The coach is back!
Legendary Bears coach Mike Ditka, the tough-nut football legend who survived a stroke, heart attack and subsequent convalescence in Florida the last few years, is back home.
And Da Coach has got plenty to say.
‘‘I’m finally home! This city is my home. I love it,’’ Ditka bellowed in an exclusive interview Monday with Sneed after quietly slipping into town ‘‘a few days ago.’’
‘‘I was born in Pennsylvania and raised in Pittsburgh, but Chicago is my home . . . and it is my life. It’s the people I miss — miss more than anything.
‘‘I can’t tell you how happy I am to finally be home . . . to be back, although it was mighty cold when we got off the private plane at Midway Airport a few nights ago,’’ he added with a chuckle.
The indomitable coach and his wife, Diana, not only quietly slipped into town without fanfare, but they reclaimed old geography: a new condo in the same Gold Coast building where the couple had lived for years.
The new Ditka digs are within walking distance of the couple’s beloved (and now gone) Ditka’s eatery, where the Ditkas held court daily in a booth surrounded by pals and delighted fans. The coach’s namesake grub hub closed in 2020 after a 24-year run in the Tremont Hotel complex at 100 E. Chestnut St.
‘‘Look,’’ Ditka said to Sneed back then about the closing. ‘‘This [COVID] virus thing is historic. But when all is said and done, it was a great run. But things wear after a time. It’s over, and it was good. . . . No complaints.’’
Not long afterward, the couple pulled up stakes, sold their apartment and moved to Naples, Florida.
When Sneed contacted Diana on Oct. 18 to wish Mike a happy 85th birthday, she signaled her cigar-chomping hubby finally had stopped smoking and joked they were still together.
Then she issued this kicker before abruptly ringing off:
‘‘Yes. We really miss Chicago. BUT we actually should have some news for you soon. But not right now. Bye.’’
Holy Pork Chop! Was Da Great Grabowski’s health in a downspin? Was he in hospice? What did Diana mean?
Now we know. The Ditkas are back. The coach’s health has been tough — touch but no go — and at times cause for serious concern, but he’s still in the game while tackling health issues.
‘‘But my husband is NOT in hospice,’’ Diana said, although caretakers are in attendance. She also helps finish Mike’s sentences when his memory stumbles.
They still are settling back in.
‘‘Most of our furniture has yet to arrive, but we are just so happy to be home,’’ she said. ‘‘Thank goodness we have the TV and [are] back in the warmth of a city we call home.’’
Meanwhile, the incomparable coach is minus his iconic eatery’s legendary pork chop.
But Sneed has it on good authority that a delish delivery was being dispatched to the Ditka digs Monday from Freddy’s, one of the coach’s favorite eats: chicken limone.
So, chomp away, Coach!
The City of Big Shoulders is just glad you are back home.