Sinclair returns to prep football ranks at Fisher: 'I'm a high school coach at heart'
Feb. 21—FISHER — Matt Sinclair currently is working on the dissertation for his doctorate in performance psychology.
He feels that task, plus the accelerated mentorship program within his remote studies through Grand Canyon University, combine to provide a sort of full-time job.
But the former Illinois football player and staff member with the Illini program likes to stay busy.
And he spent the 2022 football season away from the sidelines he's become so accustomed to roaming.
About four weeks ago, an opportunity emerged for Sinclair to return to the coaching fold. And he took it.
Sinclair is the new Fisher football coach, marking his first assignment as a head coach across his high school and college ventures. He'll also serve as the Bunnies' strength and conditioning coach.
Sinclair's hiring was announced Tuesday morning on the Fisher school district Facebook and Twitter pages.
"I'm a high school coach at heart. I always have been, from a developmental standpoint," the 40-year-old Sinclair told The News-Gazette on Tuesday afternoon. "I'm excited to get to meet everybody in the community. I (already) know more people than I thought I did originally."
CU Church is a reason for Sinclair's previously-obtained knowledge of the Fisher community. He said some of the northern Champaign County village's young people attend services there.
And the Urbana-based place of worship also has strong ties to Sinclair learning about Fisher football's job opening in the first place.
CU Church preacher Jason Epperson informed his friend Sinclair, also a church ministry resident, that the Bunnies needed to find a replacement for coach Carrick MacDonald.
MacDonald spent one season running the Fisher football program, which canceled its 2022 varsity schedule amid low roster turnout and safety concerns for participating athletes. He left his coaching job with the Bunnies last month for the same role with the Hoopeston Area/Armstrong-Potomac program.
"I wasn't looking for it, but when you talk about a place where there's support, there's history, I was like, 'Let's go up tomorrow,'" Sinclair said after Epperson reached out. "That's what I really liked was the support there, everyone being on board with it and everyone understanding this is not (entirely) about football.
"They understand, ultimately, my mission statement is every young man will be better off in life for being involved in our football program."
Sinclair is making his return to the high school ranks after assistant coaching stints with Division III college teams at Washington University in St. Louis, North Central in Naperville and Carthage (Wis.) between 2017 and 2021.
The 2005 Illinois graduate spent the 2015 and 2016 high school seasons as Monticello's defensive coordinator under Cully Welter and had previously coached in the high school ranks at Wheaton Warrenville South.
Sinclair spent the 2022 football season attending most Illinois football games — home and away — with his 10-year-old son. Sinclair, wife Jacqueline and their two children, Charlotte and Sean, live in Mahomet.
"(Taking the Fisher job) is not about me putting my stamp on anything," Sinclair said. "I've collected all this wisdom from other people over the years, and I'm excited to pass it on. ... Hopefully, these kids get to enjoy some of the same successes our players have enjoyed at all the places we've been."
Sinclair will attempt to guide the Bunnies football program out of a period of uncertainty, which includes Fisher contesting a junior varsity-only schedule earlier this school year.
When Bunnies athletic director Cody Diskin first spoke with Sinclair and brought up the team's recent roster limitations, Sinclair said he told Diskin "that doesn't concern me."
"I understand what happened to programs because of COVID. I understand that's amplified at a small school," Sinclair said. "My job is to get people excited, get people to see the value in what football is. I want to meet with really anybody in the town that has a young boy to talk about what football is, what it means to the community.
"You start with kids that are in the building. Every one of those young guys has value. I don't think you can have enough guys involved in the football program. There's a role for everybody."
Diskin said in a statement sent to The News-Gazette that the Fisher administration is excited about Fisher football's future under Sinclair.
"We are ecstatic for Matt Sinclair, our assistant coaches and our athletes to bring back our varsity football program," Diskin said. "Our student-athletes and community deserve the best, and we feel confident Matt can make an immediate impact on our program."
Even though Fisher boasts an IHSA-listed student enrollment of 182 and didn't field a varsity football roster this school year, Sinclair said he "didn't even broach" the idea of the Bunnies looking at joining the Illinois 8-Man Football Association.
"That wasn't an consideration to me," Sinclair said. "Your biggest job is to keep kids interested in the game of football, keep numbers up."
Fisher isn't all that far removed from varsity success.
Former coach Jake Palmer, who guided the program for six seasons before stepping away after the 2021 campaign to focus on his role as Fisher Grade School principal, pushed the Bunnies to three Class 1A postseason appearances between 2017 and 2019.
Included in those were a pair of eight-win seasons and two playoff victories.
"There's a lot of kids within the school that could be playing football that aren't. I want those kids to start to get to know me," Sinclair said. "Most people are not going to play football beyond high school. You only have one opportunity for it."