Coached two Bears Hall of Famers

Jim Dooley, 77, who succeeded George Halas as head coach of the Chicago Bears, died Tuesday, his daughter said. He had been ill with complications from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, and died at a hospital in Lake Forest, Ill.

Dooley coached the Bears from 1968 to 1971. He was 20-36, including a 1-13 season in 1969, but coached Hall of Famers Gale Sayers and Dick Butkus.

He spent nearly three decades with the team as a wide receiver, head coach and, later on, an assistant coach alongside Mike Ditka.

“He always had a tremendous football mind,” Ditka told the Chicago Tribune, calling him “an expert at analyzing film.”

Dooley was born in Stoutsville, Mo., and was drafted by the Bears out of the University of Miami in 1952.