Cerro Gordo football field to be named after Workman, Henricks

Cerro Gordo Yearbook photo of Paul Workman and Todd Henricks. Courtesy of Diann Durbin

By Mike Monahan

CERRO GORDO – The winningest football head coach in Cerro Gordo history, Paul Workman, and his long-time assistant (23 years), Todd Henricks, will have the Cerro Gordo football field named after them Friday at 6 p.m. as part of the fall scrimmage night.

Workman coached the Broncos from 1985-2009 going 165-91 .625 and reaching the playoffs in 17 of the 25 seasons and going above .500 in all but four seasons. Workman was inducted into the Illinois High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2008. In 2007

Workman was named the Chicago Bears Coach of the Week.

The field will be named Workman Henricks Field. The Cerro Gordo school board approved the naming in a July school board meeting.

“The decision recognizes their outstanding contributions to the school’s athletic program, school distinct and community,” said Cerro Gordo athletics director Diann Durbin in a press release. It was Cerro Gordo-Deland-Weldon (sports co-op from 2002-011 and has been Cerro Gordo/Bement (sports co-op since 2012).

Henricks, who was also an assistant for Cerro Gordo after Workman left, is a 1974 Cerro Gordo graduate, who played under IHSFCA Hall of Fame coach Bill Estes. Henricks coached football in southern Illinois, Ohio and Pennsylvania before returning to Cerro Gordo in 1986 to enter his family’s insurance business. He got together with Workman in 1987 and after a 2-7 season, the two would only have two more losing seasons as the Broncos became a very successful team in the Little Okaw Valley Conference and in the state.Henricks was an assistant coach at Cerro Gordo from 1987 through the 2019 season and then again in 2021. He served on the Cerro Gordo school board for 24 years from 1997 through 2021, serving as president from 2013-2019.

Workman taught physical education and was an administrator from the 1985-86 school year through the 2009-10. He also coached softball and boys’ track and is the winningest coach in Cerro Gordo girls’ basketball history (199-87 in 11 seasons from 1992-93 through 2002-03).

Cerro Gordo won or shared the LOVC in three seasons (1990, 1992, 2007) under Workman and reached the second round of the Class 1A playoffs in 1996, 1999, 2001, 2003, 2004 and 2007; the quarterfinals in 1993, 94, and 95 and the semifinals in 2002. Other seasons that had the Broncos in the first round were 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1997, 2000, and 2008.

After leaving Cerro Gordo, Workman, a Moweaqua graduate, was an assistant for two seasons at Clinton, returning to Cerro Gordo as an assistant for one season. Workman was then an assistant at Shelbyville for three seasons before ending his coaching career at Decatur St. Teresa, one that started at St. Elmo in 1982-84 (2-25) seasons. Overall he coached 40 years, while Henricks was involved for 38 years, 23 with Workman. His last season, 2022, Workman was on the staff of Mark Ramsey’s, (he coached with him at Shelbyville also) Decatur St. Teresa Bulldogs, who won the Class 2A state championship beating Downs Tri-Valley 29-22.