Fischer Approved by School Board, Takes over at Falconer

Buffalo, NY- Curt Fischer is one of the all-time winningest head coaches in Western New York history. He spent nearly three decades at Maple Grove winning 5 NYSPHSAA Championships across three sports before leaving for family reasons. On Tuesday night he will be returning, sort of. The Falconer School Board will vote and approve the hiring of Fischer as the new Falconer/Cassadaga Valley/Maple Grove head coach at there bi-monthly meeting. Fischer graduated from Falconer in 1981, which is also where his coaching career began.

The head coaching position was left vacant with the retiring of longtime coach Dan Greco this past winter. Fischer joined Greco’s staff last season as an assistant and was the offensive coordinator there. The three high schools combined into one program last fall due to their low numbers, and they played in Class C going 5-6 overall. Although they finished below .500, the Golden Cougars proved to be a team that could compete.

In 2022 they find themselves in Class B due to an increase in overall numbers. The bump suits Fischer just fine. “I always scheduled scrimmages with the top schools when I was at Maple Grove,” Fischer said. “It’s the only way to know where you stand. You find out a lot about your kids by challenging them.”

Fischer is excited and ready to go to work. He’s been monitoring the weight room sessions this off-season in hopes that this spring he would receive the position. “The numbers there have been getting better each day. I like what I’m seeing, the kids want to compete.”

The first order of business for Fischer is establishing a team identity, similar to what the Clymer/Sherman/Panama Wolfpack have done since combining schools 7 seasons ago. “Having an identity is a huge priority for me, I already started hinting at it. We have some very tough kids already and guys that can play the skill positions. We will be ok, we will surprise some people that’s for sure,” Fischer said.

A couple returning players that are sure to continue making impacts are juniors Dalton Caldwell (RB) and Matt Welsh (QB). Both figure to play prominent roles in Fischer’s offense. “Dalton is just a tough kid, he’s very athletic and physical. You saw how much of a competitor was last fall and during the wrestling season. He’s a leader. Welsh is very talented too. We need them both to continue to get better and lead,” Fischer said.

Caldwell ran for over 750 yards and 9 TD’s last season, establishing himself as the featured back. Welsh caught three touchdown passes last year but should compete for the starting QB job after senior Jackson Gowan graduates. “That’ll be an interesting competition, we have some depth there,” Fischer said after last season ended.

“Coach Fischer makes everything more exciting,” Ty Harper, head coach for CSP said. ” I’ve learned a lot from watching his teams over the years, I’m sure he’ll do a great job.”

In between head coaching stops, Fischer volunteered on the Connolly Cup committee and helped scout out the talent in Chautauqua County. “He understands the game maybe better then anybody,” Dennis Sarow the Connolly Cup Chairman said. “Curt always had a great eye for talent. He’s really good at developing the kids and he’s just a fantastic coach. I’ve seen his teams come to the Sectional Finals and beat teams that had far more talent. He is an excellent coach, probably one of the best in our area, this is a good move.”

Fischer confirmed all home games will be played at Falconer High School.

It won’t take long for F-CV-MG to find an identity with Fischer calling the shots. Besides learning the playbook, the kids should familiarize themselves with a map. One road Fischer knows all too well, is the one that leads to Orchard Park.

Feature Image Courtesy of Zach Fischer