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Don’t get it twisted. The true reason why Brad Bickett’s face often turns scarlet red is because of his love for the game that has given him so much, not disdain for his own players or the officials.
The proof is in his low rate of technical fouls despite his active coaching style.
"I'm just really passionate," Bickett said. "I'm not angry or mean. I love the game of
basketball, and I'm a tremendous competitor.
“I have great respect for officials, and they know when I get on them. I know what a tough profession it is, but I also know when I need to go to bat for my kids. They understand I’ll take care of the officials, and their job is to play.”
Rock Falls’ players even give Bickett the business to this day after it appeared that he had tripped an official at the State Farm Classic a couple years ago.
“He was back-pedaling, and I might have been chewing him a little bit,” Bickett explained. “He turned around to look at me, and tripped. It might have looked like I tripped him, but I’m not Grayson Allen. I don’t trip, I just chew a little bit. He got back up, and I kept coaching.”
Bickett used to describe star senior Cade Nailor as a “nice guy” on the basketball court, which effectively meant that the young forward was too tentative when it came to shooting the ball as an underclassman.
One practice changed everything for Nailor. Bickett told Nailor that the entire team would run for the rest of practice if he didn’t shoot the ball when the opportunity presented itself.
“As time goes on, you start to understand that he’s just trying to help you get better, and not just on the court,” Nailor said. “He tries to make you a better person, and you just have to listen and not talk back.
“He really loves and respects the game, and he pushes us to be the best person we can be.”
Bickett is SVM’s Coach of the Year after leading the Rockets to a 31-3 record, a top-5 ranking in the Class 3A AP poll during the regular season, and a regional title win over their chief rival.
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Bickett, 50, is in the Illlinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame as a player after scoring a school-record 2,177 points in his career at Ohio High School. He and fellow all-stater Lance Harris led the Bulldogs to a second-place finish in Class A as a senior in 1986, a huge accomplishment for a school of just 70 kids in a two-class basketball system.
“I remember my teammates, coaches and community, and how this silly game of basketball brought us so close together,” Bickett said. “The success we had didn’t happen overnight. It was a process that started in junior high. It took a talented group of guys, a tremendous coaching staff, and a group of parents committed to getting their kid to any camp, practice or workout.”
Bickett went on to star at Eureka College, where he led the Red Devils in scoring as a sophomore, junior and senior. His 1,192 career points earned him a spot in Eureka’s Hall of Fame, but he’s quick to point out that his name was also on the Dean’s List throughout his collegiate career.
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Bickett put the lessons he learned from his two coaches – Lloyd Johnson at Ohio and Dave Darnall at Eureka – to use right away back in Bureau County after graduating from college in 1990.
Bickett went 356-209 in 20 seasons at Buda Western (4 years), Western-Wyanet (1) and Bureau Valley (15). The run included 12 regional titles, and three straight third-place finishes in Class A from 2000-2002 at BV.
Two former players at Buda Western – Jason Marquis and Jason Smith – are now leaders on the bench for Bureau Valley. One of Bickett’s former assistants, Craig Johnson, is still helping guide the Storm.
Bureau Valley High School was created in 1995 when the former Manlius, Walnut, Western and Wyanet districts consolidated. Amid all the change back then, Bickett and his team’s success on the court were a steady source of enjoyment, no matter which town his kids lived in.
“It was really neat bringing all those towns together,” Bickett said. “I really take gratification in the fact that basketball brought things together quicker and smoother for not only the student body, but the parents.”
Bickett resigned as the coach at Bureau Valley in 2010, and took 2 years off from coaching to help his wife, Jolene, take care of their fourth child, Miley.
He described it as a “no-brainer” to take the Rock Falls coaching job when it opened up in 2012. His family built a house in the city, his wife taught at the high school, and the couple’s oldest three kids attended Montmorency School just south of town.
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Rock Falls won 21 games in Bickett’s first season at the helm, thanks in large part to a senior class that included Jace Anderson, Steven Armoska, Austin Babcock, Brodie Bruns, Alex Leaf, Eddie Nelson and Collin Olson.
Austin Donoho and Daegen Wharff returned from that talented team, but the Rockets struggled to a 19-64 record over the next 4 years. Some players and assistant coaches stayed on board, while others left the program.
“I was already a veteran coach. I knew what it took, and I had already built a program,” Bickett said. “I had to do my best to communicate my message to the kids and parents to trust me, and the fact that I was doing what I felt was best for the program.”
Midway through the 2015-16 season, Bickett brought up Nailor and fellow freshman Dylan Leaf to the varsity squad.
“It was a gutsy move to bring Cade and Dylan up,” Bickett said. “I wasn’t afraid to do it. It was evident they were going to be special. And with kids leaving the program for different reasons, combined with their skill set, it was something I had to do. I have no regrets about it.”
Players like Michael Berentes, Austin Meiners and Logan Pillars helped Nailor and Leaf along the way, as the Rockets started to turn things around.
“He took such a big chance,” Nailor said. “We had to accept our roles and do what was best for the program. He trusted us, we trusted him, and I think it turned out pretty well.”
Rock Falls went 22-9 in 2016-17, and beat Dixon for a 3A regional title at Tabor Gym before bowing out to Bloomington in the sectional semifinals. The Dukes avenged their loss by ousting a 24-win Rockets’ squad last season in the 3A Stillman Valley Regional final.
