Lipscomb Academy (Nashville) dominated
Christ Presbyterian Academy (Nashville) 42-0 on Thursday morning to win its second straight Tennessee Division II-AA state championship. The game marks the end of the road at Lipscomb for head coach and former NFL quarterback Trent Dilfer, who announced this week he will be stepping down to accept the same job at the University of Alabama-Birmingham.
Dilfer went 44-10 in his four seasons at Lipscomb Academy with two state championships, making him one of the more successful former NFL players to coach at the high school level, albeit in a short coaching career.
Among recent examples, he joins Deion Sanders as a former NFL player who has made the jump from high school coach to college. Sanders, a Hall of Fame cornerback, took over as head coach at Jackson State in 2020 and has led them to a 26-4 record in three seasons including 11-0 this year. "Coach Prime" previously coached at
Prime Prep (Dallas), a school he co-founded, and
Triple A Academy (Dallas) for two years. He was also an offensive coordinator at
Trinity Leadership (Cedar Hill, Texas), where his son Shedeur, the current starting quarterback at Jackson State, played his high school football.
Another former NFL player jumped straight from the high school coaching level all the way to the professional ranks. The Indianapolis Colts named Jeff Saturday, a former Pro Bowl center with the team, the interim head coach in place of the fired Frank Reich on Nov. 7. Known in his post-playing days as a broadcaster, Saturday's only coaching experience had been his three seasons as the head coach at
Hebron Christian Academy (Dacula, Ga.), where his teams went 20-16 with three playoff appearances.
Dilfer, Sanders and Saturday are part of a growing list of former NFL players who coached at the high school level after their playing days were over. According to a study done by ESPN in 2021, a total of 169 former NFL players have spent time coaching high school football. Read on for a look at some of the more notable players to do so.
Marv Cook, Regina (Iowa City, Iowa)
Few former NFL players have had the success
that Cook has had in his home state of Iowa. The two-time Pro Bowl tight
end with the Patriots coached at Regina from 2007 to 2021, winning
seven straight state championships from 2010 to 2016 as well as posting a
56-game win streak. He had a record of 159-16 during his tenure.
Ty Detmer, American Leadership Academy (Queen Creek, Ariz.)
A teammate of Doug Pederson's (see below)
while with the Green Bay Packers, Detmer played for multiple teams in the NFL after a
Heisman Trophy-winning college career at BYU. He coached for St.
Andrew's (Austin, Texas) for four years and currently coaches at
American Leadership Academy.
Mort Kaer, Weed (Calif.)
Kaer might have been one of the first former
NFL players to become a high school coach. A unanimous All-American
running back at USC in the 1920s, Kaer played one year with the
Frankford Yellowjackets (1931) before embarking on a 28-year coaching
career at tiny Weed High School in Northern California. His teams went
187-47-7 with 17 conference championships. His 1963 team, with an
enrollment of 235 students, was ranked No. 1 in all of Northern
California by the Sacramento Bee.
John Kitna, Burleson (Texas)Kitna has coached in three different states and even played in the NFL while coaching at the high school level. Kitna
spent three seasons at
Lincoln (Tacoma, Wash.), and then moved to Texas
where he coached three seasons at
Waxahachie. After one year at
Brophy College Prep (Phoenix) in Arizona, Kitna spent a year as quarterbacks coach with
the Dallas Cowboys before returning to the prep ranks at Burleson. He
has a career record of 68-40.
Dave Logan, Cherry Creek (Greenwood Village, Colo.)
The former Cleveland Browns receiver returned to his home state to coach high school football and has been the most successful former NFL player to coach at the prep level. Logan won his 300th game last year and has won 10 state championships at four different schools, most recently Cherry Creek.
Ed McCaffrey, Valor Christian (Highlands Ranch, Colo.)
The father of Christian McCaffrey, who was recently traded to the San Francisco 49ers, Ed McCaffrey coached two seasons at Valor Christian, going 14-0 in his first year with son Luke quarterbacking the team. McCaffrey went 24-2 in his two seasons and moved on to coach at Northern Colorado (he was released as head coach on Nov. 21). McCaffrey played 14 seasons in the NFL, mostly with the Denver Broncos.
Tim McDonald, Edison (Fresno, Calif.)
A six-time Pro Bowl defensive back with
the Cardinals and 49ers, McDonald has spent time coaching at the college
and professional level. However, he also spent seven years at Edison, coaching his sons T.J. and Tevin. McDonald had a record of
58-24-2 with a Central Section championship in 2009.
Doug Pederson, Calvary Baptist Academy (Shreveport, La.)
Pederson has the unique
distinction of being the only NFL player to also coach a high school
team and then go on to win a Super Bowl (Mike Holmgren was on NFL
practice squads but never a regular season roster). After winning a
Super Bowl as a player with the Green Bay Packers, Pederson later
coached Calvary Baptist to a 33-7 record in four seasons. He later won a
Super Bowl as the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles in 2017.
Antonio Pierce, Long Beach Poly (Long Beach, Calif.)
A member of the New York
Giants, Pierce spent four seasons coaching the Jackrabbits, going 31-15.
He moved on to coach at Arizona State and currently is the linebackers
coach with the Las Vegas Raiders.
Philip Rivers, St. Michael Catholic (Fairhope, Ala.)
After spending 17 years as
a quarterback in the NFL, mostly with the Los Angeles Chargers, Rivers
retired in 2020 and took over as head coach at St. Michael Catholic in
Alabama. In two seasons, the Cardinals are 12-7.
Mike Rumph, American Heritage (Plantation, Fla.)
A
former cornerback for the San Francisco 49ers and a standout at the
University of Miami, Rumph preceded Patrick Surtain at American Heritage. He
went 46-8 and won two state championships. He moved on to take a job at
the University of Miami as an assistant coach.
Brian Sipe, Santa Fe Christian (Solana Beach, Calif.)
The NFL's most valuable player
in 1980, Sipe became a successful high school coach at Santa Fe
Christian, where he posted a record of 75-21-1 while winning four San
Diego Section championships.
Patrick Surtain, American Heritage
Prior to taking a job as an assistant with the Miami Dolphins, Surtain coached six seasons at American Heritage, where he posted a 65-10 record with a pair of 14-0 seasons and three state championships. Surtain, who was a two-time Pro Bowl defensive back with the Dolphins, has a son, Patrick Surtain II, who plays for the Denver Broncos.
Eric Weddle, Rancho Buena Vista (Vista, Calif.)
After coming out of retirement
to help the Los Angeles Rams win the Super Bowl,
Weddle was named head coach at Rancho Buena Vista a week later. The
Longhorns are 6-6 in Weddle's first season.
