Inducted 2001. Two-Way Lineman, Started for Three Years as Offensive Tackle at Eastern Illinois. Class of 1985.
Most offensive linemen toil in obscurity, but Fischer’s dominance at both the high school and college level make him one of the best football players to ever play at the school.
Fischer, a 1985 graduate of Notre Dame, started on the line as a sophomore, and as a junior, he helped the Raiders reach the Class 3A playoffs. He was named to the all-Greater Midwestern Conference team as an offensive and defensive tackle, and he was named to the Quincy Herald-Whig All-Area team. Fischer was a tri-captain on the football team as a senior but missed most of the season with injuries. He started every game for the basketball team as a senior, leading the team in field goal percentage while finishing second in rebounds and third in scoring for the Raiders, who lost the sectional title game.
Fischer accepted a scholarship to Eastern Illinois University, where he was a starter for three years at offensive tackle. During Fischer’s sophomore year, the Panthers were ranked No. 3 in the final NCAA Division I-AA poll and were the Gateway Conference champions. As a senior, Fischer was named first-team all-Gateway Conference and earned lineman of the week honors. EIU reached the Division I-AA quarterfinals during Fischer’s senior year.
Fischer received interest from two NFL teams before graduating from Eastern Illinois in 1990. He returned to Notre Dame to be an assistant coach for the football team from 1991-1994, and after one year as an assistant coach at Quincy University, Fischer has been an assistant football coach at QND since 1996.
Fischer and his wife, Julie, live in Quincy. He is now the Adams County Sheriff.
I’d like to thank everyone on the Hall of Fame Committee for the honor of being elected. It means a lot to me. I’d like to thank my parents, Ron and Karen Fischer, for the support and patience they provided. They were always there, providing rides to and from practices and games as well as travelling to see me play in college. I would like to thank all of my teammates, both from high school and college. Some of the best memories I have are with my teammates because of the close relationships we had and the time we spent together. I was blessed with solid coaching, and I would like to thank all the coaches I had — in particular, Bob Winstead and Jim Wosman, who were great during my high school career. During my college career, names I will remember are Al Molde, Rob Kuhlman, Mike Debord, Bill Leg and Bob Spoo. Also, thinking of Quincy Notre Dame makes me realize I cannot go without thanking Ray Heilmann for his leadership and Lonny Lemon for the friend he has been.