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"What I did this year was icing on the cake": Teddy Bridgewater reflects on Miami Northwestern’s state championship run

Modified Dec 22, 2024 14:48 GMT

In his first year as coach of Miami Northwestern Senior High School, Teddy Bridgewater led the Bulls to a 41-0 victory in the Class 3A state championship on Dec. 14. The game at Pitbull Stadium was the culmination of a dream he had promised the 2026 senior class to guide them to greatness before they graduated.

The former NFL quarterback returned to his alma mater with a mission bigger than football.

"Honestly, it was refreshing," Bridgewater said on Friday, via 'The Pivot.' "I knew that a lot of those kids, man, watched me growing up. They saw me on the television. They would see me come back to the games. And they saw so much hope when they saw me. And for me, it was one of those things where it's like let me just go back and feed my soul and complete the mission that God put me here to do."

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To develop unity and build a sense of brotherhood, Bridgewater made his players stay on campus for six days during fall camp. The strategy paid off, as the Bulls displayed strong chemistry throughout the season.

However, the transition from NFL quarterback to high school coach was challenging and Bridgewater had to adapt his approach to meet the needs of young athletes.

"Football gave me a platform to put where I'm from on the map," Bridgewater said. "To go back and do what I did this year was icing on the cake for me and the community. This is something I talked about when a lot of these kids were freshmen, and for it to come full circle was just refreshing."

Teddy Bridgewater receives college and NFL coaching interest

Teddy Bridgewater played for more than a decade in the NFL with several teams, including the Minnesota Vikings, New York Jets, New Orleans Saints, Carolina Panthers, Denver Broncos, Miami Dolphins and Detroit Lions. He last played for the Lions in 2023 before retiring and followed his dream to coach high school football.

Bridgewater remains dedicated to his new role, but he hinted at the possibility of returning to the NFL under the right circumstances.

Besides his high school coaching duties, Bridgewater has attracted interest in coaching roles at the college and professional levels. In a post on X, he revealed that he already received offers from an HBCU program and multiple NFL teams.