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Disappointment at the end of last season quickly turned into elation this season. Rock Falls won its first 14 games in 2018-19, before losing to Bloomington Central Catholic in second round of the State Farm Classic. Still, the Rockets rallied to take fifth place at one of Illinois’ top holiday tournaments.
Woodstock North beat Rock Falls on Jan. 26, but that didn’t stop the Rockets from becoming undefeated Big Northern champions for a second straight season.
“That was special. Not many teams can run the conference like we did, especially 2 years in a row,” Nailor said. “It’s hard to repeat that success. But we had great team chemistry, coaches coached us well, and we busted our butts in practice. It all paid off.”
The five seniors on this year’s team – Leaf, Nailor, Kyle Ellefsen, Nate Wiles and Keyon Wolber – did not lose a game at Tabor Gym in their final two seasons with the program.
“It was pretty much workmanlike,” Bickett said. “That’s what I’m most proud of with this group. We knew we’d get everyone’s best shot in the league, and we had to be at our best every night.”
Rock Falls earned the top seed in the 3A Bradley University Sectional, but had to hold on for dear life in the Freeport Regional. The Rockets came back to beat Rochelle 58-55, and held off Sterling 64-61 in the regional final.
“We took Rochelle’s best shot, and I thought we took Sterling’s best shot, but we survived,” Bickett said. “That was pretty gratifying for our players, and especially for some of our fans with the special rivalry we have with Sterling. To win a postseason game against them was pretty neat.”
The Rockets ultimately lost to 3A fourth-place finisher Peoria Manual 57-48 in the sectional semifinals. The loss left the players wanting more, but satisfied with how they helped turn the program around.
“This season was amazing,” Nailor said. “It was a great way to end my high school career. We could have gone a little farther than we did, but we still accomplished a lot of things that a lot of teams in this program hadn’t.”
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Bickett still teaches driver’s education at Bureau Valley, which means he commutes the 23.4 miles north on Illinois Route 40 to practices and games throughout the winter.
Walking the halls at BV and not seeing the kids he coaches might be hard, but Rock Falls accommodates as best it can. Athletic director Rich Montgomery has worked with Bickett in having practices from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., while Rock Falls girls basketball coach Eric Wolf and his staff are willing to practice afterward.
Bickett also leans heavily on assistant coach Matt Naftzger, who is the only boys basketball coach that teaches at Rock Falls.
“It’s a lot of time and commitment,” Bickett said. “Mr. Montgomery continues to believe in me, and he’s done so since the day I was hired. Coach Naftzger does so much administrative stuff that a head coach might do if he was in the building. He’s so good at being that discipline figure.
“We’ve been pretty successful, and it’s due in large part to my assistant coaches that make it happen. And our wives are a big part. They all do some different things, but sports are a part of our lives.”
Bickett also had the unique opportunity to coach his son, Jalen, full-time this season. Jalen Bickett was an honorable-mention all-Big Northern selection as a junior guard, but his father remains wary of anybody who says nepotism might play a role in the situation.
“I’m not playing Jalen Bickett because he’s my kid,” Brad Bickett said. “I’m playing Jalen Bickett because he’s a good basketball player and a good kid. He deserves those minutes.”
Fans at basketball games might observe Brad Bickett coaching his son harder than other players, but he is also a consistent father figure at golf meets and baseball games.
“I do put extra pressure on him, and I do get after him,” Brad Bickett said. “But he handles it remarkably. I think if you asked my wife, she’d say it’s been amazing.
“We aren’t yelling at the dinner table. People might see my competitive fire on the court, but I love my kid to death, and whether it be golf, basketball or baseball season, he knows I’m his biggest fan.”
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Despite an accomplished playing career, Brad Bickett stopped scrimmaging against the teams he coached about 5 years ago. He and Naftzger are now coaches only, but assistants Jed Johnson and Herb Martin still mix it up with the players.
“The competition in practice was really good this year. The players know with me and the other coaches in the gym, there’s no nights off,” Bickett said. “We’re going to keep pushing. I hope they can take what they learned in the gym and use those lessons of hard work later on in life.”
Rock Falls loses its five key seniors, but is dropping down to Class 2A next season. Erie-Prophetstown will replace IVC on the Rockets’ schedule as the only change.
Come November, fans can still expect to see Bickett giving it his all on the sidelines. His cheeks will be an Ohio-colored red, his in-game adjustments turning teams’ offenses Bureau Valley-blue, and a crowd clad in kelly green and black.
“We had eight juniors, and I think all eight will contribute,” Bickett said. “I feel comfortable that we have some sophomores that can step up and contribute. I see us playing a lot of guys, especially early on.
“We have work to do, and that’s exciting to try and keep this going. The guys will put in the work, and the coaches will, too. I know we’ll be ready.”
Bickett file
High School: Ohio, class of 1986
College: Eureka, class of 1990
Resides: Rock Falls
Occupation: Driver’s education teacher at Bureau Valley High School
Family: Wife, Jolene; daughters Bailey, Claire & Miley; son, Jalen
FYI: Led Rock Falls to a 31-3 record and the 3A Freeport Regional title in 2018-19. …Won 14 regional titles in 27 years of coaching. …IBCA Hall of Fame Class of 1998. …Scored 2,177 points in Ohio career (school record, tied for 79th in IHSA history). …Eureka College Hall of Fame Class of 1996. …Led Eureka in points for final 3 years (1,192 points).