‘Teddy Bridgewater Act’ Expands Ability for Florida Coaches to Support Players
Florida K-12 head coaches’ powers expanded Wednesday with the “Teddy Bridgewater Act” going into effect. The law allows coaches to personally support players with expenses like food, travel and rehabilitation. Coaches must report the up to $15,000 of allowed annual spending and can’t utilize it as a recruiting tool.
The Florida State Senate filed the bill Oct. 10 after the FHSAA suspended Miami native and Detroit Lions quarterback Teddy Bridgewater from coaching during the 2025-26 season Sept. 12.
The suspension came after the 33-year-old admitted to covering meals and transportation costs for some players while leading his alma mater, Miami Northwestern High, as the football coach to a FHSAA Class 3A state championship title in 2024.
In a Facebook post July 5, Bridgewater outlined spending over $100,000 of his own money on his 2024 team. He said he acted with paternal motivation when asked about the incident during a press conference after signing a one-year deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2025.
“I think everyone knows that I’m a cheerful guy, a cheerful giver, as well,” Bridgewater said. “And I’m a protector. I’m a father first, before anything. When I decided to coach, those players became my sons. I wanted to make sure that I just protect them in the best way that I can.”
Bridgewater played for Miami Northwestern from 2008-2010 before heading to the University of Louisville from 2011-2013. The Minnesota Vikings selected him 32nd overall in the 2014 NFL Draft, and the 11-year veteran spent his first three seasons in Minneapolis before splitting his time across six more teams. The Lions signed the unrestricted free agent, entering his 12th season, March 23, to back up Jared Goff.
At a press conference before approving the bill May 22, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said the only wrongdoing proved to be the rules’ verbiage. DeSantis also signed Senate Bill 538 that expands financial support for coaches by allowing booster clubs to raise money to pay them above typical district stipends, which also went into effect Wednesday.
“He got into this situation where he was paying for meals and rides for some of his players who were underprivileged, and he was using his personal funds to do this,” DeSantis said. “These were people that he was mentoring and that somehow got him suspended because of the way the rules were written.”
Category: Feature Sports News, High School Sports
