Sikeston renames basketball court in Holifield's name

SIKESTON – When Gregg Holifield was coaching at Senath-Hornersville, Kennett and then Greene County Tech in Arkansas, he gave all he had to those schools.

But he always viewed Sikeston as the coaching destination that he wanted to eventually land.

It was a place that he felt he could win and eventually build into a powerhouse.

His dream became reality when he was hired as Sikeston’s head boys basketball coach in 1998.

Little did he know that 26 years later, not only would he still be coaching at Sikeston, but the school that took a chance on a relatively unknown coach from the Bootheel would give him the ultimate honor.

Prior to Friday night’s homecoming game against Poplar Bluff, Sikeston High School held a ceremony to rename the court at the Sikeston Field House as “Gregg Holifield Court.”

The Sikeston school board voted to recognize Holifield on his illustrious career at Sikeston during an executive session on Dec. 12, at which time board president Matt Drake explained the decision to move forward with the honor.

“While many times this honor is bestowed after retirement, we just thought, ‘Why wait?’” Drake said. “He has earned it and what better way to promote bulldog pride than to move forward now.”

Holifield, ever humble, said this honor is a program acknowledgment for all of his former players and coaches that have worked alongside him during his tenure with the Bulldogs.

“It just means so much,” Holifield said. “It’s all about the assistant coaches and the players. I came here in 1998 and I had players buy into what we were doing. I could not have asked for better effort and trying to do things the right way. It’s all about the players. I know it’s my name on there, but I know the players will see that and appreciate that they were a part of many great teams. It’s an honor for all of our players we’ve had.”

In the ceremony on Friday, which took place in between the junior varsity and varsity contests, all of Holifield’s former players were called down to the court for a group photo. Dozens of players made the trip to the Field House to see their former coach, which is something that touched Holifield.

“They have no idea how much they mean to me,” Holifield said. “Some of them may not know how much they mean to me. Seeing those guys showing up tonight just meant so much, and there were some guys that couldn’t be here that still reached out to me. I think about these guys all the time and I talk about them all the time. They’re all a big, big part of my life.”

Holifield, who is now 61 and already a member of the Missouri Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame, is approaching rarified air with his career accomplishments.

After Friday’s victory over Poplar Bluff, Holifield won his 498th game at Sikeston. His career wins mark now sits at 594 victories.

The ceremony listed his many accomplishments, which includes 13 district titles, 10 quarterfinal appearances, five final fours and the school’s lone basketball state championship in 2011.

Holifield, who was 35-years-old when he was hired as the Bulldogs’ coach, said he always thought he could win at Sikeston, but he was quick to point out that those thoughts were planted from the great players and coaches of the past – witnessing teams that intrigued him.

“There’s a reason why I wanted to come to Sikeston because they’ve had great teams in the past,” Holifield said. “They had great teams and great coaches and great players. It’s all about the tradition of what people did before I ever arrived. Those guys need to be recognized and honored as well. We’ve had some great teams at Sikeston pre-1998 with great coaches and players. I see a lot of these guys in the stands to this day. It means a lot to me for them to be here supporting our team.”