Walz, a former social studies and geography teacher, coached linebackers as a defensive coordinator.
Topline
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has attributed his early success in politics to his local reputation as a high school football coach, culminating in a state championship in the late 1990s—a role he may embrace onstage as his party’s vice presidential nominee at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday.Key Facts
Walz, a native of West Point, Nebraska, accepted a yearlong teaching position with a China-based volunteer group after graduating from Chadron State College in Nebraska in 1989.
After returning from China, Walz—who played football in high school—returned to Nebraska to teach at Alliance High School in Alliance, Nebraska, where he met his wife Gwen, while also working as a coach for the girls’ basketball team and as the defensive coordinator for the football team.
In 1996, Walz and Gwen moved to Mankato, Minnesota, reportedly to be closer to Gwen’s family after Walz pleaded guilty to reckless driving in 1995, and both were hired at Mankato West High School, where Walz taught social studies and geography.
Mankato West’s football team had lost 27 straight games in the three seasons prior to Walz joining the team’s coaching staff as its defensive coordinator and linebackers coach, he told the “Pod Save America” podcast in February.
Mankato West started the 1999 season 2-4 under then-head coach Rick Sutton before winning eight straight games, the Mankato Free Press reported, and later defeated Cambridge-Isanti High School in the Class 4A state championship.
