The Green Bay Packers have announced that Tim Serum of Osseo-Fairchild High School in Osseo, Wis., has been named the Packers High School Coach of the Week.
For Serum, who serves as a high school math teacher when he isn't on the sidelines, the game of football is ultimately an extension of the classroom.
"I don't think there's another game that prepares young people for life better than the game of football," Serum said. "It teaches you that you have to be tough, have to show up, be disciplined and do the right things consistently. If you do those things consistently, you're not guaranteed success, but you put yourself in a very good position to be successful."
That formula has paved the way for a historic postseason breakthrough. Coach Serum, in his second season as head coach at Osseo-Fairchild, has his team preparing for Level 2 of the Division 7 WIAA playoffs this week, defeating No. 2 seed Shiocton in Level 1 to earn the program's first playoff victory since 2010. After inheriting a program that had faced several rough, winless seasons since 2020, and guiding the team to just two victories in 2025, Serum has engineered a remarkable turnaround, leading the Thunder to a playoff berth that has the team playing their best football when it matters most.
Serum credits this turnaround to a culture of consistency and attention to detail, a standard established by Serum and his staff.
"It's a culture of doing the right things consistently, which leads to successful results," Serum said. "We tell our guys all the time that it doesn't matter what we are doing, but how we do it and how we execute. Every team lifts, every team runs, every team has a plan, but it's what team actually goes out and executes that plan. Our guys are really starting to believe and buy into that and it has led to them doing their jobs and taking one play at a time."
The growing success of the Thunder football program has strengthened its relationship with the community and local youth. Players volunteer as referees for elementary flag football on Wednesday nights and host the "Thunder Good Morning" program every home gameday, visiting the elementary school to greet young students and invite them to come to games.
"You can see it even in our school; the culture has shifted with the success of the football team," Serum noted. "It truly does make a difference for how the kids see themselves, how they see their school and how they see what their potential can be in the next few years. Seeing the growth of the program and community buy-in has been really cool for our kids and has been very rewarding for our athletes."
Serum grew up in Mondovi, Wis., and graduated from Mondovi High School in 2013, where he played center and defensive line under head coach Mike Sinz. He earned his degree from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire in 2018, beginning his coaching career as an assistant coach at Mondovi. Following a one-year hiatus while teaching in Texas, Serum returned to Wisconsin and served as the assistant at Belleville High School for four years, followed by a two-year stint as an assistant with Mount Horeb/Barneveld. Serum was named the head coach at Osseo-Fairchild prior to the 2025 season.
While honored by the Coach of the Week award, Serum views the award as a collective achievement.
"This is a football program award," Serum said. "This award was won because of the work our guys and our coaching staff have put in throughout the whole season."
Serum and his staff oversee a program of 36 players, all of whom have the opportunity to suit up for varsity contests. His assistant coaching staff includes Harold Mulhern, Ryan George, Justin Johnson, Joe Biesterveld, Dan Waters and Brandon Rindahl. He and his wife, Madi, have one son, Leo.
About the Green Bay Packers High School Coach of the Week Program:
The Packers will recognize one outstanding high school coach as their 'Coach of the Week' winner during the 2026 high school football season. Winners are awarded several items and privileges, including a $1,000 donation to the school's football program from the Green Bay Packers and the NFL Foundation, as well as recognition of the award on Packers.com, boundwisconsin.com and Wifca.org.
Nominations for Coach of the Week should be submitted by 10 a.m. every Monday to Jake Krueger, Football Outreach Coordinator, at coachoftheweek@packers.com. Please include the nominee's name, address, school, phone number and reason he/she is deserving of the award.
