After earning his College Football Hall of Fame ballot nomination weeks ago, Clemson legend Sammy Watkins has taken a high school coaching role. His foray into coaching comes barely four years after he retired from his Super Bowl-winning NFL career.

Ocoee High School Football announced the addition of former Clemson Tigers wide receiver and Super Bowl LIV winner Sammy Watkins to the program’s coaching staff on Instagram. The post, made in collaboration with the program’s head coach, Buck Gurley, noted that Watkins will be the team’s wide receivers coach going forward. The Knights urged fans to give him a warm welcome, as they wrote,

“The Ocoee Knights Football Family is proud to welcome Coach Sammy Watkins as our new Wide Receivers Coach,” the caption read. “A dynamic playmaker and proven competitor at every level of football, Coach Watkins brings a wealth of knowledge, experience, and passion for developing young athletes both on and off the field. His commitment to excellence and understanding of the wide receiver position will be an incredible asset to our program as we continue building a championship culture.

“Coach Watkins understands what it takes to succeed through hard work, discipline, and dedication. We are excited for our receivers to learn from someone who has competed at the highest levels of the game and is committed to helping our players reach their full potential.”

Watkins had a prolific career with the Clemson Tigers before the Buffalo Bills selected him with the fourth overall pick. He joined the Tigers as a five-star recruit from South Fort Myers High School and lived up to the expectations. More than a decade later, Watkins still holds Clemson’s single-season receiving records, with 101 catches for 1,464 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2013. Finishing with 3,391 receiving yards and 27 touchdowns, his 240 receptions are the most in Clemson’s history.

Despite finishing his debut NFL season with a franchise rookie record in receptions (65) and receiving yards (982), his career was plagued by injuries that limited him from reaching his full potential. Even after ending his second season with 60 catches and 1,047 yards, the Bills did not have enough faith in him to activate his fifth-year option, forcing him to join the LA Rams for one season.

Watkins then moved to the Kansas City Chiefs, where he won Super Bowl LIV against the 49ers. He was particularly vital to the Chiefs’ double-digit comeback late in the 4th quarter of the Super Bowl. Watkins eventually retired in 2022 after brief stints with the Baltimore Ravens and the Green Bay Packers.

Sammy Watkins missed out on the Clemson Tigers coaching job

Just before his induction into the Clemson Tigers Hall of Fame in 2024, head coach Dabo Swinney had spoken about having Watkins join the Clemson Tigers coaching staff. Swinney seemed to like Watkins not just as a player, but as a coach he was willing to bring to his team.

“We’re trying to get him to, we’ve talked about timing and all of that,” Dabo Swinney said in 2024. “His kids are athletes. He’s got some competitive athletes, and he’s got a lot going on there. But he does want to finish school at some point. So I’ve been trying to get him to come back and help us out and finish up. So we’ll see.”

While the Clemson opportunity did not work out, Watkins will now focus on building Ocoee’s receiving corps. Last season, the Ocoee Knights exited the regional quarterfinals of the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) Class 7A postseason and finished with a 6-5 record.