Maybe the NFL Players Association pension plan requires that retired players go coach in the Trinity League.
Former NFL star quarterback Carson Palmer returned to his alma mater Santa Margarita before the 2025 season. He led the Eagles to CIF Southern Section and CIF State championships.
Palmer’s coaching staff in ’25 included ex-NFL players T.J. Houshmandzadeh as receivers coach, Doug Johnson as quarterbacks coach and Mike Scifres as kickers coach.
Orange Lutheran’s coaching staff in 2025 included ex-Rams Todd Lyght and Austin Pettis as defensive and offensive coordinators, respectively. Lyght already had moved on to a college coaching job before Orange Lutheran cut ties with head coach Rod Sherman.
Mater Dei assistant coach Khaled Holmes is a former NFL player.
Now JSerra is starting its collection of ex-NFL players.
JSerra hired ex-NFL star linebacker Hardy Nickerson as head coach in December. He has brought in former NFL players Steve Beuerlein, Chris Conte and Pat Harlow to his coaching staff. Harlow was the JSerra head coach for four seasons, 2017-20.
The Trinity League is becoming an NFL players retirement home.
NOTES
On the subject of Trinity League football … Santa Margarita at St. John Bosco, Oct. 16; Mater Dei at St. John Bosco, Oct. 30. …
One more Trinity League football upate: Because of the layers of leadership in the school system’s hierarchy, it can take longer to hire a football head coach at Orange Lutheran than it might take elsewhere. So, Orange Lutheran has not yet announced its replacement for Sherman, whose ouster was announced Feb. 2. …
Some thoughts on the boys basketball playoffs: As good as Corona del Mar is, the Sea Kings don’t have the size or athleticism to mix in with the Open Division teams. … No team in Division 2 has a trio of players as good as Mater Dei’s Luke Barnett, Zain Majeed and Richie Ramirez. … A Crean Lutheran-JSerra Division 1 championship game would be outstanding, and it could happen if both teams prevail in the semifinals Friday. …
In the girls basketball playoffs: Rosary has won its three games in the Division 2 playoffs by an average margin of 21 points a game. … Mater Dei lost two-time All-Orange County forward Kaeli Wynn to a knee injury in early December, yet advanced to the Open Division quarterfinals. … Orange, which was 5-9 early in the season and then lost its final two regular-season games, has advanced to the Division 8 semifinals. The Panthers are home Saturday against University Prep. …
Four Orange County boys soccer teams are in the CIF-SS Open Division semifinals on Saturday: Orange Lutheran at Valencia, 5 p.m., and Mater Dei at JSerra, 5 p.m. The Open Division teams are playing each other twice in this round of the playoffs, with the two-game cumulative score determining the winner. Earlier this week, Orange Lutheran defeated Valencia, 1-0, and Mater Dei defeated JSerra, 4-3. …
Valencia senior forward Nathan Cueva has scored three goals in the playoffs. Cueva has 38 goals in 19 games this season. Valencia junior midfielder Justus Pailma has four goals in the playoffs and 13 for the season. …
Los Alamitos plays at Godinez in a Division 3 boys soccer semifinal Saturday. Other Orange County teams in boys soccer semifinals Saturday: Canyon in Division 2, University in Division 4, Esperanza and Santa Ana Valley in Division 5, and Pacifica Christian in Division 8. …
The Open Division girls soccer semifinals have Oaks Christian at Santa Margarita and Mater Dei at Redondo Union. Two-game cumulative scores determine which teams advance to the finals. Santa Margarita beat Oaks Christian, 1-0, on Wednesday, and Mater Dei beat Redondo Union, 1-0, on Wednesday. …
Other Orange County girls soccer teams in semifinals Saturday: Newport Harbor in Division 1, Ocean View and Segerstrom in Division 6 and Savanna in Division 7. …
Boys and girls soccer finals will be at Veterans Stadium in Long Beach and at El Modena High on Feb. 28. …
The CIF-SS Masters Meet in wrestling is Friday for boys and Saturday for girls. The top five finishers in the Blue Division and Gold Division advance to the CIF State meet that will run Feb. 26-28 at Dignity Health Arena in Bakersfield. Admission to the Masters Meet, exclusively through the GoFan.co website, is $8 for children and students, $16 for adults. …
Watching people outside of high school gyms and stadiums, trying to access tickets on their phones, creates the impression that smart phone-only entry is keeping some folks from attempting to get to games. Especially older people. …
Corona del Mar’s boys volleyball team beat Newport Harbor in four sets on Wednesday in a Sunset League match at Newport Harbor High. Corona del Mar won, 22-25, 25-16, 25-19 and 25-17. Corona del Mar is 2-0, including a win over Mater Dei, and Newport Harbor is 0-1. …
Pacifica Christian was able to complete its baseball game against University on a wet and chilly Monday at Orange Coast College with the help of a toaster oven. Pacifica Christian coach Todd Woody said the toaster oven, set to low, helped keep baseballs dry. Woody also complimented the umpires for being patient and persistent so that that game could be completed. Pacifica Christian won 7-5.