When recalling the life and career of Bob Liddy, two adjectives seem to unfold commonly and in unison: "hard-nosed" and "fair."

A man who spent 38 years teaching, coaching and administrating in the Davenport Public School system, Liddy is remembered as an intense fellow, but also one who honored the golden rule.

"He told you when you did it right and he told you when you did it wrong," former Davenport West basketball coach Dave Wessel said, "and he did it in a respectful manner."

A 1987 inductee to the Iowa High School Athletic Directors Association Hall of Fame, Liddy died June 13 at age 86. His memorial service on Saturday, according to Wessel, was attended by many former students who were impacted by the longtime principal at West.

Liddy also was the Davenport public schools athletic director from 1983 to 1986. But before returning to Davenport, he was an offensive line coach at Kansas State University, as well as Coe College. That's where he befriended Wessel, his eventual hire when Liddy took over at West.

"I remember a hard-nosed, fair man that his players would all respect," Wessel said.

Aside from Liddy's athletic accomplishments - he was a second-team all-Big Ten guard at Iowa in the 1940s - Wessel refers from Liddy's ability to learn things easily. Along with teaching high school biology, Liddy also coached basketball, wrestling and baseball at Coe.

"I don't know what he knew about all those sports," Wessel said, "but I know that his teams always won."

Davenport North High School opened under Liddy's tenure as athletic director, in 1985. The school's first head football coach, Cy Robinson, said Liddy helped kids adapt in the area's third and newest public school.

"I can just say that he ran a tight ship; he was a very fair person," Robinson said. "Bob was just a popular guy."

The Falcons won the 1971 football state title. West's auditorium is named in Liddy's honor.

Liddy toured with the Navy in World War II and played for legendary coach Paul Brown on the Great Lakes Naval football team.

"He wasn't a very big guy, but he was a tough guy," Wessel said. "He was intense, but he always had a big smile."

-- Dearrel Bates contributed to this report