JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jackson High School football fans may remember the name Ranier Rackley from the early 2000s. The Tigers star running back went on to play college football. In 2016 he began his coaching career and now he is working with the Jacksonville Jaguars as part of the Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship program.
“It’s a really good program,” Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said. “We’ve been able to not only implement it during the regular season, but also in the offseason program and bring guys in that can get on your radar screen.”
One Jaguars coach, Jacksonville native Tee Mitchell who is Rackley’s cousin, was part of the fellowship program last year and earned a job with the team as a defensive quality control coach.
“I saw last year when Tee applied and he got it, that encouraged me more to say, ‘okay next year that may be my time’ and I’m here now,” Rackley said.
Rackley is not the only Jacksonville native who is coaching with in the Bill Walsh Fellowship program. Former Ed White star Kaleb Johnson is also with the team during OTAs.
It’s been an eventful month for Rackley. In May he was promoted to head football coach at Roseville High School in North Carolina. Only a few days later he broke the news to his team that he was accepted into the program and heading home to start organized team activities (OTAs).
“They were excited for me when I first told them,” Rackley said. “They cried. Some of them were uncertain about what was going to happen next. But I was like ‘I’m coming back. Don’t worry about it. The opportunity presents itself, I’m here.’ Just to do this for the state of North Carolina, it’s amazing.”
Rackley is familiar with the Tar Heel state. He finished his college career playing for in-state Elizabeth City State University as a running back. Then he stayed up north to begin coaching.
“I had no idea I was going to come back home as a coach, but I’m here,” Rackley said. “It’s a surreal moment for sure.”
Rackley says he’s learned a lot over the past three weeks.
“Sometimes I wake up and think ‘I’m really here?’” Rackley said. “It’s a blessing. I just love learning from these guys.”
Rackley has admired coach Pederson because Pederson started his career coaching high school ball too.
“Talk to him every day and learn some things from him and how he embraces me, how the other coaches embrace me as well,” Rackley said. “I didn’t know what to expect, but I just love how they embrace me.”
As Rackley returns to Roseville High for pre-season workouts with his new team, he’ll be returning with a ton of new lessons he’s learned from the sport’s top coaches.
“You can’t just wait for stuff to happen,” Rackley said. “You have to get it done. The structure piece that these guys set forth here, it’s amazing.”