Mansfield High School definitely competed in the boys' sport of basketball.  Football was also offered, as it is also probable that the sports of baseball and track were also offered. The Mansfield High School Cardinals competed in the Sangamon Valley Conference beginning with the 1958 school year. Many items are missing from the history of Mansfield High School athletics. If you have any of this information, please contact us via e-mail.

 

 

The Mansfield High School boys basketball program won three District titles. The first was in 1926 (www.ihsa.org)!  This leaves Mansfield High with a long history of great teams and great athletes. Team records and coaches' names of these many great teams are not available.

 

 

 

Coach Paul Seaman started the Mansfield Cardinals football program in the fall of 1956.  By 1959 he had the program in top condition, co-champions of the Sangamon Valley Conference. Read more of Caoch Seaman's memories below.

 

1956-57    1 - 8                                                         Coach Paul Seaman

1957-58                                                                   Coach Paul Seaman

1958-59                                                                   Coach Paul Seaman

1959-60    8 - 1  Sangamon Valley Conf. Champs    Coach Paul Seaman

 

 

**From Coach Paul Seaman: 

 

"I was basketball and track coach at Mansfield High starting the year 1953. My first basketball team was made up of: Bill Backert, Don McGee, Larry Houser, Gene Gillispie, and Bob Hardy. They were all seniors that season with maybe the exception of Bob. The 54-55 team was made up of John Houser, George Howe, Sam Beazly, Dean Curry, Dwight Rosenberry, and others. Then I spent the 1955-56 season coaching at Taylorville High School.

In the spring of l956 C. J. Little, the then principal, met me at the reginal tournament at Decatur Kinter Gym and told me that the Mansfield High School board wished for me to come back and start a football program, and I accepted the offer.

 

In the fall of 56 I started the football program. The team was made up of these players that I can remember: Lloyd Jones, Dave Jones, Don Wack, Dave Fisher, Barry Nixon, Billy Joe Decker, Fred Amdor, Steve Amdor, Larry Collins, Jack Holderer, Bobby Plunk, George Howe, Dennis Zech, Steve Van Gorder, Brenton Beazly, Dave Truitt, Jack Holderer, Bobby Crook, Bob Wolf, Steve Gilbert, David Eagan, Dick Manuel, and Kenny Canny.   These are names and people that my 85 year old memory has retained. These young men had never played football and had to start from scratch. That first year we won one game, we beat Fisher, but each year we got progressively better and in the 1959 season we were Sangamon Valley Co-champs with Mahomet.  We went 8 wins against one loss.

 

The 1958-1959 basketball team was outstanding. We won the District championship, and took second to Arcola in the Monticello Holiday tournament. We lost in overtime to Monticello in the regional tournament at Urbana.The members of that team were: Barry Nixon, Lloyd Jones, Dave Truitt, Brenton Beazly, Dennis Zech, Steve Van Gorder, Bobby Crook, and Dick Manuel. 

 

My last year coaching at Mansfield was the 1959-60 season. During that time of l953-1960 the board of education was made up of such fine people as Clayton Howe, Bobby Plunk, Williard Curry, Clark Dixon, C. Leslie James, and Chalmer Cox. It was people like this that made my coaching years at Mansfield leave me with found memories.

 

I coached in following years at Urbana, and then at Champaign High School and retired after 20 years of coaching from Downers Grove North High School. I hope this information might be of some help, and I apologize to anyone I might have left out."

 

 

Mansfield High School was a school that was supported many ancestors of Mansfield and the surrounding countryside. There are many great stories to tell and details to share. If you have this information please write to us at ihsgdwebsite@comcast.net . You may also write to us at:

 

Chicago,  Il.    60631