Submitted photo: Hall of Fame coach Koy Goodchild with his wife, Lori; their children, Shawna, Alicia, Ryan and Kole; and their spouses. Goodchild passed away on Sunday after a lengthy battle with cancer. He was 67.

WEST BEND — Faith, family and football went hand-in-hand for Koy Goodchild.

The Hall of Fame legend and first head coach for West Bend-Mallard as a combined program passed away on Sunday. Goodchild was 67 years old.

Goodchild is survived by his wife of 46 years, Lori, and their four children: Shawna (Mark) Bonnstetter of Humboldt; Alicia (Ryan) Smith of Ames; Ryan (Dayna) Goodchild of Johnston; and Kole (Tiffany) Goodchild of Stillwater, Minn. He had 11 grandchildren.

“As great as he was as a football coach, his family and faith are what drove him,” the Goodchild family said in a statement.

The area icon lost a long fight with cancer.

On the field, Goodchild — who grew up in Mallard — accumulated an impressive 25-year record of 229-38 for an 85.7 win percentage. He guided the Wolverines to four state championships — in 1994, ’98, ’99 and 2004 — with two more two semifinal teams and 17 playoff squads. Under Goodchild, the Wolverines won 15 conference or district titles.

Goodchild retired from being a head coach in 2005, but remained a teacher at WB-M until 2021.

“It may be cliche, but Coach was larger than life,” said Iowa Central Community College Superintendent Jesse Ulrich, who graduated from West Bend-Mallard in 2000 and was a key lineman on the 1998 and 1999 title teams. “Football was the byproduct of what he was about…he was just a great human being.

“He instilled in every one of his players a commitment to excellence, and taught us how to do the things every day that the others aren’t willing to do.

“He didn’t believe in luck. He always said, ‘Good things happen to good people who work hard.’ We won a ton of football games, but the person he was to us off the field was more important, as well as the relationships he built.”

On the field, he was Coach Goodchild. At home, he was just dad. His son, Ryan, played for him on the back-to-back championship squads of in 1998 and ’99. Kole was also a standout for the Wolverines under his father’s direction.

As a coach, Goodchild — a volunteer on head coach Kevin Twait’s staff at Iowa Central after retiring at WB-M — made his players and the community believe in the power of consistency.

Former St. Edmond and Manson Northwest Webster football coach Jeff Anliker, who played under Goodchild in his first season at West Bend-Mallard during the 1981-82 school year, knew the coach and the man.

“Something I always admired and took with me coaching was his belief in work ethic,” Anliker said. “You could have no athletic ability, but he would have kids work harder than anyone because they believed in him and the program.

“He was a great football coach, husband and father.”

With all of the accolades and championships, there came recognition and honors. Goodchild always shied away from the notoriety as much as possible.

“He didn’t like taking credit for anything,” Anliker said. “He wasn’t a fan of publicity at all.

“He treated everyone the same way.”

Goodchild, a science teacher by trade, was inducted into the IFCA Hall of Fame in 1995. The three-time coach of the year also served as the athletic director at WB-M.

Funeral services will be at 10:30 a.m. Monday, Oct. 28, at the Peace Lutheran Church in West Bend.

Burial will be in the West Bend Cemetery.