Tennessee State football is looking to rebuild after the HBCU lost former NFL star and Heisman Trophy winner Eddie George as its head coach.
Its new head coach, Reggie Barlow, is a former NFL player himself. He’s brought in several new quarterbacks — including the nephew of two former NFL quarterbacks.
Jordan Palmer is the nephew of former USC star and Heisman Trophy winner Carson Palmer and Jordan Palmer, who briefly played with his brother under the Cincinnati Bengals.
Palmer started his career at Gardner-Webb but hit the transfer portal and landed at Tennessee State.
“When I went into the transfer portal coach Barlow was one of the first to call,” Palmer said via the Tennessean. “I visited, loved the team, loved the culture and we’ve got a lot of ex-NFL coaches and (United Football League) coaches and I wanted to be developed by guys like that.”
Barlow, an HBCU legend as a player and a champion as a coach, was a successful coach with the DC Defenders of the UFL.
“Most kids would say they want to get coached by the highest level coaches they can,” Palmer said. “I was blessed to grow up around a lot of elite quarterback coaching, just football in general. That definitely had a major impact on what type of player I am today.”
Jordan Palmer is one of three transfers vying for a starting spot. TSU went 9-3 last season, winning a share of the Ohio Valley/Big South Conference and earning a spot in the FCS playoffs.
