One of the legends of IHSA Football longtime Oak Lawn Richards Hall of Fame head coach Gary Korhonen died today.
Sad to report Richards Gary Korhonen has passed
- Thread starter EdgyTim
- Start date
Nice guy.Passionate coach.Reavis & Richards had a hell of a rivalry back in the day.The last year Reavis beat them in 85 I believe Gary was so mad he walked off & didn’t shake hands.The following Monday right as practice ended at Reavis he showed up and surprised everyone.He addresses the Rams and apologized and shook the hands of all the kids,Cheerleaders & coaches.It was awesome
He was quite the big part in the decades-long period of excellence that yet continues down there. Seeing "KORHONEN FIELD" at the bottom of the scoreboard, as has been the case for years, will take on even greater meaning going forward.
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Glad I got the chance to sit by him a couple of times when he would be in the stands scouting potential state playoff opponents. It was great football talk and never acted better than anyone even though his record spoke for itself. For those that don't know the area Richards is at, it is close to all the south Blue teams and Marist. He had a nationally ranked team in the early 90's and a dynasty in late 80s early 90s in an incredibly highly competitive area. Rest in Peace
Just thought of this but think about how many more wins the guy would have had if they hadn't gone on strike so many times.I know 79 they forfeited to Reavis because of a strike and another year 1984 I think they only played 4 games because of a strike.Maybe a year or 2 they were out a bit
Best man I have ever met. Gary “convinced me” I should coach his daughters travel softball team the next season thru a phone campaign launched while he was at their national tourney in Tennessee. I caved and coached a team I had only watched a few times the next season...how could I say no. A family man one may never know thru his Richards days. I did have the chance to meet a HS Dwyane Wade as a side. My thoughts and prayers go out to his wife and children. It will be a loss to the entire south side of Chicago.
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Pure class. A legend who did things the right way on and off the field. RIP.
