Farragut teacher Rob Ewing coaches Tropical Bowl with alumni Chris Miller ‘00 and Kreg Brown ‘07

On January 17th, Farragut’s Aviation Director Rob Ewing joined Farragut alumni Chris Miller ‘00 and Kreg Brown ‘07 to help coach in the SPIRAL Tropical Bowl. Miller was the head coach of the American team, Brown was on staff as a running back coach, and Ewing was a special teams assistant.

The SPIRAL Tropical Bowl is a premier FBS Division I level college football all-star game played in Orlando-Kissimmee, Florida, annually in mid-January. The bowl showcases the top college football seniors to NFL scouts and general managers who travel from around the country to the event. Over 350 Tropical Bowl alumni have gone on to the NFL since its inception in 2016.

Rob Ewing has been a part of Farragut in some capacity since 1998. He started out in the science department, where he taught anatomy, physical science, and physics, as well as establishing the aviation program. He began coaching football during the 1999 Fall season and was involved in some way with the football program until 2012. In his approximately 14 years of coaching, Ewing has mentored many young men, including both Chris Miller ‘00 (who now has two sons of his own attending Farragut, Owen in 3rd grade and John in 6th grade) and Kreg Brown ‘07. “I’m very close with both Chris and Kreg,” said Ewing. “It’s a sense of pride that I have to see the men that they have become, with their maturity and dedication to the sport.”

Miller has his own history of coaching at Farragut. In 2003, he returned to Farragut and coached alongside Ewing. He later became head coach of the BlueJackets from 2005-2013. Today, and since 2013, Miller has been the head football coach at Seminole High School.

“Admiral Farragut Academy changed my life,” Miller said. “The discipline, structure, and culture of the school helped shape me physically and mentally. Our football team was never very good, and, as the quarterback, I took my fair share of beatings. Through all of it though, we were a team. We loved our school and played for each other. Being able to say that I was an Admiral Farragut Academy BlueJacket football player still fills me with pride.”

The weekend was a whirlwind. They got to Kissimmee Thursday night, then on Friday morning they met with players and the NFL scouts, and had 3-hour practices Friday afternoon and Saturday morning. That Sunday was the game.

“The time you spend coaching football players, you give everything that you have,” Ewing said. “You back them up 100%. I’ve told all my football players over the years that I’ll stand in front of them as a coach, I’ll stand beside them after coaching, and I’ll stand behind them for the rest of their life, and I’ll support them in anything. For me, coaching that game with Chris and Kreg was just a chance to do what you’re supposed to do, to support someone who you believe in and who believes in you. I’m always happy to be part of the process.”