CASPER – Southeast High School coach Mark Bullington had been bugged for years about applying to the Wyoming Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

However, he didn’t feel like it was the timing was right.

That changed recently, and on Friday, July 21 in Casper, Bullington was one of 10 other coaches from around the state to be inducted in the WCA Hall of Fame.

“It’s quite an honor,” Bullington said. “Like most hall of fames, it’s based on a points system, winning percentages, state championships, doing all-star games. It’s a columniation of everything put together.”

The list of accomplishments Bullington has amassed over the years is long. It includes nine state championships in football in 11 title game appearances, championships in three classes (1A, 2A and 1A 9-Man), 22 trips to the playoffs, a 166-70 record with two undefeated teams (2007 and 2020), 119 all-state football players, 10 state football players of the year, 11 Super 25 players, nine-time coach of the year, Shrine Bowl head coach twice and assistant three times, 181 track and wrestling state placers, 36 individual champions (nine wrestling and 27 track), five state track championships (four boys and one girls) and 11 runner-up finishes at state track.

Bullington knew early on he wanted to coach.

“I had some pretty good mentors when I was young as far as high school, and I’ve always wanted to coach. They were pretty good role models,” he said. “I’ve always liked working with kids and teaching.”

Football was always Bullington’s main love but has also coached track and wrestling during his more than 40-year career.

“I got into track a little more when I was in college,” he said. “My roommate was a track guy. I did track in high school, but it was just something you did in the spring.”

Wrestling also ran in the family as his younger brothers were grapplers.

“I never wrestled in high school, but I did wrestle in college,” Bullington said. “I thought if I was going to coach it, I better experience it.”

Bullington began his coaching career in 1979 in Lyman High School in Lyman, Nebraska before moving to Goshen County in 1982 after Barry Miller and Bruce Sinner convinced him to take a teaching job at Southeast during a track meet in Pine Bluffs.

In all, Bullington has coached high school wrestling for 30 years and throwers for 40. In 1999, he took over the Cyclone football head coaching position from Miller. 

And as they say, the rest is history.

One of the things which stood out to Bullington at the Hall of Fame was the class he was being inducted with.

There have been years that Bullington didn’t know any of the inductees, but that was far from the case in 2023.

“What I thought was really neat was, the people who I was going in with, nine of them were football or wrestling coaches and pretty successful coaches. Harshman from Natrona and Donny Julian from Sheridan, Larry Yeradi from Wright,” Bullington said. “It was an honor to go in with those guys.”

Now with the hall of fame induction behind him, Bullington is now looking toward another season of Cyclone football. Practice begins on Monday, Aug. 14, and the Cyclones open the season at home on Friday, Sept. 1 at 2 p.m. against Riverside.