Former NFL quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, who recently retired after a decade in the league, has been named head coach of Miami Northwestern Senior High School, his alma mater.
Miami Northwestern athletic director Andre Williams confirmed the hiring to ESPN. He added that Bridgewater, 31, who was a star at the school before moving to Louisville and the NFL, has been a steady presence in the program and expected to coach there for some time. Bridgewater, a first-round draft pick in 2014 by the Minnesota Vikings, played for seven NFL teams, most recently the Detroit Lions. He told the Detroit Free Press in December that he would retire after the season and that he planned to coach high school football.
“Teddy, he never left school,” Williams said. “Since he's been in the NFL the last 10 years and certainly in college, he was always in school during the offseason, training with the kids, giving them his knowledge of the game. He never left school, so” . “We are officially bringing him back as head coach.”
Williams said Bridgewater first mentioned the possibility of coaching Miami Northwestern five or seven years ago. The school had a coaching vacancy after parting ways with Michaelee Harris following a 4-6 season last fall.
Welcome to our new head coach, Teddy Bridgewater. 💙💛🤘🏾🐂 pic.twitter.com/V1FdW5QB3V
– Miami Northwest_FB (@mnw_fb) February 2, 2024
Bridgewater is already at the school, meeting with the team's returning players and other coaches, according to Williams. He had 6,712 passing yards and 70 touchdowns at Miami Northwestern before moving to Louisville, where he earned Big East Rookie of the Year honors and won Sugar Bowl MVP after leading the Cardinals past Florida as a junior.
Despite suffering a serious knee injury with the Vikings before the 2016 season and other injuries, Bridgewater started 65 games in his NFL career and finished with 15,120 passing yards, 75 touchdowns and 47 interceptions. He started most of the 2014 and 2015 seasons for Minnesota, as well as 2020 in Carolina and 2021 in Denver.
Williams said Miami Northwestern received a lot of interest for its coaching vacancy, but he focused on Bridgewater, who he believes has received interest from colleges about potential coaching positions.
“I wasn't worried because he always expressed that he wanted to come back as a coach at his alma mater, Northwestern, and he was always there,” Williams said. “He's a very humble young man. He rarely shows any emotions about him, but I'm sure he was extremely excited. He mentioned that he was trying to maintain his composure in the announcement not long ago.”
Williams, who also played quarterback at Miami Northwestern in the 1980s, joined Bridgewater because of that connection and others. He believes Bridgewater will be a good mentor to the players, both in football and in their other activities.
“It means a lot,” Williams said. “He's a proud member of this community. He knows the environment, he knows the school, he knows the tradition, he knows all the guys that came before. I was surprised that when I first met him, he knew I was the quarterback at Northwestern in the 80's.
“So he understands the importance of this, but more importantly he understands that it's not just about wins and losses for me, the school and the community.”
