Media Advisory:
Jesuit High School Names New Head Football Coach
Tampa, FL – December 6, 2012 – Jesuit High School’s Principal, Barry Neuburger, announced today that Matthew S. Thompson has accepted the position as the school’s new head football coach. Thompson, a graduate of the University of South Florida, is currently a faculty member and assistant football coach at Armwood High School in Seffner, FL. He has served as defensive coordinator there since 2003 and was the head track coach from 1996-2009.
A native of Brandon, Thompson attended Nativity Catholic School and Armwood High School as a youth. He entered the United States Marine Corps in 1986 and served honorably until 1991 when he began to pursue his college degree. After graduating from USF with a bachelor’s in Social Science Education in 1995, he embarked on his career of teaching and coaching at the high school level. He was recognized in 2004 as the National Football Hall of Fame Assistant Coach of the Year.
“Matt Thompson is a great hire for Jesuit football and for our students” said Jesuit’s principal, Barry Neuburger. “He understands young people and has a proven record of molding them on and off the field. Matt is eager to become part of the Jesuit tradition and we are tremendously excited to welcome him into the Jesuit family.”
Jesuit’s athletic director, Terry Rupp, said Thompson’s prep coaching experience was a strong factor in the school’s decision. “Matt is both a coach’s coach and a player’s coach. Not only is he highly respected in the local coaching community, but he has also earned the respect and trust of his players,” Rupp observed. “Coach Thompson has proven experience in assisting his players in their transition to the college level.”
In addition to his coaching responsibilities, Thompson will assume classroom duties as a member of the faculty in the fall of 2013. He will also direct Jesuit’s summer football camps, which are open to area youngsters from 3rd-9th grade.
Thompson now becomes Jesuit’s 20th head football coach, assuming the reins of a football program that dates back to 1921, one of the oldest in the state of Florida.