Former Cal and NFL Star Named Head Football Coach at JSerra Catholic High School

Former Cal and NFL standout linebacker Hardy Nickerson has been named the head football coach at JSerra Catholic High School in San Juan Capistrano, California. The school made the announcement on Wednesday.

This past season Nickerson was the head coach at Oakland’s Bishop O’Dowd High School, and he led the Dragons to the 2025 CIF 5A state championship. O’Dowd finished with an 11-4 record this season and defeated El Cajon Christian 37-0 in the 5A state final.

At JSerra Nickerson takes over a team in the Trinity League, generally considered the best high school football league in the country. It includes Mater Dei, St. John Bosco, Santa Margarita, Orange Lutheran, Servite and JSerra.

Nickerson was a elite linebacker during his time at Cal from 1983 through 1985 and was named the team’s Most Valuable Player in each of those three seasons. He was selected as a first-team, All-Pac-10 linebacker in 1985.

Nickerson’s 167 tackles as a junior set a Cal single-season record that was broken by Evan Weaver in 2019. Nickerson’s 501 career tackles rank second on the Cal list, behind only David Ortega.

Nickerson was a fifth-round pick in the 1986 NFL draft, and he was highly successful in the pros.

He played 16 NFL seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Jacksonville Jaguars and and Green Bay Packers. He was named to the first-team All-Pro squad twice (1993, 1997) and was selected for the Pro Bowl five times.

Nickerson set an NFL record with his 214 tackles in 1994.

Nickerson was a linebackers coach for the Buccaneers, the Chicago Bears, and the San Francisco 49ers, and was the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at the University of Illinois.

He served as the head coach at Bishop O’Dowd High School in Oakland from 2010 to 2013 and returned to Bishop O’Dowd to be its head coach in 2022. This season Nickerson’s O’Dowd squad won its first CIF State Championship since 2016, winning the 5A state title.

He was named JSerra Catholic High School’s head coach on Wednesday (December 17).

JSerra Athletic Director Chris Ledyard provided this statement in the release announcing the hiring of Nickerson..

“Hardy has a humble heart and knows what it means to be great. He has demonstrated this greatness in all facets of his life, as much on the field as off the field. He has been a beacon of both humility and magnanimity throughout his entire life.”

Nickerson also provided a statement in the release.

“I’m excited to lead JSerra football into a new era. Lou Holtz believed you must build your empire on the foundation of the fundamentals and that philosophy resonates deeply with me. Our program will be built on effort, toughness, and enthusiasm. Together, we will set a new standard and build something special on and off the field.”