By Mike Robles
Athletics Communications

DAVIS, Calif. - If any 10 seconds personified legendary Aggie football coach Jim Sochor, it was the moment enveloped by the 35-foot putt he faced last February on the Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course at PGA WEST.

The weather was fantastic, typical for the kind of days in the desert that draw the snowbird retirees from Canada and other cold parts during the winter months. The course was equally spectacular and a perfect setting for some of the country's top collegiate golfers to come together for The Prestige at PGA WEST, co-hosted by UC Davis and Stanford.

Sochor, who passed away in late November after a long illness, was playing in the event's College-Am on Sunday, the day before the collegiate players would try and tame the course. Sochor beat them to the punch.

I was walking to the course, catching some of the action, when I stumbled upon Coach Sochor playing with Mike Bellotti, who was part of 1972's Miracle Game against Cal State Hayward â€" in which UC Davis scored 16 points in the final minute to win â€" and later enjoyed coaching heights of his own at Oregon.

Sochor stared down a putt longer than a first down away and calmly and serenely drained it without any particular fanfare other than a congratulatory pat on the back from his playing partners.

The putt was totally Coach Sochor; overwhelming in its accomplishment but underwhelming in his response. The putt was grand and he was humble. That's how he coached the Aggies for 18 magnificent seasons.

I've been at UC Davis for 20 years and knew Coach Sochor the entire time. I didn't know him as well as others but I didn't have to. He treated everyone as a friend, always had a kind word to say and immeasurably grabbed your attention when he spoke.

A few months after I saw him at PGA WEST, I ran into Coach Sochor at the Big West Women's Golf Championship at El Macero Country Club where his calm demeanor matched his surroundings. We talked a bit of golf, he asked if I had been playing lately and I told him I hadn't but I needed to get out to range soon because I was scheduled to play in a fun tournament over the summer.

"Come on out sometime and I'll give you some lessons," he told me, not knowing what exactly he was getting himself into. I didn't take advantage of the offer and now I regret it because I know that besides some good golf tips from a man that was still shooting his age as of late, according to Aggie men's coach Cy Williams, I'd get an equal dose of wisdom, the kind he offered to hundreds of others in and around the athletics department for the nearly 30 years since he retired from coaching football.

And that's perhaps his greatest legacy. His 156 wins, 18 straight conference championships and seemingly unending list of coaches he spawned are impressive on their own. But for the vast majority of us that knew him since then, it were his lessons in life, in our professions and with our families where we owe him the greatest gratitude. He was a resident mentor to UC Davis Athletics, ready to lend his experience whenever asked.

As we gather remembrances of Coach Sochor, we invite you to share yours with us and with other Aggie fans. Email SochorMemories@outlook.com and we'll add them to a tribute page on www.ucdavisaggies.com. We've received several already and look forward to receiving more.

A celebration of Coach Sochor's life is being planned on campus for the spring. We'll provide details on the athletics website when details are finalized.