Richard Paul Estergard

1932 ? 2005

Written by Major Nelson Miller, Courtesy of the New Mexico Military Institute alumni magazine "The Sally Port"

Those of us that knew Dick Estergard either as an athlete or friend were deeply saddened to learn of his passing this past December. I believe anyone who has walked through the Sally Port over the years has found someone who made a positive life-long impression on them. “Coach” was such a person to so many of us.

You cannot find adequate words to describe Coach: a nationally prominent athlete, a disciplinarian who would get the most out of his players through aggressive play and sportsmanship, a man who did exactly what he wanted to do in life, an eccentric who was known for relentlessly washing and waxing his many automobiles or flying to Canada for a fishing trip at the drop of a hat, and most of all ? a friend with a giant heart who would never let you down.

A native of Elgin, Illinois and member of the city's Sports Hall of Fame, Coach was one of the best to ever play in that illustrious sports community and the only person from that city to ever play in a NCAA Division I national basketball championship.

In his junior and senior years at Elgin High School he became known as an aggressive defensive player who was expert at rebounding and a very capable scorer. During his senior year in 1950 he captained Elgin High School to a third place finish at the Illinois State High School Championships. The team's single loss in this 16-team field was to Mt. Vernon who would eventually go on to win the championship.

His aggressive play caught the eye of Bradley University where he played varsity basketball from 1951 to 1954. Known as the “Bradley Bear” for his aggressive play in the paint, Coach scored 1,039 points, pulled down 1,414 rebounds, and set a school single game scoring record with 33 points against a talented Marquette team in 1954.

These career accomplishments as a varsity player made Coach just one of two players in Bradley's history to score over 1,000 points and to pull down 1,000 rebounds. Easily the school's all-time rebound leader, Coach who only stood six-foot-four needed only 88 games to achieve this record giving him a career average of 16.1 rebounds per game. His nearest competitor is Chet “The Jet” Walker who had a distant 1,036 rebounds in his career as a varsity player.

During his senior year Coach earned Naismith All-American honors by leading Bradley University to its second NCAA National Championship game in school history. Reaching the Final Four in Kansas City, Bradley advanced to play a LaSalle team captained by legendary player Tom Gola in the first nationally televised championship game. In a losing effort that saw Bradley leading at the half, Coach scored 21 points and established a new title game record for free throw percentage by connecting on 11 of 12 shots. This record stood until broken by Duke's Christian Laettner who hit 12-of-12 in 1991.

Coach was inducted into the Bradley University Hall of Fame in 1956 as a member of that historical team and as an individual inductee for his record setting play.

Drafted by the Boston Celtics, Coach played with Hall of Famers Bob Cousey, Tom Heinsohn and Bill Sharman. Believing that he would not get much playing time behind these players because of his scoring Coach decided to leave the Celtics and play semiprofessionally in the Air Force. Playing with the likes of legendary University of North Carolina Coach Dean Smith, whom he would later compete with for one of the first assistant coaching position at the Air Force Academy, Coach was a leading player on the United States Council International Sports Military Basketball Team that won the International Basketball Championship in 1957.

After his discharge from military service, Coach came to NMMI where he posted a record of 101 wins to 59 loses as the head Bronco basketball coach. At a time in the school's history when Bronco basketball took a back seat to football, had few scholarships to give, and school enrollments declined because of  the national backlash to the Vietnam War, this .631 winning percentage was remarkable.

Usually with much smaller and arguably less talented players, Coach's teams not only knew how to play the game in the same way that Coach earned the moniker “Bradley Bear” they also knew how to win and lose as gentlemen. This aspect of his Bronco basketball teams and the fact that most of his players were walk-ons from within the Corps of Cadets made his teams respected by the Corps and competitors alike.

One of the things that I remember most about Coach was his humility. You never heard him brag about the things he achieved. Even though he lived a remarkable life he was a very common man who enriched all those who knew him. May God hold this special man in the hollow of His loving hands and keep him forever young.  

Author's note: I want to thank Bobby Parker Bradley University Sports PIO, and Ron Lange, President - Elgin, Illinois Sports Hall of Fame, for their help in writing this article. They went well beyond at every turn to help.