PORT ORCHARD — At the June 19 South Kitsap School District Board of Directors meeting, trustees are expected to approve the naming of the high school field in honor of former football coach Ed Fisher, Superintendent Karst Brandsma told the Independent this week.
The field will be known as Ed Fisher Field at Kitsap Bank Stadium.
After the meeting, there will be a celebration at Whiskey Gulch beginning at 7:30 p.m, Brandsma said. Community members, former players and coaches are all welcome to stop by.
The time and date for the ceremony are to be determined, but it is expected to take place during one of South Kitsap’s home games this fall, Brandsma said.
Fisher was in his mid-20s when he took over the program in 1974, and started his career with a 15-20 record before turning the program into a Washington powerhouse. The breakthrough came in 1978 when South Kitsap finished with a 7-2 record. Fisher’s team would never lose more than three games in a season for the rest of his run and he left the school after the 1996 season with a 197-48 record, an .804 winning percentage.
For his accomplishments, Fisher was elected to the Washington Football Coaches Hall of Fame in 1996.
“We have a unique opportunity to pay tribute to an absolute living legend,” DJ Sigurdson, executive director of School & Family Support, said in a statement released by the district.
“Coach Fisher is a name that every person related to SK athletics knows well. He is a tremendous leader who taught countless young athletes the value of hard work and dedication.”
The Wolves reached the state playoffs 17 consecutive years during his tenure and the state championship three times. They lost to Gonzaga Prep and Juanita — both of which reached the state finals multiple times in the 1980s — in the 1982 and 1984 finals, respectively.
In 1994, with future Major League Baseball player Willie Bloomquist at quarterback, Fisher led South Kitsap to a 13-0 season and a 3A state championship victory, beating Walla Walla 15-10 in the title game at the Kingdome.
In the district’s press release, it was noted that administrators had reached out to the family of Joe Knowles, for whom the field is currently named. Knowles’ daughter gave the district her blessing.
