New JM Head Football Coach Hired
The Marshall County Board of Education welcomed Mark Cisar as John Marshall High School’s new head football coach during its regular meeting Tuesday evening.
Cisar has a legendary association with high school football. As a student at Magnolia High School his athletic prowess was renowned. Playing quarterback, safety, placekicker and punter for the Blue Eagles, Cisar dominated Ohio Valley records for passing, touchdowns and kicking. Because of his excellence on the field, Cisar won the Kennedy Award in 1992 and 1993 along with Gatorade “Player of the Year” in 1992. He is the only winner of the state football “Player of the Year” in OVAC history and was a two-time Class AA all-state captain.
Additionally, Cisar excelled on the baseball field as a three-time All-West Virginia Class AA selection, All-OVAC and All-Valley Pitcher. After graduating from Magnolia High School, he went on to play baseball as a four-year starter at Charleston Southern University. After college, Cisar was drafted by the Boston Red Sox and became the “Pitcher of the Year” in the Rookie League. In 1999, he was chosen for the South Atlantic League All-Star Team. In 2002, he played for the Capitales de Quebec until he tore his labrum, ending his professional career.
He is a member of the OVAC and Charleston Southern Halls of Fame. Cisar has taught and coached in West Virginia, Ohio and South Carolina. Formerly, he served as head football coach, head baseball coach and athletic director for Union Local High School. His work there earned him recognition as the Eastern District’s Division IV “Co-Coach of the Year.” In 2014, Cisar was hired as West Liberty University’s pitching coach and worked with the Hilltoppers until Marshall County Board of Education named him as a replacement head baseball coach for Coach Bob Montgomery.
Since 2013, he has served as John Marshall High School’s Option Pathway teacher. Cisar resides in Glen Dale with his wife, Angie, and their four children: Maddie, Jacob, and twins Jonah and Isaiah.
