It's a sad day for the Louisa Loonies, the entire community of Mineral and whole state of Virginia. Former Louisa Lions Head Football Coach Mark Fischer passed away on Sunday night, succumbing to a seven-year battle with multiple myeloma, a rare form of blood cancer without a known cure.

A four-time Jefferson District Coach of the Year, Fischer went 96-41 in 12 seasons at the helm of the Lions. In between his two terms at Louisa from 2003-10 and 2014-17, he spent three years as the Head Football Coach at St. James High School in South Carolina before returning to Virginia. Prior to becoming the Head Coach at Louisa, he served as an assistant in the Richmond area at Armstrong and Henrico.

Twice under Fischer, the Lions made runs to the State Championship game, falling to Amherst 34-27 in the 2006 title match and coming up short 43-22 to Salem in the 2017 Class 4 Final. Both teams were unbeaten entering that game, finishing 13-1 in '06 and starting out 14-0 overall with memorable playoff wins over Monacan, Dinwiddie and Lafayette during his swan song season.

Louisa immortalized Fischer in October of 2017, renaming their football field in his honor.

Fischer is survived by his wife, Pamela, and two children; daughter Mackenzie and son Troy.

Funeral arrangements have not been made as of early Monday morning.

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