SPORTS HALL of FAME COACH
Gary Scavo

The resume, mostly printed single-space, is three full pages long. Alumni of different decades will recall Gary Scavo's influence in different ways. This short biography will try to touch on them all concentrating mostly for our purpose of Sports HOF induction. It's a difficult task indeed!

In the summer of 1964, Gary brought his Oneonta roots and fresh Cortland State diploma to Sidney to begin his life-long career in education. His specialty was math. He also coached basketball from the start; 7th grade that first winter, then the unheard-of role as 7-8 AND-9 coach! By 1967, Gary took over as JV coach, setting his main goal of "preparing players for the varsity above winning games". But in his 11 seasons, Sidney's record was 136-43 with six of those as division champions.

He also helped Hall of Fame coach Bill Davidson in the widely popular sport of cross country, handling the junior high runners. Besides a one-year fill-in position of tennis coach, Gary's only varsity coaching was also very successful. Golf! His teams were amazing...104 wins, only 28 losses and 5 ties.

If you were a boy who did not play for Gary, you still knew his athletic and community spirited influence as advisor to the Varsity Club. Memories of the "white elephant" sales, spaghetti suppers, Nite-of-Fun shows and other fund-raisers are vivid to most. And those efforts helped bring in a new electronic scoreboard on the football field, the Universal Weight Trainer system, and much more.

Gary's days as a math teacher and coach were numbered, however, as his ambition to help even more students led to his earning an administrative degree in 1977. After a brief internship at Sidney, he became "Mr. Scavo - high school principal" until 1998. During his tenure, so many new programs and policies were implemented thanks to Gary. Among them, the Francis L. Redmond Scholar-Athlete award, putting academics and athletics on the same pedestal and rewarding those who excelled in both.

Also during these years of change and modernization came the flourishing of girls sports, featuring almost perennial NYS tournament appearances for the field hockey team and a state title in the fall of 1991. There were two NYS champion basketball teams (1979 & 1998) as well.

Gary encouraged alumni activity throughout, being part of the initial push to start what we now know as the SCS Alumni Association. He supported the Alumni Basketball Night which began in 1992 and even supervised the gym for afternoon pick-up games.

When we tell those who do not know that the list of Gary's non-sports accomplishments at least triple that of the athletic-based ones mentioned here they would be in awe. And by his side the entire time (with an impressive resume herself!) has been Jackie. He wouldn't want it any other way. One of Sidney's all-time treasure, Gary Scavo takes his rightful place in the Sidney Alumni Sports Hall of Fame.