Sidwell was the first athlete selected to the Hall of Fame who was not a football player. A basketball player from 1954-1958, he returned to campus six years later to coach the hoops team for five seasons. During his four playing seasons, he led the team in scoring three times and was a member of the All-OVC squad. When he finished, he was the school's leading scorer. In 1964, he became head coach, leading his team to winning marks in four of the next five seasons. In all, he had a 115-97 record as a player (49-40) and coach (66-57).