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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signs "Teddy Bridgewater Act" bill into law

IMG_8358by: Andy Villamarzo05/22/26Andy_Villamarzo

House Bill 538 wasn’t the only bill signed into law by Florida governor Ron DeSantis officially on Friday morning at Jacksonville (Fla.) Jean Ribault High School.

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Also signed by DeSantis was Senate Bill 178, better known as the “Teddy Bridgewater Act”, would allow Florida public school head coaches K-12 to spend their own funds to support student-athlete welfare with written parental consent.

SB 178, a bill previously proposed by senator Shervin Jones (District 34), will allow middle and high school head coaches to use up to $15,000 of their own funds to support student-athletes with food, transportation and recovery services.

Teddy Bridgewater, the former Miami Northwestern head football coach and current Detroit Lions’ quarterback, had aimed to help his Bulls with spending of his own monies towards student-athletes when it came to food, transportation and recovery services. Bridgewater was under a suspension by the school for the 2025-26 school year due to the allegations of providing impermissible benefits to his players.

In a now deleted Facebook post, Bridgewater had asked Northwestern fans to help him cover team expenses that were not being paid for by the school, which included $700 per week for Uber rides, $1,300 per week for athletic recovery services and $2,200 per week for pre-game meals during the season.

During his one-year tenure as head coach at his alma mater, Bridgewater made an immediate impact for the Bulls and led them to their first state crown since 2019, guiding the program to the FHSAA’s 2024 Class 3A state championship.

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