Foxborough, Mass. – Following an 8-4 season, capped off with the school's first ever football title, Randolph High School's Jonathan Marshall has been named the 2021 New England Patriots High School Coach of the Year and a nominee for the Don Shula Award.
Coach Marshall was only in his second season as the Randolph football program's head coach and fourth overall as he helped make school history and led their football program to the MIAA Division 8 State Championship. The Blue Devils followed the lead of Coach Marshall and were able to overcome adversity all throughout the season, which included being without team leaders, Malik White, Gardy Augustin, and Chris Paul at different points of the year. Ultimately, Marshall and his team were able to finish their magical season with a come-from-behind victory over the Hull Pirates in a hard-fought 20-14 final.
Patriots, College, and Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker Andre Tippett, now the team's Executive Director of Community Affairs, met with the Randolph Blue Devils captains and coaching staff Tuesday morning to present the football program with a $2,000 donation on behalf of the Patriots Foundation in honor of Coach Marshall. The visit and check presentation will be featured on the Patriots weekly television show, "Patriots All Access," which airs on Friday night at 7 p.m. on WBZ-TV in Boston and will be available immediately after on Patriots.com.
When asked for his thoughts on Coach Marshall and the Randolph football program, Tippet had this to say: "Coach Marshall and his Randolph Blue Devils took on the mantra of 'Grit-Resiliency' and lived by one of the team's biggest core values of 'Winners do more'".
Along with the Coach of the Year award comes the nomination for the Don Shula Award. Coach Marshall will join 31 other nominees from across the country to attend the 2021 Pro Bowl in Las Vegas. Of the 31 nominees, two finalists will be selected with the winner being announced and honored at the Pro Bowl. Both finalists will be invited to attend Super Bowl LVI in Los Angeles.
The winner of the Don Shula Award will receive $12,500 while his high school football program will be awarded $17,500. Meanwhile, the second finalist will receive $7,500 and his high school football program will receive $12,500. All other nominees will receive an additional $1,000.
This is the 26th year in which the Patriots have joined the National Football League in conducting the High School Coach of the Week program, which recognizes outstanding high school coaches and promotes youth football throughout New England. The 2021 season marks the tenth year that Tippett has taken the award on the road to visit the schools that benefit from the program.
The Patriots Foundation is the non-profit through which the Patriots support charitable and philanthropic organizations throughout New England. This support comes in the form of direct grants, in-kind donations and player appearances. The foundation assists a variety of charitable organizations and programs throughout New England by supporting their educational, family and health initiatives.
