2024 Hall of Fame

Coaches

• David AllieRaytown South, Grain Valley

  David Allie graduated from Putnam County High School in Unionville Missouri in 1987. He attended Truman State graduating in 1992. Allie began his coaching career at Kirksville High School in the fall of 1991 and had stops at Warrensburg and Holden before landing Raytown South as an assistant under Kelly Donohoe in 1997. Under Donohoe and with Allie, the Cardinals began a turnaround that saw them become one of the better programs in the Metro. When Donohoe left for Blue Springs in 2000 Allie became the head coach of the Cardinals. In 14 seasons Raytown South won three conference titles, six district championships, two state quarterfinals, a semifinal and a Class 5 runner-up finish in 2008. In 2014 he moved to Grain Valley where Allie led the Eagles to five conference titles, five straight district titles and five straight quarterfinal appearances playing in Class 4 and Class 5. His overall record is 159-114 and he is three wins away from totaling 80 or more wins at two different schools. He has been named the Kansas City Chiefs Missouri Coach of the Year two times. He has served as the Missouri All-Star Head Coach and as an assistant coach. In 2008, he was named as the Missouri Class 5 State Coach of the Year. Coach Allie has also served as president of the GKCFCA and continues to serve the organization.

• Mike BergBaldwin, Wellsville

  Mike Berg graduated from Concordia High School in Missouri before attending and playing football at Baker University graduating in 1989. Berg began his coaching career as an assistant at Baker from 1989-1993. He then moved to Baldwin High School in Kansas in 1994 as an assistant coach. Berg then became the head coach for Baldwin where he led the Bulldogs until 2016. In Berg’s seasons at Baldwin, he was 117-81. He moved to Wellsville in 2019 where Berg has a 36-13 mark in five seasons. In 24 years of coaching Berg has 18 playoff appearances, seven quarterfinal appearances and one final four. He was named the Chiefs Coach of the Week in 2002 and was inducted into the Baker University Hall of Fame in 2019. Berg also served as the president of the GKCFCA in 2013-14.

• Larry BurchettCass-Midway

  Larry Burchett is a Cass-Midway graduate where he won two state titles as a player in 1969 and 1970. He then attended William Jewell College graduating in 1975. He began his teaching and coaching career at his alma mater before spending time at Gasconade County. Burchett returned to Cass-Midway in 1980 and stayed until he retired after the 2023 season. He has 48 seasons as a coach with 35 of those as a head coach. Burchett’s record is 267-134. During his time as an assistant, he contributed to nine conference championships, eight district championships, four Final Fours and three State Championships. Burchett’s head coaching career saw Midway with nine more conference titles, 15 district championships, six Final Fours and one State Championship. He was the 1996 Missouri Class 1 Coach of the Year and won the 2017 Pete Adkins award given by the Missouri Football Coaches Association. Burchett was inducted into the MFCA Hall of Fame in 2010, the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 2022 and the Cass-Midway Hall of Fame in 2022.

• Sam KnopikPembroke Hill

  Sam Knopik graduated from Omaha North High School in Nebraska in 1992 before coming to the Metro to attend and play football at William Jewell College. His first head coaching job was at Moberly before taking over Pembroke Hill in 2003. Knopik led the Raiders to undefeated regular seasons in 2003 and 2019 with a district, conference title and quarterfinal appearance in 2003. Knopik has also been a Kansas City Chiefs coach of the Week five times and was named the Chiefs Coach of the Year in 2011. Off the field Knopik has made impacts as a member of the American Football Coaches Association Board of Trustees and High School Committee. He has also been a Missouri Football Coaches Association President and a member of the Board of Directors. Knopik is a past president of the GKCFCA and a member of the board of directors. He has earned the MFCA Paul Martel Outstanding Service Award, the GKCFCA Man of the Year and later this year will be inducted into the MFCA Hall of Fame.

