A well-known area football and wrestling coach has passed. Billy Joe Brockhouse, 76, of Winchester passed away yesterday at home. Brockhouse who starred at Winchester High School as a player went on to win NAIA All-American football honors in 1966 at Western Illinois University. After college football, Brockhouse played from 1969-1971 in the Continental Football League, Texas Football League, and Trans-American Football League as a defensive end, linebacker, and tight end.
After his playing days, Brockhouse joined football coaching staffs at Florida State University and New Mexico State University before he returned to West Central Illinois to be a teacher and athletic coach.
He began his high school coaching career with the Carrollton Hawks from 1978-1981 going 25-14 before not being rehired for the 1982 season. North Greene High School hired him for 1982, their final year in the old South Central Conference, where they went 1-8. While at North Greene and Carrollton, he also coached wrestling. Brockhouse returned to be an assistant coach in Winchester for a short time, as well.
Brockhouse headed south after the 1980s with stints as an assistant football, baseball, basketball, and track coach at Edwardsville and Alton. He was a part of Edwardsville High School’s baseball coaching staff that won state titles in 1990 and 1998. He was also on staff during EHS’s unprecedented 64-game winning streak between 1990-1991 and their 40-0 season in 1998. Brockhouse was inducted into the Western Illinois University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1993.
Arrangements are pending at Coonrod Funeral Home in Winchester.