Newman assistant Nelson earns spot in hall of fame

For the last 32 seasons, Tim Nelson has roamed the sideline for the Newman football team. He’s coached more than 1,000 players for the Comets as a line coach since 1990, and spent part of his tenure as the defensive coordinator. He’s been part of 307 wins, 28 trips to the playoffs, six state titles and two runner-up finishes, and 17 seasons where Newman has won double-digit games.

He’s adding another accolade to his long list of coaching successes: hall of famer.

Nelson will be inducted into the Illinois Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame with the Class of 2022.

“I’ve thought about it in the past, just how cool it would be to get that call,” Nelson said. “I haven’t really thought about it lately, though, so it’s kind of a surprise. It’s definitely a nice honor.”

Nelson got an inkling that something like that was in the works before he got the actual phone call informing him of his induction. The clue came from another hall of famer: longtime Newman coach Mike Papoccia.

“It was kind of funny, because I kind of knew it was coming,” Nelson said. “[Former Sterling coach and AD] Greg King is on the committee, and he talked to Mike. Mike asked me if I had heard anything, and I said no. I knew I’d been nominated the past couple of years, so I thought something was up when Mike asked me.

“So when I got the phone call at 7:30 that night, I was kind of expecting it – but it was still pretty cool.”

Newman won its first state title in Nelson’s first year on Papoccia’s coaching staff. He joined as an assistant line coach in 1990, then took over as defensive coordinator when Rich Montgomery left to take over at Rock Falls before the 1992 season. Nelson served as DC until Brandon Kreczmer took over that role before the 2016 season.

Nelson was part of two undefeated seasons, four 13-1 seasons, and five 12-win seasons; all six titles and both second places came in those years. He also coached the Comets during two 11-win seasons, four 10-win seasons, four nine-win seasons, and three eight-win seasons.

It’s just as impressive if you look at it the other way: Newman lost only one game 12 different times during Nelson’s tenure as an assistant, and lost just two games in eight other seasons.

Papoccia, for one, said it was about time Nelson got the hall-of-fame nod, and said he knew right from the start that Nelson was going to be a huge asset to his coaching staff.

“He was great at what he did, and I owe him a lot,” Papoccia said. “The big thing for me was he was a hard worker; everything he’s done, whatever job he’s at, he puts his nose to the grindstone and gets it done. He took pride in coaching the linemen, and he was one of the better line coaches I’ve ever been around, for sure. He was the perfect type of coach for the offense we wanted to run, and it’s most certainly no secret that our line was the reason for our success.

“We had great linemen every year, and the thing that made them great was that they were tough. Tim didn’t baby them, he made them work hard. I never had to worry about what the linemen were doing during practice; they were doing the fundamentals that I love kids to do every day, they were always on task, and Tim was a magician with that.”

Nelson said the thing he’ll remember the most is the people he worked with and the players he was fortunate to have the opportunity to coach.

“I’ve thought about all the coaches that have been here through my 32 years, and of course the kids,” Nelson said. “You don’t get anything like this without the kids, and we’ve had a really good run of kids here at Newman who really bought in and were willing to work hard and earn success.”

It’s also the kids who he will moss the most. Nelson has stepped down as a Newman assistant coach after taking a different position at Moore Tires in Rock Falls. His new schedule won’t permit him time to coach, so it’s perfect timing on the hall of fame honor.

“It just kind of worked out that way,” Nelson said. “Who knows if the hall of fame would’ve been in my future if it hadn’t happened this year?

“But it’s always going to be the kids who I think about; I’ll miss those guys. I’ll probably still show up to games, maybe go down to the sideline once in awhile, just be there to cheer them on and support them. They’ve kept me feeling young, and really bring the spirit to the sport and the program.”

Nelson said he’s not sure the honor has really sunk in yet, and feels like it will become more real during the induction banquet next month.

But he thinks it will really hit home the first time he goes to an Illinois football game next fall.

“They have that wall listing all the hall of famers at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, and just to see my name on there, that’ll be the ‘Wow!’ moment for me,” Nelson said. “When I go to an Illinois game and see my name permanently on that wall, it’ll hit me that ‘Oh, this is real.’”