The Lehigh Valley lost one of it’s most iconic sports figures over the weekend, when legendary football coach Bob Stem passed away on Friday following a lengthy illness at the age of 84.

Stem won 285 career games in coaching stints between Bethlehem Catholic and Phillipsburg. Only Marian Catholic’s Stan Dakosty has more career wins in District 11 with 318.

The Phillipsburg native coached at Bethlehem Catholic from 1983-2001, going 173-53-1 and turning the Golden Hawks into a powerhouse. They won eight district championships, six Eastern Penn Conference crowns, an Eastern Conference championship and two PIAA state titles in 1988 and 1990.

At Phillipsburg, Stem started his coaching career in 1973 with the State Liners until 1981 and then coming back to lead the program from 2005-2010. He was 112-43-4 during his tenure and came away with four New Jersey sectional titles.

But it was his time at Bethlehem Catholic that put Stem on the map in the coaching ranks.

Former Bethlehem Catholic principal Dick Culver hired Stem at Becahi and saw first hand the impact he had during his 19 years with the program.

“Whatever you thought of Bob, if you had a son you wanted him to play for him,” said Culver. “He was more than just a football coach. He was a big guy, but he had a big heart. When it came to football, it was no nonsense, but it was bigger than football. He taught them about life.”

Stem was an all-state football player and state champion wrestler at Phillipsburg. He went on to play at Syracuse as a center and linebacker, winning a national championship in 1959 with the Orangemen.

He had brief stints in pro football with the Boston Patriots of the AFL and the Edmonton Eskimos of the CFL before coming back to the area and starting his coaching career at P’Burg.

His P’Burg lore continued by playing in the 50th edition of the Easton-Phillipsburg series and coaching the 75th and 100th meetings. His final career win came against Easton on Thanksgiving Day in 2010 following a 3-0 overtime win in a snowstorm.

Stem spent 35 years as an elementary school match teacher in Phillipsburg, where the “teddy bear” figure was on full display.

Culver and Stem were close friends and while golf wasn’t something that Culver took up, both enjoyed taking on construction projects in their free time.

“Bob and I, along with other volunteers, tiled all the hallways at Bethlehem Catholic,” said Culver. “We were very close and it was like a family at Bethlehem Catholic.”

Stem was inducted to the Phillipsburg Hall of Fame in 2021 and in Bethlehem Catholic’s Wall of Fame in 2022.