Mount Carmel has brought in former Providence football coach Tyler Plantz as a volunteer assistant.
‘‘I’m here to help out,’’ Plantz told the Sun-Times on Friday. ‘‘It is nothing official. I’m helping out the defense and doing whatever else they need. It has been pretty fun. It is good to get back out here.’’
Plantz said he was around the team last week and began coaching this week. He was on the sideline for the Caravan’s game Friday at Loyola. It was one of the highest-profile games of the season.
‘‘I will keep my hat down,’’ Plantz said. ‘‘I don’t want to be that guy at all or be in the spotlight. That is so far from my personality. It has been a crazy couple of weeks, to say the least. It has been eventful.’’
The Celtics fired Plantz on Sept. 13. It was a stunning move. Providence was undefeated, ranked No. 5 in the Super 25 and fresh off a Class 5A title game appearance last season. Providence athletic director Doug Ternik didn’t provide a solid reason for Plantz’s dismissal, saying only that the football program was moving in a new direction.
A high school firing a varsity football coach in midseason is rare. The unusual move caught the attention of casual sports fans and the local TV media.
‘‘I decided to have a conversation with [Mount Carmel] after they played Providence,’’ Plantz said. ‘‘I wanted to get involved with something instead of just sitting around. I am excited to get back out there coaching.’’
Plantz, a former Notre Dame player and Providence graduate, was 35-19 as the Celtics’ coach. He graduated from Providence in 2010 and from Notre Dame in 2014. He began his career in South Bend as a walk-on, then moved up to special teams and earned a scholarship as a senior. He was on Brian Kelly’s coaching staff at Notre Dame before taking the job at Providence in 2022.
‘‘Tyler is a prove winner as a student, player and coach in the Catholic League, and we are excited to have him join our football staff as a volunteer assistant coach,’’ Mount Carmel athletic director Phil Segroves told the Sun-Times.
Former St. Laurence coach Adam Nissen, the offensive coordinator under Plantz, took over as Providence’s interim coach. The Celtics are 2-2 since Plantz’s dismissal.