Waterloo East High School - Athletics

Athletics

The East High Trojans have a long tradition of athletics in both high school achievements and in athletes who have gone on to play collegiately and professionally. Some sports alumni include NFL all-Pro punter and 1980s All-Decade Team member Reggie Roby, NFL wide receiver/returner J.J. Moses and sprinter Kim Sykes, who held the state record in the 400m dash from 1979-1989.

East High's men's basketball team is the marquee program at the school and has a long tradition of success, consistently reaching the state tournament and cracking national rankings at times. The Trojans have won state tournaments in 1974 (Class 2A), 1990 (3A) and 2003 (4A), and were runners-up in 1960 (A), 1991 (3A), 2002 (4A), and 2004 (4A). Head Coach Steve McGraw won his 500th game during the 2003 state tournament and was featured on the cover of the best-selling Successful Coaching textbook by Rainer Martens in 2004.

East High has the distinction, as of 2005, of holding both the record for longest football winning streak (55 wins from 1965–1971) and longest football losing streak in the state of Iowa (62 games from 1999–2006). However, a youth program pioneered by Mike Sheeley, a retired guidance counselor and assistant football coach at the school, has generated a newfound interest in and focus on developing football talent in the area. Also, the NFL recently made Waterloo the only metro with a population under 300,000 to be named a site of one of their fully funded youth football camps, approving an application by Waterloo West head coach Doug Gee. The results of the emphasis on youth football in the area showed when the record losing streak was broken on October 13, 2006, and the 2010 football team made the playoffs for the first time since 1991.