Excerpt from the Sidney Daily News
The death of a lifelong Shelby County resident who spent decades working for universities and high schools came as a shock to many in the area earlier this week — but the praise many have given him and his work in the aftermath isn’t.
Matt Zircher, 48, of Sidney, died of natural causes in his residence on Tuesday. After news of his death was published on social media, a steady flurry of tributes followed from hundreds of people, many of which described him as “a walking sports encyclopedia.”
Zircher, who was a longtime contributing writer to the Sidney Daily News, had worked as the sports information director at University of Northwestern Ohio in Lima for nearly three years. He previously worked in the athletic communications department at Wright State for 24 years.
Zircher, a University of Dayton graduate, started working at Wright State in 1993 as a graduate intern. He was later hired on a full-time basis by sports information director Bob Noss, who eventually fought for Zircher’s promotion to associate SID.
Whether keeping the university’s vast athletics website up-to-date or doing any number of game operations functions, Noss said Zircher was dependable.
“He just managed things so well,” Noss, who last saw Zircher at Wright State men’s basketball game in December, said. “… He was relentless in getting it done and helping the coaches and student-athletes, making things look good and look right. People took it for granted; they didn’t realize how many things he got done. Half the time it was, ‘What do you mean how did it get done? Matt did it.’”
Zircher worked at the university until 2017, when he was laid off along with many others as a part of massive cuts by the institution.
“… It’s a shame. The athletes in Shelby County were really lucky to have Matt. He did a lot for them.”
