In 1946, McCook High School utilized a blend of the speed from a state track championship team and the experience of a talented senior class to win the school’s first and only football state championship (written in 1996).
The Bison went 9-0 and defeated Fremont, 7 to 0, in the Big 10 Conference playoff game in the final game of the year. The prized victory for this team was 40-7 over Grand Island. This victory put McCook in line for the championship because Grand Island later defeated the Lincoln champion Lincoln High, which had defeated Omaha champion Omaha South.
In those pre-football playoff days, comparative scores were the basis for final ratings and state title selections.
McCook also won the Southwest Conference championship and scored 176 points for the year, giving up 26. Coach Russ Sautter’s team usually won easily but in the few close games they had, they showed a knack for the big play.
Roster:
Dale Allen
Robert Bell
Jack Boyd
Jim Brown
Gary Creasman
Dick Drake
Melvin Drews
Phil Dulaney
Howard Fletcher
Pete Gonzales
Don Hein
Richard Hill
Harvey Hoffinan
Merlin Hoyt
Wallace Keen
Milton Krogh
Dale Lyons
Joe Magrath
Jerry McClain
Jerry McIlmoyle
Leo McKillip
Roger Messinger
Don Payton
Alan Peterson
Bob Porter
Robert Real
Merrill Ream
Richard Schafer
Everett Skillman
Glen Sliger
Ted Sloniker
Allen Strunk
Bob Wallen
Robert Warburton
Stanley Webster
Joe Weiland
Bob Wilcox
Coach:
Russ Sautter
Asst. Coaches:
James Meader
Lloyd McCullough
Student Managers:
Kenneth Bollerup
Keith Roper
Cheerleaders:
Mary Lou Shubert Drake
Georgine Waugh
Mary Ann Wagner
Lee Avis Coler Rutt
