East St. Louis Flyers are no stranger to IHSA state championship appearances

Jonathan Duncan
·3 min read
East St. Louis offensive lineman Terran Scarborough levels a Prairie Ridge defender during the IHSA Class 6A state championship game.

Playing in the state championship game has been a way of life for the East St. Louis football Flyers since 1974.

On Saturday, Nov. 26, East Side captured its 10th state championship thanks to a resounding 57-7 blowout win over Crystal Lake Prarie Ridge at Memorial Stadium on the University of Illinois campus in Champaign.

Saturday also marked the 14th time in program history that the Flyers appeared in a state championship game.

The win was sweet redemption for the Flyers in rebounding from last year’s 37-36 loss in the 6A title game.

“As far as the program goes, it’s all about numbers and it means number 10 in program history. And for these guys to be a part of that and for these guys to get that sort of recognition, that’s big,” East St. Louis coach Darren Sunkett said. “Another thing is these guys are the first team since the ‘80s to make state three straight years and if it wasn’t for covid, it would have been four (years).”

Junior quarterback Robert “Pops” Battle savored getting a state championship win on his second trip to state with the Flyers.

“It was big (for me to win it) because I wanted to come back and finish (state),” said Battle.

Battle excelled in the passing game going 10-for-12 with 207 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions.

TaRyan Martin shined as well running for 174 yards and three touchdowns.

Martin credited his bruising offensive line with his big day.

“(It starts) with the five guys in front of me doing their jobs,” Martin said.

Here is a look at the team’s previous state championship appearances in all IHSA playoff classifications.

  • 1974, Class 5A championship game: East St. Louis, under coach Cornelius Perry, lost in their first state title game trip to Glenbrook North in overtime, 19-13.

  • 1979, Class 5A championship game: The Flyers (13-0), led by legendary coach Bob Shannon, held off Burbank St. Laurence 20-14 to win their first state championship.

  • 1983, Class 6A championship game: East St. Louis (13-0) took down Addison Trail 13-0 to win their first Class 6A championship that season under Shannon.

  • 1984, Class 6A championship game: Undefeated East St. Louis (13-0) routed Downers Grove South 38-6 to claim the state title.

  • 1985: Class 6A championship game: East Side blasted Chicago Brother Rice 46-0 to claim the championship.

  • 1988, Class 6A championship game: The Flyers ran into a buzzsaw in Chicago Mt. Carmel and lost the title game to the Caravan 21-7.

  • 1989, Class 6A championship game: East Side blew out Harvey Thornton 55-8 to win the state championship.

  • 1991, Class 6A championship game: East St. Louis claims state title win 48-6 victory over Carok Stream Glenbard North.

  • 2008, Class 7A championship game: After a 17-year drought, 13-1 East Side captured the title with a 33-14 win over Geneva. The championship was also the first under current Flyers head coach Darren Sunkett.

  • 2016, Class 7A championship game: Undefeated East. St. Louis (14-0) won the school’s eighth state championship with a 26-13 victory over Plainfield North.

  • 2019, Class 7A championship game: East St. Louis defeated Prairie Ridge 43-21 to collect its ninth state championship trophy and third Class 7A title while completing a perfect season at 14-0.

  • 2021, Class 6A championship game: The Flyers (13-1) lost a heartbreaking state final game to Cary Grove 37-36.