The next chapter in future Hall of Fame quarterback Philip Rivers’ football journey is now just less than a month away from commencing.
Rivers was hired as the head football coach at St. Michael Catholic High School in Alabama in August and has taken over the program full-time after retiring in January. The former Chargers and Colts signal-caller will coach his first high school football game — albeit a spring game — against Alma Bryant High School on May 21, according to AL.com’s Ben Thomas.
Although Alma Bryant will also feature a new head coach when the two teams meet, the odds seem to be stacked against Rivers’ St. Michael program in its spring matchup. Alma Bryant is a Class 7A program, while St. Michael boasts a 4A classification.
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“Coach Sessions and I both are in our first years at our schools obviously,” Rivers told AL.com. “After visiting with him and having a coach on staff that knew him, it just seemed like it was going to line up well with what our visions were for spring ball – to get better and find out about our respective teams.
“We look forward to that challenge and working together to get better. I think both programs can accomplish their goals, and we are excited about getting to play.”
Rivers grew up in Alabama and starred for his father, Steve Rivers, at Athens High School before ascending to N.C. State. While in Raleigh, Rivers shattered nearly every program passing record en route to becoming the fourth pick in the 2004 NFL Draft. He took over as San Diego’s starting quarterback in 2006 and remained with the organization until 2019, when he hit free agency and opted to sign a one-year, $25 million contract with the Colts to play the final season of his career in Indianapolis.
The 39-year-old Rivers finished his career ranked fifth all-time with 63,440 passing yards and 421 touchdown passes. He also started the final 240 games of his career, a streak second only to Brett Farve’s 297 consecutive starts under center.
“It’s a special day for me and for my family,” Rivers said when hired as St. Michael’s head coach. “I’ve had two childhood dreams — one was to play in the NFL, and I’ve been doing that going on my 17th year. The other was to be a high school football coach. How blessed am I to live both of these out?”