TN football coach Rodney Saulsberry, Sr., garners 2023 AFCA Power of Influence Award

Posted on by

Football coach Rodney Saulsberry, Sr., of Whitehaven Tennessee has garnered a 2023 AFCA Regional Power of Influence Award from the American Football Coaches Association. Photo Credit: Rodney Saulsberry

Many outstanding athletic coaches who work with our nation’s young people are deserving of recognition. One of these is Rodney Saulsberry, Sr., a football coach from Memphis, Tennessee. He is one of five coaches who have garnered a 2023  Regional Power of Influence Award from the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA).

In a career that spans 26 years, Rodney has spent 20 of them as the Head Football Coach at Whitehaven High School in Memphis. Over the course of his career, he has led his student athletes to an overall record of 185-53, capturing two Tennessee 6A state titles (2012 and 2016), the first championships in his school’s history. Over 200 of Rodney’s former players have gone on to play college football, and 15 of them have become coaches.

In addition to his work on the field, Rodney has served on both the Board of the Tennessee Football Coaches Association and the Rules Committee for the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association. He has also been a speaker at various football clinics around the country, including the 2013 AFCA Convention.

In 2020, Rodney co-founded the Minority Coaches Association of Tennessee, an organization which helps high school, college, and professional coaches in Tennessee foster job opportunities and hosts clinics for continuing education.

For his work with young people, Rodney has earned many awards, including his honors as a two-time Tennessee Titans Coach of the Week; a Tennessee Titans/Shelby Metro Coach of the Year award winner in 2012 and 2016; a three-time Regional Coach of the Year; and winner of the Rex Dockery Award from the Memphis Chapter of the National Football Foundation. He has also been inducted into the College Hall of Fame.

Rodney earned his Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from Austin Peay State University in 1995. He earned his Master’s degree in Teaching Mathematics from the University of Memphis in 2004.

Congrats, Rodney!