Legendary Sauk Valley athlete, coach Lyle Bogott, 93, dies in Texas

Lyle Bogott left quite an impression on the Sauk Valley, both as an athlete and a coach.

Bogott, who died Jan. 4 at his son Doug’s house in Alvin, Texas, is a member of the Rock Falls and Dixon high school halls of fame. He was 93.

A 1947 Rock Falls High graduate, he earned nine varsity letters in football, basketball and track & field.

It was on the basketball court that he shined brightest.

A three-time first team all-conference performer, Bogott led the 1946-47 Rockets to a 25-1 record. Their lone loss was in the sectional final against Rockford West.

As a senior, Bogott averaged 15.5 points and made 39.1% of his field goal attempts for legendary coach Lloyd Hinders. Bogott left RFHS as the record-holder for single-season scoring with 441 points, set his junior season.

He went on to Monmouth College, where he earned nine varsity letters in football, basketball and baseball.

After getting a master’s degree from the University of Iowa and doing a 2-year stint working at Byron High School, Bogott came to Dixon, where he would teach and coach for the next 33 years. He taught physical education, science and driver’s education, and coached basketball, baseball and football. He also served as the school’s athletic director for a short time.

Bogott’s biggest coaching success came in basketball, where he guided the Dukes to a 67-27 record over a four-year stretch in the mid-1950s. That winning percentage of .713 is the highest in Dixon boys basketball history.

Bogott’s first team in 1955-56 posted an 18-5 record, while his last team in 1958-59 went 22-4 and won a regional championship.

Bob Hill was a two-year starter under Bogott and had fond memories of his former coach.

“He was a super coach,” Hill said in a 2013 article about Bogott that celebrated 100 years of Dukes basketball. “He worked us hard, but it paid off. It was fun. When we’d get done with practice, he’d move to the steps in the old gym. He’d have us run those steps, and we were in shape. I think that’s how we won a lot of our games, because we were really in shape.”

Carl Gann was an eighth-grader back then with a keen interest in watching the 1958-59 club compete.

“I was so in love with that team from ’58-’59 and the job Mr. Bogott did coaching it,” Gann said. “My brother [Merle] was a senior that season, and he took me to watch them play a number of times. I was sold on them. They were quite the team, and Mr. Bogott was a true gentleman.”