplar Bluff. Both defeats ended up being the same score, 14-7. Kennett's head coach at the time, John Batten, was the first coach to defeat Sapp twice. They ended the season with a respectable 4-4-1 record.

Sapp's last undefeated season came in 1967 when the Bulldogs went 8-0-1, which was their first undefeated season in 12 years. A year later, the legendary Sapp announced his retirement a week after the last game of the 1968 season. The Bulldogs defeated Poplar Bluff, 20-13, in his last game as the Sikeston Bulldogs head coach.

In his 17 years (1952-68) as head coach, Sapp won a total of 135 games and lost only 21 with seven ties. He was a part of four undefeated seasons and 14 conference championships.

Bill Priday began his three years at Sikeston in 1969 replacing the irreplaceable, Sapp, as head coach. The Bulldogs finished with a 5-4 record.

1970-1979

(46-50-2)

The 1970 season was the first time since 1942 that the Bulldogs ended with a losing record. Sikeston was 1-8 during Priday's second season. The lone Sikeston win was against Kennett, holding them to only 20 total yards in the 34-0 shutout.

All-State selection and one of Sikeston's best defenders in their history, Bo Ralph, had 17 tackles against Kennett.

Things improved in Priday's last year as head coach in 1971 with a 6-4 finish.

1973 marked the first year of head coach Terry Smith. Smith and the rest of the Bulldogs won only two games in two years. But, in 1975, with the help of junior running back, James Wilder, Sikeston managed a 6-4 record.

Wilder went on to play after high school at Missouri and then eventually in the NFL with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The first ever playoff team to come out of Sikeston went 10-0 in the regular season in 1976. Wilder led the Bulldogs on the ground all season including the last regular-season game when he rushed for 223 yards on 21 carries against Poplar Bluff. He finished the 76 season with 1,382 yards, a record that stood for 15 years.

The first playoff game was a disappointment for the Bulldogs losing to Ladue, 42-8, to end their post-season run.

After Smith had took the Bulldogs where they had never been before, his last season ended with a 3-5-2 record.

The next head coach to take over the Sikeston Bulldogs began his storied career in 1978. The legend, Charlie Vickery, would bring a whole new demeanor to the Sikeston Bulldogs as a force to be reckoned with for the next 26 years.

His first win as head coach was against Aquinas. An impressive offensive performance from the Bulldogs had them atop the team out of St. Louis.

Later that same year, Vickery led Sikeston to its 400th all-time victory, which was one of the first times any high school team accomplished that feat.

1980-1989

(57-46-0)

Coach Vickery took the Bulldogs to the state playoffs five times during the 1980s: 1980, 1982, 1984, 1987 and 1988.

Sikeston's football program continued its ascent in Vickery's third year in 1980. The team went 8-1 in the regular season and reached the playoffs for the first time since '76 before losing to Parkway West.

The team was loaded, headlined by Carr Trophy winner Undra Lane.

1987 saw the only playoff win in Sikeston history against Cape Central. The Bulldogs blanked their opponent 16-0 but was then defeated in the next round by Hazelwood Central out of St. Louis, 22-3.

1990-1999

(63-36-0)

The 1990s would see a new leader rusher of all-time take center stage. Tiger Boyd broke James Wilder's single-season rushing record in 1991 with 1,771 yards.

Boyd was selected as an all-stater and was awarded the Carr Trophy, just the second Sikeston player to ever receive the award.

In 1995, Vickery led the Bulldogs to a 9-2 season and their last playoff appearance against Mehlville. Sikeston lost 48-13.

1n 1999, the season's headlines were grabbed by all-state running back Justin Robinson, who rewrote the record books. He broke Boyd's single-season rushing record with 2,030 yards and Boyd's single-game rushing record twice, with 296 against Dexter and 318 against Cape Central.

He also broke Boyd's record for touchdowns in a season with 28 and he ended up as the school's all-time leading rusher with 3,124 yards.

2000-Present

(29-49-0)

Vickery finished his last season in 2003 with a 7-2 record. He had overcome Sapp as the winningest coach in Sikeston's history with a 33-14 win over Charleston in 2000 for his 136th victory in his career as Bulldogs head coach. He ended up with 156 total wins in his 26 year tenure with the red and black.

Recently, things have not fallen in the Bulldogs favor.

Under the reigns of Jerry Dement in 2004-06 and Kent Gibbs in 2007 until now, Sikeston has won a total of 10 games as opposed to 29 losses.