In today’s fast-paced society of ‘I want it all, and I want it now,’ humble beginnings aren’t viewed as the preferred route of choice. But for those who have followed that path good things have often followed.

Such is the case for former Warrior Run star quarterback Charlie Fisher who now 39 years later serves on the staff of Arizona State University’s Herm Edwards as wide receivers coach.

As I recently visited Fisher at his office in ASU’s magnificent state-of-the-art 60-million dollar football complex overlooking ASU’s Sun Devil Stadium he fondly reminisced about the journey his coaching career has taken.

“My Dad was the driving force in getting me started. I had just graduated from college and didn’t have a job,” Fisher related. “One day Dad saw an ad in the Williamsport Sun-Gazette about an assistant football coach opening at Hughesville High School. He told me I needed to apply for that job and drove me to Hughesville to fill out an application. I got the job. It paid $600 for the season.”

Since then Fisher has coached football in various capacities at Penn State, Miami (Ohio), Vanderbilt, Temple, North Carolina State, West Georgia, Lenoir Rhyne, Ole Miss, Eastern Kentucky, and two years as the head coach at Western Illinois before joining the ASU staff in 2018.

“I’ve had the opportunity to coach in five major conferences; the SEC, the Big Ten, the Big East, the Mid-American and now here in the PAC-12 and I’ve spent 15 years in Division II football. The thing I’m most proud of about those 15 years in Division II is that I didn’t start at the top. I cut my teeth at the lower level and really learned how to coach at the smaller level. There you have to do everything. I was an assistant coach there and then a head coach at a few different schools. You put in the time and the work to try and get to where you want to get to. I’ve been blessed that way.”

“I’ve been very blessed over the years. Of course, we have had to move around quite a bit, but it’s afforded us the chance to see a lot of the country and interact with folks that have produced life-long friendships.”

Asked about the differences he’s seen in football during his career, Fisher explained, “At the end of the day it is still the same game, but there are some differences. The West Coast has always fashioned itself as having a more wide-opened style of play. The past twenty years there has probably been more passing with the favorable weather the year round which helps from a training perspective. Years ago the Big Ten and some of the other leagues I was in had a more ‘old-school’ approach. But football all over the country has changed a lot. The game as a whole is a lot more wide open and the more successful offenses these days are spread offenses. The objective is to get the great skill players more space to operate, and that has become the more prevailing theme in football nowadays.”

“The West Coast was probably the leader in that style of football but as long as I’ve been doing this football is still football. You’ve got to block, you’ve got to be able to run the play, and you’ve got to play defense. Just like it has always been, you do those things, and you’ve got a chance to win.”

As a wide receivers coach Fisher is well aware of the ‘diva’ reputation, some wide-outs have earned.

“Occasionally there may be something to that. I’ve been blessed to coach a lot of talented wide receivers, including three players that have been selected in the first round of the NFL draft in addition to a couple of second and third round picks. A great receiver is like any great athlete. He wants the ball and opportunities to show what he can do. Some of them are a little more demonstrative, and most of that comes into play when they become pros and are getting large amounts of money to do what they do.”

“They want those opportunities to make a difference for their team by making plays. As a coach, I’ve always looked at it to make sure they get those chances to make plays. That has proven successful in helping to minimize problems that could develop.”

As Fisher’s career begins to wind down his enthusiasm for the game remains.

“The fire still burns. I still love the game and working with young people. When the day comes to move on, I’ll know it. You never want to coach this game without the same energy that the people I am coaching and coaching with have. As I get older, the athletes are always the same, 18-23-year-olds. But if you can’t match their passion, energy, and enthusiasm for the game you’re going to get passed by in a hurry. Even though I’m older every year, they are staying the same age. You’ve got to bring it every day, and I’ve tried to do that every place I’ve been to. I’ve liked to think that anyone who has looked at my coaching career and the way I’ve approached my business was that I’ve done it the right way, with a lot of passion and integrity. If you do those things, you can stick around a long time.”

“You are either going to be internally fired with enthusiasm, or you’ll be fired with enthusiasm! You need to decide what you want to do.”
(Note: Charlie Fisher conducts an annual golf tournament to benefit youth sports in the Warrior Run area. This year’s tournament will be held Friday, June 28 at Winding Brook in Milton. More information will be included in a future column.)