Hensley Sapenter

Hensley W. Sapenter (born December 16, 1939) is a former American football coach and athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Prairie View A&M University from 1995 to 1996, compiling a record of 0–22. Sapenter was inducted into the Texas Black Sports Hall of Fame in 2003.^[1]

Hensley Sapenter

Biographical details
Born	(1939-12-16) December 16, 1939 (age 85)
Playing career
late 1950s	Prairie View
Position(s)	Center, linebacker
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1961–1965	Booker T. Washington HS (TX) (assistant)
?–1970	Wheatley HS (TX) (assistant)
1971	Fox Tech HS (TX) (assistant)
1995–1996	Prairie View
Administrative career (AD unless noted)
1976–1995	San Antonio ISD
1995–1996	Prairie View
Head coaching record
Overall	0–22 (college)
Accomplishments and honors
Awards
Texas Black Sports Hall of Fame (2003)

Early life and playing career

Sapenter grew up in San Antonio and attended Wheatley High School there. He played college football at Prairie View A&M University as a center and linebacker for in the late 1950s under head coach Billy Nicks.^[2] He was inducted into the school's Sports Hall of Fame in 1995.^[3]

Coaching career

After graduating from Prairie View in 1960, Sapenter began his coaching career at Booker T. Washington High School in Wichita Falls, Texas, working as an assistant football coach under Ervin Garnet.^[4]

Sapenter was hired as the athletic director for the San Antonio Independent School District in 1976.^[5][6] He had recently retired from that post when, in 1995, he was hired as interim head football coach, and athletic director at Prairie View, despite having not coached at any level since 1972. He was told that he would only be considered for the full-time job if he could win.^[2]

In two years, Sapenter finished 0–22, making him one of the few college football coaches to have never won a game.^[7][8] During his tenure, his teams were outscored 950–210.^[9]

On September 23, Prairie View was drubbed, 44–6 by Tarleton State tying Macalester's NCAA record 50 straight losses. They broke the tie the next week with a 64–0 thumping by Grambling State—the 399th career win for Grambling's legendary coach, Eddie Robinson.

The streak grew to 80 consecutive losses before it was broken in 1998.^[10] Sapenter was first suspended with pay and then subsequently fired following an investigation into the use of ineligible players.^[11]

Head coaching record

Year	Team	Overall	Conference	Standing	Bowl/playoffs
Prairie View A&M Panthers (Southwestern Athletic Conference) (1995–1996)
1995	Prairie View A&M	0–11	0–7	8th
1996	Prairie View A&M	0–11	0–7	8th
Prairie View A&M:		0–22	0–4
Total:		0–22

References

1. "Texas Black Sports Hall of Fame". Archived from the original on July 24, 2011. Retrieved September 21, 2008.
2. Sports Illustrated/CNN Archived July 9, 2009, at the Wayback Machine "Once Upon A Time..." by John Ed Bradley, August 28, 1995
3. "Hensley Sapenter (1995) - Prairie View A&M University Sports Hall Of Fame". Prairie View, Texas: Prairie View A&M University Athletics. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
4. Goolsbey, Jeff (November 4, 1995). "Rams blow past HU for CIAA title". Times Record News. Wichita Falls, Texas. p. 3B. Retrieved January 9, 2022 – via Newspapers.com .
5. "Sapenter named AD for SASD". [San Antonio Express. Wichita Falls, Texas. August 26, 1976. p. 1H. Retrieved January 9, 2022 – via Newspapers.com .
6. "Sapenter named AD (continued)". [San Antonio Express. Wichita Falls, Texas. August 26, 1976. p. 2H. Retrieved January 9, 2022 – via Newspapers.com .
7. Prairie View A&M University coaching records Archived January 7, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
8. "Prairie View Agricultural & Mechanical University Directory". The Sports Network. Archived from the original on May 25, 2011.
9. "All-Time Coaching Records by Year". Archived from the original on October 29, 2010. Retrieved January 30, 2011.
10. Sports Illustrated Memorable Losing Streaks, Prairie View A&M
11. New York Times "Team That's 0-58 May Have Broken Rules" September 4, 1996