Former NFL Players Bring Pride And Passion To High School Football Sidelines

From Carson Palmer, to Bryce Jones, and Reggie Swinton, the 2025 high school football season is proving to be a daunting and welcomed task for these players turned coaches.

Oct 8, 2017; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer (3) passes against the Philadelphia Eagles during the first quarter at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images / Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

No one said making the leap from high school football to the National Football League would be easy. But what about the decent descent from the NFL to coaching high school football?

Each former player-turned-coach has a story to tell. Some good. Some not. And a few are still being written.

Insert the experience of 4-year NFL veteran Trent Dilfer who led Nashville’s Lipscomb Academy to a 44-10 record, three Division II Class AA state championship appearances and two titles before moving on to coach at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Teddy Bridgewater found out in his own way at his alma mater, Miami Northwestern Senior High School. The reunion was short-lived as Bridgewater received a suspension following a Florida High School Athletic Association investigation into alleged impermissible program benefits and now is back in the NFL with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

While Dilfer’s time with the Mustangs and Bridgewater’s brief tenure at Miami Northwestern garnished both positive and negative headlines, other former NFL players are focused on leaving a favorable impression on their respective high school teams and communities around the country. 

Carson Palmer: Santa Margarita Catholic High School (California)

Carson Palmer (3) on the cover of the Santa Margarita football media guide for the 1997 season. / Santa Margarita Football/EaglesFootball.com

Hired in December 2024, Palmer returned to his alma mater initially as a volunteer before being named head coach for the 2025 season. This generation of Eagles – including his son, Fletch –  are in very good hands dating back to when Carson led Santa Margarita to two California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section titles in the late 1990s. The 2022 Heisman Trophy and No.1 draft pick out of USC went on to become the first NFL quarterback to pass for 4,000 yards with three different teams and is the only quarterback to have two consecutive 4,000-yard seasons. How would that translate to coaching the high school game? 

In true Carson Palmer form, the first-year head coach is letting the ball fly. Despite suffering the first loss of the season against Mission Viejo, 7-3, Coach Palmer and the Eagles have rattled off three-straight wins versus Centennial (33-27 in overtime), on the road at Highland (45-13), and Oaks Christian (44-14). Up next on the schedule: at home against undefeated Bishop Gorman (4-0). 

Bryce Jones: Cleveland Heights High School (Ohio)

#NewProfilePic pic.twitter.com/aHuYhhbt0u

— Bryce Jones (@BryceJones94) March 9, 2025

Coach Jones has a lot on his plate these days. He wouldn’t want it any other way. Back in January, the former NFL cornerback and defensive back for the Houston Texans was named the head football coach at Cleveland Heights High School, a role he’ll lead while also serving as the dean of students at Oxford Elementary School.

A 2012 Cleveland Heights High School graduate, Jones was a standout quarterback and defensive back in addition to excelling on the track team. More than familiar with pulling double-duty, he was named the Lake Erie League MVP in both sports before going on to play football at Boston College and the University of Akron before suiting up for the Texans, the San Antonio Commanders (AAF) and the New York Guardians (XFL). Coach Jones also brings with him college coaching experience with him to Cleveland Heights having spent time at the University of Northern Iowa, Penn State University, the University of St. Mary, and Johnson C. Smith University.

The energy and effort is there. The results, unfortunately, haven’t fallen in Cleveland Heights favor as Coach Jones remains in search of his first high school football coaching victory. With tough losses to Trotwood-Madison (42-7), Chardon (26-24), McKinley (34-12), and Strongsville (29-26), the Tigers look to earn their first win of the season when they travel to Lorain (1-3) this week.

Reggie Swinton: Jacksonville High School (Arkansas)

This week's #FormerPlayerHighlight is Reggie Swinton. Swinton has been hired to take over Arkansas’ Jacksonville High School football program as the new head coach. Reggie brings his years of experience as a wide receiver/return specialist in the league and his numerous years of… pic.twitter.com/hW2lAGBgZI

— NFLPA Former Players (@NFLPAFmrPlayers) August 29, 2025

Moving up comes with a lot of expectations, personally and professionally. For head coach Reggie Swinton living up to them is something that will unfold throughout this season with the Jacksonville Titans. A former NFL kick returner, Coach Swinton takes over a program that 

moves up a classification after leading the 4A-2 Forrest City Mustangs to a 4-7 overall record in 2024. 

A native of Little Rock, Swinton was a star at Central High School earning all-state honors in football, basketball, baseball, and track prior to going on to set records in football at Murray State. You might say that Swinton has never met a football field he hasn’t called home. Along with playing in the NFL with the Dallas Cowboys, Green Bay Packers, Detroit Lions, and Arizona Cardinals, Swinton also had stints in the Canadian Football League and the XFL with the Toronto Argonauts, Edmonton Eskimos, and Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the CFL and the Las Vegas Outlaws in the XFL. Moving up comes with lofty goals. So does moving on. 

Coach Swinton, who previously coached at Arkansas Baptist College and Pulaski Heights MIddle School, was also named the Amateur Athletic Union Football Sports Director of Arkansas and coached the Elite Arkansas Lions AAU program to round out his post-playing career. The task at hand for Swinton and the Titans for this football season is to bounce back from a 2024 season that saw Jacksonville go 1-10 on the year and 0-7 in conference play. But there is some good news to spread in Arkansas. 

The Titans are improving and have already bested the win total from 2024 by sitting at 2-2 following victories over Lonoke (25-24) and DeWitt (28-20). Jacksonville goes for three-straight with a Week 5 contest at winless Pine Bluff (0-3).