• Chuck LliterasMaryville, Fort Osage, Holden, Harrisonville

  Chuck Lliteras was longtime coach at the high school and college level making impacts at several Metro schools. Lliteras was a Nebraska native who enlisted in the Army after graduating high school where he served in the 82 nd Airborne Division and served as a presidential honor guard. He finished his military career as a First Lieutenant. After the military he went on to the college at Chadron State where he would also coach. Lliteras’ other college coaching stops included Fort Benning, Union College, William Penn and Garden City Community College where he helped win the 2016 Junior College National Championship. Lliteras coached at Maryville from 1990-2001, Fort Osage from 2001-2002, Holden from 2003- 2007 and Harrisonville from 2008-2012. He finished his coaching career as the Interim Head Coach at William Jewell College. Sadly, coach Lliteras passed away in 2021 at the age of 66.

• Chris McCartneyOlathe North

  Chris McCartney graduated from Pawhuska High School in Oklahoma before attending Emporia State where he graduated in 1987. He spent the next two years as a grad assistant at Emporia before moving to the high school ranks. McCartney’s first high school job was an assistant coach at Washington High School from 1991- 95. The next season he joined the staff at Olathe North where he served as an assistant until 2014. During that time McCartney was part of a staff that won eight state titles between 1996- 2009. In 2015 McCartney became the head coach at North where he has continued the excellence that has the Eagles as one of the top programs in the Metro. In 2019 McCartney led North to the Kansas 6A championship game. He has also taken the Eagles to the semifinals four other times. McCartney has a 74-26 record and has won the Sunflower League three times. He was also the Sunflower League Coach of the Year in 2022.

• Tom RadkeSt. Pius X/Piper/St. James Academy

  Tom Radke graduated from Aurelia High School in Iowa where he was a four-sport athlete and participated in band and choir. He then attended Iowa State University where he was a three-year letter winner for the Cyclones. After graduating in 1997 he started his coaching career as an assistant at St. Pius X in 1999 where he was a part of the staff that won two state titles. Radke’s first head coaching job was at Piper from 2004-2010. During that time, he led the Pirates to three playoff appearances. In 2011 he took over St. James Academy. Radke led the program to back-to-back Kansas Class 4A state championships in 2020 and 2021. He was named the Kansas City Chiefs Coach of the Year in 2020 and the Kansas Class 4A Coach of the Year in 2020 and 2021 and has a coaching record of 100-84. Radke is a former GKCFCA board member and served as the president of the association.

• Greg SmithPlattsburg/Kearney/Smithville/Pleasant Hill/Blue Springs South/Pembroke Hill

  The Plattsburg native attended MidAmerica Nazarene before starting his coaching career at his high school alma mater. Smith served as an assistant at Plattsburg before taking over the program in 1996. He then moved to Kearney as an assistant in 2002. Smith returned to the head coaching ranks with Smithville in 2003 where he coached the Warriors until 2014. In 2015 he moved to Pleasant Hill to take over the Roosters program. He has also served as an assistant at Blue Spring South and is currently on the staff of Pembroke Hill. In his time as a head coach Smith won eight district titles, seven conference titles and has a 137-101 record. In 2018 Smith was inducted into the Missouri Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame. He is also a past president of the GKCFCA.

• Mike ZegunisBlue Valley Northwest/Olathe East/Olathe West

  Mike Zegunis graduated from Cheyenne Central High School in Wyoming before finishing his college career at Fort Hays State in 1992. He began his coaching career at Olathe East as an assistant where he helped the program to an 82-36 record. In 2005 Zegunis took over Blue Valley Northwest. He led the Huskies to the postseason five times under the old district system and had seven winning seasons. Zegunis then moved to Olathe West to help start the new school’s program as an assistant coach. The Owls have a 33-28 record in that time reaching the Class 5A semifinals in 2018. In his time as an assistant and head coach his teams have won 15 district championships, eight regional titles and two sectional championships and have an overall 170-125 record. He is also a past president of the GKCFCA.