CATLIN — What has kept Les Ciefers a part of the Salt Fork football program for the past 16 years?
“It’s the kids,” Seifert said. “And a lot of that is down to the parents and the way they raise the kids. They’re good kids and they work hard at everything. Ever since I started coaching here, I’ve loved the kids. I did.”
Those kids will hear familiar voices next fall when Seifert, who has been Salt Fork’s defensive coordinator since 2019 and an assistant since 2008, takes over as the Storm’s new head coach.
Former coach Joe Hageman resigned in November.
“This helps give kids some peace of mind,” Seifert said. “I don’t think things are going to change much, especially in terms of how we do it in the offseason. … The kids are coming in and there’s a lot of energy. We’re excited about it.”
Seifert, a former University of Illinois steamfitter by trade, has roots in the Vermilion Valley Conference that predate his Storm days. He played at Georgetown and later became a youth football coach in the area.
Brian Plotner, who coached the Storm from 2002 to 2018, asked him to join the Salt Fork staff before the 2008 season.
And when Hageman resigned after going 5-5 in the 2024 season, which ended in the opening game of the Class 1A playoffs, Seifert wasn’t ready to walk away from the game.
“I wanted to coach in a place where I didn’t know a lot of people,” Seifert said. “And once I started getting to know the kids, I was hooked.”
“It’s really special to be able to talk to a kid who passed away 10 years ago and has a family of his own and still wants to get in touch with you. That’s what makes it so rewarding.”
The Storm have about seven months left to prepare for the 2025 season opener under the program’s third coach since 2002.
Salt Fork will be tasked with replacing quarterback Jameson LeMore and linebacker Charter Chambliss, who are scheduled to graduate in May.
“We’re in the weight room in the offseason,” Seifert said. “We’ve started some initiatives and we’re getting quite a bit of participation. We’re going to put together a summer schedule, but for now we’re just getting ready for summer, so we’ll change the pace a little bit then. intend to.”
The rest of Salt Fork’s coaching staff is yet to be determined.
“Coaches Brian and Joe, both of whom I coached before, gave me the opportunity to thank them,” Seifert said. “They believed in me and gave me a chance. I’m grateful for everything they’ve done and I want to continue to carry that light.”
