Mike Ditka, the Hall of Fame tight end and head coach who led the Chicago Bears to their only Super Bowl title, died Friday, Oct. 9. He was 86.

His family released a statement but did not announce a cause of death, ABC7 Chicago reported.

Ditka spent his entire Bears coaching career based in Lake Forest. The team has operated out of Halas Hall in Lake Forest since 1979, first on the Lake Forest College campus and then at the current Conway Park complex beginning in 1997, according to the Chicago Tribune.

On Nov. 2, 1988, Ditka suffered a mild heart attack during his morning workout at the Bears' training camp in Lake Forest. He was rushed to Lake Forest Hospital, where Dr. Jay Alexander treated him. "With his intestinal fortitude, he'll recover quickly," Alexander told UPI at the time.

The hospital served as a home base for treating Bears players and coaches throughout the Ditka era. Staff physician Dr. Clarence H. Fossier served as the team physician in the 1980s, according to Lake Forest Love.

Born Michael Dyczko on Oct. 18, 1939, in Carnegie, Pennsylvania, Ditka was selected fifth overall by the Bears in the 1961 NFL Draft. He caught 58 passes for 1,076 yards and 12 touchdowns as a rookie, becoming the first tight end to surpass 1,000 receiving yards in a season, USA Today reported. That rookie record stood for 63 years until Las Vegas Raiders tight end Brock Bowers broke it in 2024.

Ditka earned Pro Bowl selections in each of his first five seasons and was named to the NFL's 75th and 100th Anniversary All-Time Teams.

In 1988, he became the first tight end inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

George Halas hired Ditka as Bears head coach in 1982. Over 11 seasons, Ditka compiled a 106-62 regular-season record and led Chicago to the playoffs seven times.

In the 1985 season, the Bears finished 15-1 and beat the New England Patriots 46-10 in Super Bowl XX. That squad featured Walter Payton, Mike Singletary, Richard Dent and William "Refrigerator" Perry. The franchise has not won a Super Bowl since.

Ditka and Tom Flores remain the only two people in NFL history to win a Super Bowl as a player, an assistant coach and a head coach.

The Bears fired Ditka after the 1992 season. He later coached the New Orleans Saints from 1997 to 1999, going 15-33 in three seasons. After coaching, Ditka worked as a television analyst for NBC and ESPN, appearing on ESPN's "Sunday NFL Countdown" from 2006 to 2015.

Off the field, Ditka became a Chicago cultural icon. He opened restaurants, lent his name to cigars and sausages, and appeared in the 2005 Will Ferrell comedy "Kicking and Screaming." He was the subject of the recurring "Bill Swerski's Superfans" sketch on Saturday Night Live.

In 2008, Ditka became chairman of the board of the Gridiron Greats Assistance Fund, a nonprofit that provides financial grants and medical assistance to retired NFL players in need. The organization says it has aided more than 2,500 former players.

Jarrett Payton, son of Bears Hall of Famer Walter Payton, was among the first to share the news on social media, calling Ditka "the heartbeat of the '85 Bears."

@paytonsun: "It's with a heavy heart that I'm sharing the Ditka family has announced the passing of Mike Ditka this morning. Da Coach. Hall of Famer. The heartbeat of the '85 Bears and a Super Bowl champion. Chicago won't be the same. Prayers to Diana and the family. RIP, Coach."

No memorial or tribute events in Lake Forest had been announced as of Oct. 9.