Oak Park's 'Coach B' going out in style

WENDY PIERRO/Acorn Newspapers GRIDIRON GREAT—Dick Billingsley retired after 19 years as head coach of the Oak Park High football squad. He remains the school's co-athletic director and will continue teaching kinesiology. Forty-one years ago, Dick Billingsley wanted to become an English teacher at Culver City High.

There was only one problem.

"If you were a teacher, you had to wear a coat and tie every day to work," Billingsley said. "God, I hated wearing ties. It wasn't long before I started to get into kinesiology, because that way I wouldn't have to wear one."

Billingsley donned a cap and whistle and became a football coach, including a 19-year stint for Oak Park High that began in 1990.

Since taking over the Oak Park varsity program, Billingsley guided the Eagles to 14 playoff appearances while earning four Tri-Valley League titles.

In his tenure, 194 Oak Park football players were named to All-Tri-Valley League teams and 77 graduates have gone on to play college football.

During the last couple years, however, Billingsley began to feel fatigue, both physically and mentally. In addition to coaching, he also serves as the school's coathletic director and continues to teach kinesiology.

"I really wanted to quit after the (2007 season), and that would have been the ideal way to go out," Billingsley said.

"But I felt I owed it to the seniors to coach one more year. It didn't take long for me to figure out that I was going to feel that way after each season.

"That's why I told The Acorn in September that I was retiring from coaching. It's like someone telling another person they're going to run a marathon. You'd look pretty silly if you didn't go through with it," he said.

Billingsley said the response to his retirement announcement was enormous.

"A lot of people were shocked," Billingsley said. "I had a lot of coaches, players and parents saying a lot of positive things. I had a few parents telling me that I couldn't quit because they wanted me to coach their 13yearold in a few years."

Another person that was stunned by the news was former Oak Park football player Matt Hirsch, who, in a September Acorn Letter to the Editor wrote:

"I cannot possibly imagine Oak Park High football without him. It's almost like trying to picture the Dodgers without Vin Scully."

On Saturday night, the Oak Park football program will hold its annual banquet. This time, there will also be a special tribute to Billingsley.

According to coathletic director Ann Pettit, the athletic department has attempted to get at least one player from each of Billingsley's Eagle teams to attend the tribute, which begins after the football banquet at 7 p.m.

One former player that will be there is Damian Delfino, who played on Billingsley's first Oak Park team and was a starting quarterback for two years.

"What he brought to the program was a sense of stability and direction," Delfino said.

"He also instilled his values of hard work and accountability. He gave us an understanding that the world doesn't revolve around you, which for a 15-year-old, can be a tough lesson to learn."

Billingsley also helped install a new offense at Oak Park—the triple option. Delfino was one of the first quarterbacks to run the system.

"I had a blast running the triple option," Delfino said. "Mentally, it really kept you in the game because you were constantly reading two to three guys on defense. It worked really well for us."

Morgan Williams, a defensive back for Billingsley in 2001 and '02, also has fond memories of the man they call "Coach B."

"He always taught respect and to live life to the fullest," Williams said. "He carried himself well and did a good job of teaching sportsmanship. He was a fun guy to be around."

Hardly anyone has been around Billingsley for a longer period than Pettit, who has been at OPHS for 27 years and has served as co-athletic director with Billingsley for the past 12 years.

Pettit remembers Billingsley's early days well.

"I remember being on the committee that interviewed him and thinking he must have been the most nervous person I have ever seen," Pettit said. "Later on, I learned that was really out of character for him.

"It's been fantastic working with him. He's very professional, funny, and he always has a positive spirit surrounding him."

Former OPHS defender Logan Ketchum, who last played for Billingsley in 2006 and was also a former ball boy at the school, said Billingsley's legacy will last many years.

"Everything he did for the Oak Park football program won't be forgotten," Ketchum said. "The No. 1 thing he did was make football fun."

Billingsley said he isn't sure how he'll react during the ceremony, but he does have a game plan to execute.

"I don't know what's going to happen, but I hope I get to address the team, the coaches, the parents and my wife, Sally," he said.

"They've all made my time at Oak Park very exciting. I have no regrets about how things turned out, and I couldn't see myself doing things any other way."