Former Texas player Richard Hightower rising up the NFL coaching ranks at Shrine Bowl

Chicago Bears special teams coordinator Richard Hightower, left, joins former Texas cornerback Ryan Watts and Longhorns coach Steve Sarkisian at the East-West Shrine Bowl Hall of Fame induction ceremony for Sarkisian on Wednesday at the Star in Frisco. Hightower, who played at UT under coach Mack Brown, was the East’s head coach in Thursday’s all-star game.

FRISCO — While Texas football coach Steve Sarkisian helped headline the week with his induction into the East-West Shrine Bowl Hall of Fame on Wednesday, another coach with UT ties might have been the game’s biggest beneficiary.

Richard Hightower, a 2003 UT graduate and the special teams coordinator for the Chicago Bears, served as the East’s head coach. A veteran on the sideline with 17 years of NFL coaching experience, Hightower earned the opportunity to be a head coach at Thursday night’s Shrine Bowl through a program initiated by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and NFL executive Troy Vincent to help develop promising young coaches.

More: Texas football product Ryan Watts hopes Shrine Bowl improves his NFL draft stock

His team lost the game 26-11, but Hightower knows that spending the week serving as a head coach could be a big win when it comes to his career.

And when it comes to preparing the Bears for the upcoming NFL draft.

“Overall, it was a great experience, and I’m grateful to Troy Vincent and Roger Goodell helping assistant coaches and putting them in a position where they can coach their aspirations,” Hightower said. “I mean, this is pretty cool.

“And it definitely helped with our (the Bears’) pre-draft process getting to know all of these guys. They competed hard in practice, they showed some good tape, and they got some tips to help them going forward.”

Richard Hightower, center, goes through drills with Kyle Shanahan, right, during a…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/former-texas-player-richard-hightower-140050541.html

Author : Austin American-Statesman

Publish date : 2024-02-04 14:00:50

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