Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday signed the “Teddy Bridgewater Act” into law, a major bipartisan measure allowing high school coaches across the state to use their own personal funds to assist student-athletes with food, transportation, and healthcare services.
The new legislation, officially designated as Senate Bill 178, passed unanimously through both chambers of the Florida Legislature. It was sponsored in the Senate by Sen. Shevrin Jones, D-Miami Gardens, who celebrated the law’s signing on social media.
The law is named after Florida native and long-time NFL quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, who returned to coach his alma mater, Miami Northwestern High School, to a state championship in 2024. However, Bridgewater was suspended from his voluntary coaching position by the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) for the 2025 season after revealing he used his own money to cover thousands of dollars in meals, ride-share services, and physical therapy treatments for underprivileged players.
“He got into this situation where he was paying for meals and rides for some of his players who were underprivileged and he was using his personal funds to do this,” DeSantis said at a press conference at Jean Ribault High School in Jacksonville. “These were people that he was mentoring and that somehow got him suspended because of the way the rules were written.”
DeSantis added that while guardrails are necessary, “the previous rules didn’t allow for the upside (for) a coach that really wants to make a difference in folks’ lives.”
The law seeks to remedy those antiquated rules by establishing a structured framework. Under the new guidelines, only a team’s head coach can provide such financial assistance, which is strictly capped at $15,000 per team per year. All expenditures must require parental consent, cannot be used for recruiting purposes, and must be reported in full to the FHSAA.
When the bill originally cleared the Senate in February, Bridgewater expressed his gratitude to Sen. Jones via text message, stating, “All I was trying to do was help the kids, and I can’t thank you all enough for passing this important piece of legislation.”
Following the bill signing on Friday, Sen. Jones posted a victorious update to his Instagram page: “The Teddy Bridgewater Act was just signed into law by Gov. @rondesantis !! Congratulations, @teddyb_h2o!”
The post quickly drew support and congratulations from followers, with commenters echoing that “this bill is an amazing bi-partisan achievement.”
Public reaction from former athletes and sports figures across Florida has been overwhelmingly positive. Chuck Hobbs, a Florida lawyer and writer, shared his thoughts in a Facebook post:
“Anyone who ever played high school sports, marched in the band, or was a cheerleader knows how often coaches and directors reached into their pockets to provide meals/snacks, or used up their gas while putting miles on their cars to make sure that their students had what they needed or got rides to and from practice before and during the season. NFL star turned Miami Northwestern High School football coach Teddy Bridgewater got persecuted for simply caring about his players a couple of seasons ago, so I am glad to see this measure, sponsored by Sen. Shevrin Jones, signed into law here in Florida!”
However, some commenters have not been as supportive.
One commenter named Jay wrote under the following D-Rich TV video:
“He spent way over $15k. Now, it’s regulated—now it could be fair for the other schools. It poses a recruitment advantage. People would move to different neighborhoods or use different people’s addresses, family members, etc. to play for that school. Florida did the right thing, and they did the right thing in the very beginning as well for suspending him.”
Furthermore, skeptics on Reddit’s r/CFB community hubs also warn that even though the legislation explicitly prohibits recruitment expenditures, providing high-end perks and private rehabilitation will naturally act as a magnet for top talent. This risk threatens to accelerate school-hopping and talent hoarding at a few elite institutions while devastating surrounding neighborhood athletics.
The Teddy Bridgewater Act will officially take effect ahead of the upcoming school year.
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