Zephyrhills is mourning the loss of a legend and icon with today’s passing of former ZHS football coach Tom Fisher.
Fisher, who walked the sidelines at ZHS for 20 years, died this morning after a lengthy battle with Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP), a rare neurological disorder that affects body movements, walking and balance, eye movements, muscle movements and other important functions.
He was a loving husband to wife Gail and proud father to three girls and a grandfather of six.
In his two decades at the helm of the football program, Fisher’s teams won 124 games, four conference titles, three district championships, eight playoff appearances and he was named conference coach of the year four times.
In 2017, the football field at Bulldog Stadium at Zephyrhills High School was renamed and dedicated in honor of Fisher.
“He was a tough love guy,” said current ZHS coach Nick Carroll who played for Fisher in the mid to late 90s. “I was always kind of trying to gain his attention. He didn’t stroke egos. He expected you to do what you’re supposed to do and do it to the best of your ability. He was a guy that automatically demanded everything from you and when you did well, he didn’t tell you every time, but when he did tell you, you were excited and happy.
“He was pretty intense, and I never played for anyone like him. He was a once in a lifetime coach.”
Fisher wasn’t that coach who screamed at the top of his lungs with his face turning red with rage. He was a quiet leader that demanded the best from his players, and he got it.
“Tom was different than your normal football coach,” said ZHS Athletic Director Bruce Cimorelli, who coached with Fisher. “Tom wasn’t that coach that yelled and screamed at all. If he wanted to get his point across, he would raise his voice. The kids all loved him, and he invested a lot of time in those kids. He got along with everybody.
“We knew that when God wanted him, he could be the old Tom Fisher again.”
There was a softer side where Fisher served as a father figure to hundreds of players in his program. He went above and beyond for a lot kids picking kids up for practice and taking them home. He monitored grades and if there was failure in the classroom, he made sure his players knew the academics were more important than football.
His legacy lives on in his players. His lessons beyond the playbook helped shaped boys into great men.
“We lost a giant. When you think about football coaches, you think about X’s and O’s and it was more than that with Tom Fisher,” said former player and former ZHS coach Reggie Roberts. Being a man, Tom Fisher taught us to have grit. Small situations may seem little then, but when they come up later in life, men like Tom Fisher told you to get over it, get back out there and win.”
Fisher attended games while Roberts was coaching and although he didn’t interfere, Roberts knew there was a watchful eye close by.
“You wanted to make sure your team is living up to his expectations,” Roberts said. “I have the utmost respect for what he did for a city and for a whole bunch of football players. I am proud to say that I was on his first and best team.”
When Damien Pickett was in ninth grade in 1992, he became the first freshman to play varsity football for Fisher and the coach had high expectations for the speedster. With expectations, comes pressure.
“You never wanted to let coach Fisher down,” Pickett said. “He was a father figure to a lot of us, me included. He was just different. He had a way with us. He got more out of his players than we knew we had. I wish there were more coaches like him.”
Fisher was committed to coach players who were committed to the program. If a player wasn’t putting in the effort, he had a player waiting in the wings willing to prove themselves.
“He was a special guy, and he didn’t take no crap,” Pickett said. “What I honestly learned from coach Fisher is play whoever is there and wants to play. If your ass didn’t want to play ball, next man up!”
Carroll helps keep Fisher’s fingerprints on the ZHS football program. He continues several of the traditions with his team that he learned playing for Fisher.
“These traditions were important to us and now they are traditions our players continue every Friday,” Carroll said. “When we celebrate those traditions, I will think of coach Fisher every Friday and I will thank him for what he taught me every day.”