The Antonio Network

Magnanimous and outgoing, Taylor made friends quickly and often, and his “celebration of life” event on May 13 in Mobile, Ala., drew a big crowd. But one group of mourners stood out from the rest.

The entire Williamson High School football team, led by head coach and former pro football player Antonio Coleman ’08, came to pay their respects. Even for a man like Taylor, who often made connections in extraordinary ways, their presence was noteworthy.

Taylor’s Williamson project had become an enormous final act, reshaping the fortunes of a struggling football team and bringing to life the transformative vision of its head coach to improve the lives of all his players, not just the ones destined for college football. By enlisting the help of likeminded alumni, the opportunity he created will live beyond him. 



“This year it’ll be special because Mr. Rucker did so much and he left such a legacy,” said Coleman. “He impacted me in [the last] 3 years more than anybody has in my life.”

Bigger Than the Game

Taken by the Buffalo Bills as an undrafted free agent, Coleman competed and made the 53-man roster. He was finally living out his football dreams.

“Having to deal with the D’Brickashaw Ferguson, man. Mercedes Lewis, you’re talking about a tight end that was two times the size of me. [There were] a lot of priceless moments in there, but I gained a lot of friendships, a lot of knowledge and it helped me become a better student of the game.”

He returned to the practice squads for the Bills, then the Arizona Cardinal, with each stop more disheartening. Then his father passed away.



“I didn’t know if I wanted to play football anymore,” said Coleman. “So I stepped away from football for a second, then I came back. I was like, man, I know my dad wouldn’t want me to not play football. It’s what I’ve been doing all my life.” 



He eventually signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League, and his persistence was rewarded when they won the 2013 Gray Cup.

“I never thought I’d get that feeling,” said Coleman. “I gained a lot of friendships, a lot of knowledge, and it helped me become a better student of the game to where, when I did decide to go into the coaching world, I was able to be successful.

“I woke up in Hamilton and felt like God had something bigger for me,” said Coleman. “I came back home, went up to the school, talked to the coach and told him, ‘I want to coach. I want to mentor these guys.’”

Initially a defensive line coach, he was promoted to defensive coordinator and turned Williamson into one of Alabama’s top high school units. In 2022 he was named interim head coach, a move that soon became permanent. The students looked to him for guidance and began holding themselves to higher standards. Attendance increased. Players even wore ties on gamedays. 



Since becoming head coach, tryouts for the team have more than doubled, with no sign of slowing down. 



“I wanted to the help the kids go to college, get great jobs, get outside of Mobile, because some of these kids have never been outside the city limits. They don’t know what opportunities are out there,” said Coleman. “It doesn’t have anything to do with football. It has everything to do with character, integrity and growing into someone that can take care of a family.”

The Antonio Network

“It was apparent right from the beginning it was so much more than football,” said McLeod, founder and managing director of MMPW Investment Advisors. “Antonio is kind of a parental figure to all these kids. A lot of them come from really difficult situations. Ruck and I walked out that day, and he looks at me and says ‘we got to help him.’ I said, ‘I’m in.’”

But while meeting the team, they realized many were unprepared for life after football, and how they could have the biggest impact wasn’t through new uniforms but career mentorship.

“As we got to know some of these kids, it became clear to us that they had no idea how the world worked in terms of employment opportunities,” said McLeod. “You had some kids that were going to go play sports someplace, and some kids [would go to college], but most of these bright, hardworking kids [didn’t understand] a career path. We determined we needed to help them.”

Antonio Network members paired up with senior players to prepare them for a career after football. Volunteers for the program shadowed members and received job training on the condition they commit to the program for at least three years and stick with it, and though not all have abided that commitment, the ones who did have found real success.

“[Laderick] was going to school, going to football practice and working nights and weekends at Burger King helping his mother pay bills,” said Buster. “When he graduated, he came to work with us and has absolutely excelled. He’s doing amazingly well. It’s frankly an inspiration just to employ him.”

Greg Smith of Roto-Rooter Mobile was paired with Matthew, one of the first to participate in the program nearly four years ago. He calls the hire “everything you could hope for.”

“Matthew’s a hard worker—he’s able to advance himself and have a career,” said Smith. “It’s really the American dream.”

The Antonio Network is currently working to create field trips to businesses and give students more exposure to different industries. Despite lingering challenges like a lack of transportation, they remain committed to continuing what Rucker Taylor III started.

“I think the one thing you have to do is what Rucker did—just go just pick up the phone and start moving. If you don’t move, then nothing’s going to happen,” said Tommy Druhan ’92, senior vice president of Willis Towers Watson. “Rucker was a force of nature, and now seeing the success, it’s just amazing. The most important pieces of this puzzle are the kids and Antonio. We’re just [helping] make it happen.”

A Final Play

“[My dad] wasn’t worried about his own issues, he just wanted to make sure everybody else was okay,” said Taylor IV. “After talking to a player, he always assured them that he believed in them, that he was proud of them, and just a phone call if they needed him. He was focused on helping others to the best of his ability. It’s not a million dollar ask, it’s just being available. It’s spending some time. It’s using connections that probably already exist to help. I’m so proud of him, and we’d love others to consider helping in their own ways.”

The Antonio Network plans to continue the work already begun, and hopes to enlist more collaborators to provide mentorship and career opportunities for a greater number of students.

For Coach Coleman, who created the contagious phrase “Why Not Williamson?” long before he had the means to make it a reality, the best is yet to come. Last year Williamson compiled a 10-2 record—its best in 17 years—and currently has 12 students with college offers—a number he’s confident will increase in the coming seasons.

“That phrase speaks volumes in the community and through the hall. It opens everybody’s eyes and gets them to understand, why not us? Why can’t we be successful in life?” said Coleman. “I think we’re better than last year, but we’ve set a standard, and we have to live up to that standard every day.”

By Derek Herscovici ’14