Sullivan’s schedule will look a lot different in 2010.
After getting the bump to Class 4, the Eagles will be grouped with Union, St. Clair and Pacific in districts. Union is a perennial playoff contender and Pacific’s 2009 season was one of the best the team has had in years.
Sullivan will open the season up in Hermann, where they face a Bearcats squad that they dominated 25-7 last August.
Hermann finished just 1-9 under new head coach Brendan Guebara last season. The Bearcats averaged only nine points per game.
The Eagles then get three straight games in Sullivan, where they have lost just twice in the past two seasons. They went undefeated at home in 2008.
Sullivan will host Owensville, De Soto and Hillsboro during that stretch.
De Soto is the only team that finished with a winning record in that group.
Hillsboro went 1-9 and Owensville had a 4-6 record, including a season-ending loss to the Eagles in Week 10 that sent Sullivan to the playoffs for the second year in a row.
After that, the Eagles will not play at home again until Oct. 22 when they face St. Clair.
Sullivan will play four straight on the road, beginning with a trip to Festus on Sept. 24 in Week 5.
St. Francis Borgia and St. James are scheduled for Weeks 6 and 7.
The Eagles go to Union in Week 8.
During that four-week stretch, Sullivan will face three teams that reached the playoffs in 2009.
Festus went 6-5 and lost in regionals.
Borgia was 7-4 and also lost in regionals.
Union was 6-5 as they failed to win their district for the first time since 2005, which was Brent Eckley’s first season with the Wildcats.
Sullivan entered last season’s Week 6 matchup with Union sporting a 5-0 record.
Union won in a 39-2 rout.
In Weeks 9 and 10, the Eagles face St. Clair and Pacific at home.
St. Clair went 5-5 last year, and lost 9-7 against Sullivan.
The Eagles were shutout 36-0 by Pacific in a muddy skirmish. The Indians went on to win the district championship.
Pacific’s program has made huge strides under George Hinkle. Last season, the team finished 8-3.