Press Row: A year after his wife’s passing, Dick Bruich is back on the sidelines to assist his son, Kurt, at Citrus Valley
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Press Row: A year after his wife’s passing, Dick Bruich is back on the sidelines to assist his son, Kurt, at Citrus Valley
The term “icon” gets thrown around far too often. But in the case of Dick Bruich, it is warranted.
Dick Bruich is the former Fontana High and Kaiser High football coaching legend who led the Fontana Steelers to a 14-0 record and mythical national title in 1987.
Dick’s teams went 292-84-4 overall and won 20 league titles. In all, his squads collected four section titles, three state No. 1 rankings, and nabbed that mythical national crown in ’87. Kurt was a star receiver on that team.
The field at Fontana High was named in Dick’s honor in 2023. February 18, 2003, was declared Dick Bruich Day in Fontana.
His coaching awards are too numerous to mention, with his state coach of the year in 1989 notable.
Dick belongs to no fewer than six halls of fame.
No slacker, Kurt Bruich inherited a Redlands East Valley High program that was 1-49 in its first five years and posted a winning record in his first season. The Wildcats won nine league titles in 13 years leading up to their narrow state championship win in 2014 against Clayton Valley Charter of Concord.
That gave Kurt something his dad never had, an on-field state championship. State title games did not exist when Dick coached. And Kurt’s success has continued, with his Citrus Valley team nabbing its first Citrus Belt League title in 2023.
Besides, it was never about just winning, Kurt told the Southern California News Group more than a decade ago.
“I don’t even try to live up to my dad’s accolades,” he said. “What I try to live up to, and why I wanted to get into coaching, was because I saw how many of my friends he influenced when I was in high school… I wanted to do what he did with people.”
Back to Dick. His beloved wife Cathy Cendejas Bruich passed away in 2024. That crushing blow came after 57 years of marriage and is keenly felt. There is no tonic to ease that – but Kurt, his sister Kristen Braun, and brother Kyle are doing their best.
Kristen is the district athletic director for Fontana Unified. Kyle is a middle school principal.
Which leads us to last Friday – Citrus Valley soaring to a 13-0 lead against favored and swag-filled Etiwanda, both Bruichs poised on the sideline, and a packed Blackhawk side eager for an upset.
But life is not always fair nor kind. Etiwanda scored late in the first half and on four of its next five possessions to defeat the Blackhawks 35-13.
"Tomorrow is another day,” some wise person once said. But the great thing is Citrus Valley has Dick back for a few days a week and on Friday nights indefinitely. That is a very good thing.
Last Friday Dick was there on the sideline with the rest of the Blackhawk staff.
When the offense came off the field, the Kearney, Nebraska native hurried to a video monitor behind the bench to help coach the kids up.
Video monitor? Now that’s a tool they didn’t have back in the day when Fontana High ruled the prep football world. But adapt or fail, right?
In recent years, we’d grown accustomed to seeing Dick and Cathy standing in the area beyond the North end zone prior to the opening kickoff.
“Hello, John Murphy,” Dick would say in his gravelly voice as he’d shake my hand. And I’d usually nod hello to Cathy who I did not know well. My loss.
So why has the legend picked now to emerge from the shadows?
“We’re keeping him busy,” Kurt said. “Obviously with my mom passing, it’s been difficult. He’s my assistant offensive line coach – unpaid. Denver Rogers is my regular O-line coach.”
The old Fontana guard – and it is legion – is not surprised.
Frankie Fuimaono, who played for Dick in 1989 when the school went unbeaten and was ranked third in the nation, says it is a huge plus for the Blackhawks.
“It’s always a good thing to have coach Bruich out there,” Fuimaono said.” I know he came out when we played Spotty in softball (a game between Fuimaono’s Beaumont High softball team and John “Spotty” Stevens’ Kaiser team) and we talked a little bit. Cathy was really a nice lady.”
An area football coach whose family experience with Dick spans six decades is Redlands High’s Bob Stangel Jr. Dick played for Stangel’s father at Cantwell High in the mid-1960s. Bob transferred from Notre Dame in Riverside to Fontana to play for Dick in the early 1980s.
Stangel knows the move will benefit Citrus Valley.
“Kurt had lost some coaches and was kind of rebuilding his staff and he heard Dick was helping Nick Matheny at Summit, so he said, ‘Why don’t you come out and help me?’ So I guess Dick goes out there a few times a week. Will it help to have the greatest coach of all time on your staff? I think it might.”
OK, we have seen Bruich teams practice. There is the John Wooden-like structure, the no-wasted-step efficiency, and the toughness one might expect. But what else?
“Dick has the ability to get the most out of you and to get you to take ownership for your job while buying into the team concept,” Stangel said. “He has a gift for it. He’s a genius at being human and knowing when and how and what to say to have the right effect on people.”
Continued Stangel, “It would also be interesting to see how many coaches out there now played for Dick Bruich. There’s a ton of them. It’s astounding.”
Though Citrus Valley faded in the second half of a 35-13 loss to Etiwanda on Friday, there are undoubtedly better days ahead for Blackhawk players and coaches – especially the two coaches with the same last name.
Citrus Valley’s next home game is at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 11 against Upland.
Reach John Murphy at berdooman@gmail.com and follow him at @PrepDawg2.
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