Philip Rivers had two dreams growing up while playing high school football in Alabama. One was to play in the NFL and the other was to follow his father's footsteps and coach high school football in his home state.
After announcing his retirement from the NFL after 17 seasons, Rivers appears to be on the verge of living out both dreams. He's expected to become the head coach at
St. Michael Catholic (Fairhope, Ala.) after being named the coach-in-waiting last May.
After 16 seasons with the Chargers, he signed with the Colts in March for $25 million and will likely get paid a lot less at St. Michael Catholic.
It doesn't matter, he said in an emotional news conference at the time of the coach-in-waiting announcement.
"It's a special day for me and my family, really," Rivers said in May. "How blessed am I to be able to live both of those out, one on the tail end and one in the beginning stages."
St. Michael opened in 2016 and has had just three varsity football seasons, going a combined 5-25. Rivers played for his dad Steve at
Athens (Ala.) and was lightly recruited, eventually signing with North Carolina State.
Rivers has two sons, one in sixth grade, and seven daughters. He said he wants to coach both of his sons in high school.
Rivers finished his career with 63,440 passing yards (fifth all-time), 421 touchdowns (also fifth) and played in 244 games. He was named to the Pro Bowl eight times.
