The Story Behind Maxwell Football Club National Player of the Year Matt Sieg of Fort Cherry

The West Virginia commit caps a record-breaking career by becoming the first WPIAL player ever to claim the Maxwell Football Club’s National Player of the Year award.

Fort Cherry safety/quarterback Matt Sieg runs off the field after scoring a touchdown during a WPIAL Class 1A semifinal matchup with Laurel last November. Sieg was named the Maxwell Football Club's national player of the year Tuesday. / Josh Rizzo

Fort Cherry quarterback/safety Matt Sieg has had a busy senior season. Things haven't died down since Sieg's high school football career came to an end in November. On Tuesday, Sieg was named the Maxwell Football Club's National Player of the Year.

A National Stage for a Small-School Star

Sieg, who is committed to play at West Virginia, is the first Mountaineer to win such an award since Robert Alexander was named Parade Magazine Back of the Year in 1976.

During Sieg's time at Fort Cherry, he helped the Rangers finished with a record of 49-7.

Sieg Carried Fort Cherry's Hopes as a Title Contender

Sieg fell just short of leading Fort Cherry to a third consecutive appearance in the WPIAL Class 1A final. The Rangers were upset by Laurel in the district semifinals.

Sieg had a strong senior season, guiding Fort Cherry to a 12-1 record. Sieg scored 30 touchdowns and compiled 2,259 all-purpose yards.

A Record-Breaking Career in the WPIAL

Sieg helped Fort Cherry win the WPIAL championship in 2023 and 2024. During the Rangers' first champioship run, they made it all the way to the PIAA final before being dropped by Steelton-Highspire.

Sieg became the WPIAL's all-time touchdown king by reaching 139 touchdowns. He broke the all-time school rushing record, set by Mike Vernillo.

Sieg finished his career with 7,941 rushing yards, which was only behind Hopewell's Rushel Shell for most in league history.

Choosing Country Roads

Picking where he was going to play in college was a longer process than originally expected for Sieg. He had signaled an interest in attending Penn State and initially committed verbally to the Nittany Lions.

However, Sieg changed his mind once Penn State fired coach James Franklin. After reopening his recruitment, Sieg ended up choosing West Virginia.

Sieg choosing the Mountaineers follows in the past set by Vernillo. Vernillo also chose West Virginia before later transferring to play at Slippery Rock University.

About the Maxwell Football Club Player of the Year Award

The Maxwell Football Club Player of the Year Award was established in 1937 by the Maxwell Football Club, a Philadelphia-based organization founded to honor excellence in football at all levels. The award is best known nationally for recognizing the top player in college football, but the Club also presents high school national awards, which carry significant prestige.

Key elements of the award include:

• It emphasizes overall excellence, not just statistics
• It honors leadership, impact, and sportsmanship
• It is historically associated with elite, program-defining players

Include among some of the past winners were:

• Jim Brown
• Barry Sanders
• Payton Manning
• Cam Newton
• Joe Burrow

--Josh Rizzo |rizzo42789@gmail.com| @J_oshrizzo