Sikora replaces Bayuk at Campbell

The Struthers graduate served under Jeff Bayuk for 16 years, including three at Campbell.

By JOHN KOVACH

VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF

CAMPBELL — A 1983 Struthers High School graduate whose father was a football star at Campbell Memorial in the early 1950s is the Red Devils’ new football coach.

Mickey Sikora, the son of John “Sheik” Sikora who helped Campbell win the Steel Valley Conference championship as a sophomore tackle in 1951 under coach John Knapick, was named the Red Devils’ new football coach at a meeting Thursday of the Campbell Board of Education.

The vote was 5-0, Campbell athletic director Frank Pincairo confirmed.

Campbell school board president Tony Kelly said it appears the rest of the coaching staff will stay on with Sikora.

“That’s the best thing,” Kelly said, adding that Jeff Bayuk and his team turned Campbell’s football program around.

“We want to continue that,” Kelly said.

The 44-year-old Sikora, who served the past three years as defensive coordinator, moves up to succeed Bayuk, who recently resigned as coach after three years at the helm.

Sikora has been with Bayuk the last 16 years, the first 13 at Hubbard High as defensive coordinator under Bayuk. Before that, Sikora was a defensive coordinator at South High under coach Ron Demesko.

Sikora spent his first two coaching years at Struthers, first under Pirone and then under Gary Zetts.

Bayuk, with Sikora’s help, was credited with turning around the Red Devils’ losing program to 1-9 and 3-7 records in 2007 and 2008 to 7-4 in 2009 and a berth in the Division IV playoffs.

Before Bayuk came, Campbell was 3-37 over the previous four seasons.

“It is a mixed [Struthers-Campbell] tradition but a good one,” said Sikora. “I can trace my roots back to Campbell and Struthers.”

Sikora said his father, even though the family lived in Struthers, tried to groom his son in the Campbell ways.

“I remember when I was a little kid my dad would take me to the Little Red Devils’ game, but my mother had him start taking me to the Little Wildcats’ games,” he said.

As Mickey grew up and joined the Struthers High team, he said his father had a special way of encouraging him to play well against Campbell.

“He would hang a Red Devil beach towel and say that if you guys lose to Campbell the towel will stay up all year,” said Mickey, “because he would get razzed by his buddies [if we lost to Campbell], and his true roots were from Campbell.”

Mickey also noted that, “It is ironic that my father is in the hall of fame at Campbell, and I am in the hall of fame in Struthers.”

“Sheik” was a three-year starter for Campbell at tackle from 1951-53, and helped the 1953 team to a 6-2-2 record and to SVC runner-up. Struthers deprived the Red Devils of a share of the title that year with Niles with a 7-3 win in the final game of the season between the two cross-river rivals at Campbell.

“Sheik” and his wife, Patricia, still live in Struthers.

But not only has Mickey returned to his father’s Red Devil roots, but also Mickey’s son, John, who was a standout junior linebacker for Campbell this past season, and will playing under his father next season.

Mickey wants to build upon Bayuk’s success.

“The objective now is to build the program from where it is now. We feel that we have some unfinished business,” said Sikora, who played three years of football for Struthers from 1980-82 under coaches Mark McCann and Pete Pirone.

“We made the playoffs last year so we are heading in the right direction. We have a good nucleus coming back with young kids following them, and so I am optimistic.”

Sikora graduated from Youngstown State in 1987 and received his master’s degree from Franciscan University of Steubenville in 1993.

He now is a health teacher at Reed Middle School in Hubbard, and will continue in that position.

Sikora doesn’t plan to change the Campbell coaching staff too much.

“I get to choose who stays and who doesn’t. The majority of coaching staff will stay intact,” he said.

Sikora is married to the former Sharon Desko, also a Struthers High graduate; and the couple has two children, John and Alyssa.

The family lives in Masury but John is able to attend Campbell Memorial High because Mickey is an employee of the Campbell school system, Sharon explained.

kovach@vindy.com

X Vindicator staff writer Jean Starmack contributed to this report.