A Massachusetts highschool soccer program good points Tremendous Bowl experience with the appointment of Ernie Adams as interim head coach at Phillips Andover Academy.
Phillips Andover Academy Hires NFL Veteran
Phillips Andover Academy, the elite boarding college recognized for alumni together with Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush, has chosen Ernie Adams, a longtime NFL assistant coach and govt, as its interim soccer coach. Adams, 72, attended the college within the late Sixties and early Seventies.
Throughout his time at Andover, Adams learn Soccer Scouting Strategies by Steve Belichick, father of Invoice Belichick. Invoice Belichick joined the college for a post-graduate yr in 1970, sparking a lifelong friendship after Adams seen the household connection.
Interim Function and Assist from Belichick
“That is positively an interim appointment,” Adams said relating to his first head-coaching job. “The college plans a complete seek for a youthful, full-time coach after the season, so I’m right here for this yr.”
Adams obtained congratulations from Belichick, now in his second season as head coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels. “After all [Belichick] is an alumnus too, so I do know he needs us properly, identical to I cheer for [North] Carolina,” Adams added.
Barstool Sports activities founder Dave Portnoy, a Massachusetts native and Patriots supporter, posted on X: “Can I wager my internet price on Phillips Andover to win the NEPSAC subsequent yr. Previous Pink Stripes is gonna have the boys flying…” The ‘pink stripes’ reference nods to an inside joke from the Patriots’ apply facility.
Profession Highlights and Staff Transition
Adams replaces Trey Brown, who recorded a 2-7 mark in NEPSAC Class A final fall, together with a 48-16 loss to rival Phillips Exeter. Adams served as Belichick’s lead researcher with the New England Patriots from 2000 to 2021, contributing to 6 Tremendous Bowl victories. Sportswriter David Halberstam dubbed him “Belichick’s Belichick” for his analytical prowess.
Their paths crossed early: Each entered the NFL in 1975—Belichick as an assistant with the Baltimore Colts, Adams as a Patriots administrative assistant. Adams later joined Belichick on the New York Giants and Cleveland Browns, the place proprietor Artwork Modell as soon as quipped, “I will pay anybody right here $10,000 if they will inform me what Ernie Adams does.”
After leaving soccer in 2021, Adams returns to the sideline. “Pay attention, it is nice,” he stated. “[I’ve] been working there the final couple years, so I do know all of the gamers. However simply standing in entrance of them [Monday] afternoon after I was launched, these are a fantastic bunch of children and it was loads of enjoyable.”
On technique, Adams famous: “Hopefully the offense we run is one which strikes the ball and scores factors.”
College Legacy and Athletic Director’s Endorsement
Based in 1778, Phillips Andover boasts notable alumni like John F. Kennedy Jr., Jackie Kennedy Onassis’s son John, actors Jack Lemmon and Olivia Wilde, and journalist Buzz Bissinger. Athletic director Lisa Joel praised the rent: “The Phillips Andover expertise was formative for [Adams]. He is all in. He loves the college, he loves the sport of soccer, and he understands what it means to be an Andover scholar. He is a workforce man. And he is extremely humble and understated.”
The Huge Blue soccer workforce final posted a successful season in 2017 and went 9-0 in 2013. Alumni professionals embrace Zak DeOssie, a 13-year Giants lengthy snapper after starring at Brown.
