Big Red coach Fairfield shares the highlights of his NFL Pro Bowl, Super Bowl LVIII adventure

EDITORS NOTE: Hear more from Coach Shane Fairfield in the Frauenthal Theater for a live on-stage interview at Saturday’s Varsity Blues Athletic Awards Show.

By Ron Rop
LocalSportsJournal.com

Muskegon High School football coach Shane Fairfield has been on an adventure the last few weeks that he wouldn’t trade for anything.

Well, that’s not exactly true. Fairfield would gladly bypass the memories he’s built for another football state title with the Big Reds.

What Fairfield has been up to the last couple of weeks provided the veteran coach with memories that will last a lifetime.

The National Football League named Shane Fairfield as the NFC recipient of the 2023 Don Shula High School Coach of the Year Award. Fairfield also won the Detroit Lions Coach of the Year award for the 2023 season. He led the Big Reds to a conference title and the Division 2 state championship in 2023.

To the victor goes the spoils and Fairfield was certainly spoiled the last two weekends.

First, Fairfield was a guest of the NFL in Orlando, Fla. for the Pro Bowl event. While there, he was wined and dined and included in special lunches, dinners, social events, meetings, meeting NFL players and top officials of the league. He stayed in the players’ hotel and bumped into numerous players in passing and at mealtime.

He was able to be on the field during team practices and had the opportunity to have pictures taken with some former and current NFL players like Eli Manning, Ray Lewis, Robert Griffin, III, etc.

“It was awesome, it was beautiful weather, of course,” said Fairfield, who was interviewed on television during the game from the sideline.

That was just for starters because two days after he returned from Florida, he was boarding a plane for Las Vegas and Super Bowl LVIII.

Fairfield’s busy day, which was Wednesday prior to the Super Bowl, included a national signing day for 10 of his Big Reds players. Then it was off to Vegas and all the festivities of the Super Bowl.

That night’s dinner included Andy Lowry, the AFC coach of the year from Columbine High School in Colorado. Lowry was nominated by the Denver Broncos.

On Thursday, after breakfast, it was off to the conference center at Mandalay Bay for some podcasts, and of course, running into more NFL folks like Pittsburgh Steeler running back Najee Harris, Drew Brees and many others.

“All the NFL guys were in there doing media stuff and kind of a behind the scenes production of how all that goes,” said Fairfield, whose Thursday night included the NFL Awards Show.

“We got dressed up a little bit and a car picked us up and took us to the Resorts World Theater,” said Fairfield. “That was cool getting to walk the red carpet.”

Friday included another luncheon with representatives and sponsors of the NFL. That gave Fairfield a chance to build connections and networks that could pay some dividends in the future with the Big Reds’ program.

Saturday included another special luncheon followed by an event that included some bowling with the Walter Payton Award winner, Pittsburgh Steeler defensive end Cameron Heyward.

“I’m a huge Walter Payton fan and I believe he was the greatest running back and football player in the NFL and growing up to see the guy that won that award and getting a picture with him, hanging out with him and shaking his hand on a casual level was cool.”

Fairfield also singled out meeting Jason Kelce, Lewis, Max Crosby and Shaquon Barkley as highlights of his trip.

Then came game day that started with a tailgate party at Allegiant Stadium. Gwen Stefani played a concert outside the stadium.

Then it was off to the field to watch warmups and take some pictures before heading back to the tailgate party.

Then came the game where Fairfield “got to witness a good football game in a beautiful stadium.”

And it all happened because of the success of the Big Red football program.

“I can’t express the gratitude and how humbling it is to be part of this program,” said Fairfield of the Big Reds football program. “And with all the players who have played here and to be part of these 900 wins.”

Fairfield believes several factors led to his being named the Don Shula Coach of the Year for the NFC.

“We continue to main the No. 1 position in the state in victories, we continue to climb higher and higher in the country in wins and I think winning the 900th on the big stage of the state championship game coming from behind is a huge eye opener for people to recognize what kind of program we have here,” Fairfield said.

There was a committee that included Condoleezza Rice that took a deep dive into the Big Reds’ program to see if it met the qualifications of a top program.

“Once I was nominated, I had to go through and do a whole bio of how we run our program,” Fairfield said. “It was a question on how we handle academics, how we handle discipline, integrity and character, community service, youth sports, how we do concussion protocol. This huge questionnaire had to be filled out talking about our program and how we run things.”

And how the program is run is what earned Fairfield a chance to experience things very few get to experience.

“It was fun,” said Fairfield. “I wish I could have taken the whole team.”