Rites set at Mt. Hall: Bill Hays left mark on St. John sports

Bill Hays, former St. John coach who rolled up a legendary career during his 17 years heading the Eagles in football, basketball and track, died June 19 at the age of 82.

Coach Hays, who departed St. John in 1974 for a teaching and coaching position at Newport, retired in 1989 to his family ranch north of Bonners Ferry where he raised black Angus cattle.

A celebration of life has been scheduled in the gym of the Mt. Hall Elementary School at 11 a.m. July 18. A luncheon will follow.

Former players and fellow coaches in the area are planning to make the trip for the life celebration. Mt. Hall is a small community located north of Bonners Ferry where their son, George Hays recently retired from the school faculty.

Bill and Mary Boyd Hays, who were married during his senior year of college, came to St. John in 1957.

His Eagle basketball teams won four state titles during the 1960s and his football teams at one stretch booked four undefeated seasons ending in the 1968 season.

That record was posted in the former Whitman League in the days before the state playoff championship rounds. The Whitman league was made up of 11-man teams and season-end championship photos of the Eagles show more the 50 players on the Hays teams.

Hays and the Eagles took state B basketball titles at the Spokane Coliseum, the Boone Street Barn, in 1961, 1963, 1968 and 1969. Combined record for the last two championship teams was 59-2 with one defeat each season.

They also advanced to the title game in 1962 and were defeated by a powerhouse Morton team.

Former players recall Hays as a task master in practice sessions. He also expressed deep appreciation to his teams when they began to stack up wins as each season advanced.

Coach Hays has been inducted into three Washington Hall of Fames for coaching and is among hall of fame coaches with a tribute box at the Spokane Arena.

Hays developed his interest in raising cattle while the family lived in a rental unit on the Don Cole Ranch in the Lancaster area. That evolved into the cattle operation and development of the ranch in the Bonners Ferry area.

The Hays duo departed St. John in 1974 to take teaching and coaching positions at Newport and he had more success with Newport teams. One factor in the move to Newport was to be located closer to the ranch where they spent their summers.

Mr. Hays was born in Bismarck, N.D., April 26, 1933, to George and Lucy Warner Hays. His mother died when he was a youngster, and his father married Anita Larson, who raised young Bill and three sisters.

The family moved to Rupert, Idaho, after World War II, and he graduated from high school there. He then went to Idaho State University where he played point guard in one of the ISU teams which advanced to the NCAA sweet 16 level.

They made teaching and coaching stops at Salmon and Twin Falls before coming to St. John.

Surviving in addition to his wife of 60 years are three children, Leslie (John) Akins, George Hays, and Paula (Ken) West, four grandchildren and one great-grandson.