Funeral services have been set for a high school football coach who died Wednesday in a single-vehicle crash in southern Illinois.
Nicholas “Nick” Dillon, 47, of Anna had joined the Anna-Jonesboro Community High School in Anna as an assistant coach for linemen this season, according to information from local media reports and the high school.
Illinois State Police said a single-vehicle crash occurred at approximately 11:38 a.m. Wednesday along Illinois 127 near Mount Glen Road in Union County. The driver, later identified as Dillon, left the roadway in a 2016 Hyundai and struck a tree. He was pronounced deceased at the scene.
Anna-Jonesboro head coach Jamie Yates told The Southern Illinoisan newspaper that Dillon loved coaching youth football teams and then high school football players even though he did not have a child who played football.
“It has always been about the kids with Nick,” Yates told the newspaper.
Yates reported to the Southern that the varsity football game scheduled for Friday night at Murphysboro is expected to be played. He said Dillon would not have wanted his players to miss a game.
Superintendent Brett Detering said the players certainly will have “heavy hearts” as they take the field Friday night but the players and coaches thought playing the game as scheduled would be a way to “honor” their fallen coach.
“Coach Dillon, who was just beginning his first season with our school, joined the football program with a vibrant energy and passion for the game,” the high school’s athletic department posted on Facebook.
“Despite his brief time with us, Coach Dillon quickly became a beloved member of our team.”
Dillon’s obituary states he graduated from Anna-Jonesboro Community High School in 1995 and worked as a manager for a pharmaceuticals company.
“Nick was a big hearted soul that never knew a stranger and would help anyone in need. He loved his daughter, Hanah with all his heart,” Dillon’s obituary states.
“His personality was larger than life and will be so very missed.”
Visitation for Dillon is set for 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday at the Crain Funeral Home at 135 W. Vienna St. in Anna and the funeral service is scheduled for 2 p.m. Monday at the funeral home.
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Publish date : 2024-09-05 13:46:00
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