The coldness of more than two decades seems to have warmed up, finally. So cold the relationship with the University of Arizona had become, that when Antonio Pierce stepped in to coach in college football landscape, he landed his first job in none other than UA’s rival Arizona State University. What happened?

After Pierce’s final season in UA in 2000, Arizona fired Dick Tomey and hired John Mackovic as their coach. The transition turned terrible for Pierce, to say the least. Pierce said Mackovic didn’t want departing players around the program, which became a bone of contention since he needed a place to train for the NFL. “We’re working out for the combine on the practice field, and he comes in there and kicks us out,” Pierce’s teammate at UA Brandon Manumaleuna told to The Athletic. “He said, ‘You guys are done here.”’ Pierce added, “That left a bad taste in my mouth for a long time.” But time heals the deepest of the wounds.

He has moved on. Despite spending his CFB coaching career with ASU, UA still has a special place for him. He still has his college jersey and helmet displayed at home. He still cherishes the relationships he built and the trust the coaching staff had in him. When you’re 19, Pierce said, having someone believe in you is the best feeling in the world. “That commitment and that honor takes you where you want to go, right?” Pierce said. “That’s to play football, get an education, better your life. That’s what U of A brought me, and that’s never going to leave.” So is that why he is going back to his roots to get back his confidence after an abysmal season?

2024 was not the year for either the Raiders or Antonio Pierce. The team fumbled their whole season and finished with 4-13. But Pierce probably thought of coming back. After the Raiders’ loss in the season final, Pierce said, “We’re going to look back and say, ‘OK, why?’ and we’re going to figure out that ‘why’ over the next couple months. Then we get back in this bad boy. We’ll be OK.” The team however was not OK with giving Pierce a second chance. As of now, he has been unable to secure a job in the NFL, but his Alma mater came up with an important duty for him.

The former linebacker and Arizona announced on Instagram on Saturday that the coach is going to be the keynote speaker at an event for high school coaches in the Arizona area. Arizona Football indicated how they want their high school coaches to develop more. So, they wanted a motivational and experienced coach to speak for them. They referred to this event as a ‘Coaching Clinic‘ and chose the former Raiders HC for the role. The event will take place on March 28th and 29th. The stint is sure to uplift the morale of Pierce, given the situation he is in presently.

It’s unclear what his contract situation was, but he at least had two years, so he’ll get paid by the Raiders in 2025. But after being left off in the NFL, can he come back to CFB? Well, his hands are tied there as well. Pierce resigned from ASU in 2022 amid an NCAA investigation into recruiting violations at the school. Pierce received an eight-year “show-cause” penalty after it was found that he facilitated impermissible contact with recruits during the COVID pandemic. The penalty was handed down in October 2024, when Pierce was working for the Raiders. But he can still speak at events.

While Pierce had been looking forward to pursuing this new job, his replacement, Pete Carroll, has been looking for excellent initiatives for the Raiders. Following the 2024 season, it became evident that the team would undergo significant changes. Even Tom Brady has intimated that, as a minority owner, he will ensure that the team is astonishingly strong in the 2025 season. And for that, Brady and the company hired Pete Carroll as their head coach.

Top Comment by Herman

No Aaron Rodgers not a good fit for the raiders

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Although the decision was startling, it appears that the new HC is already working hard for the team. He plans for a seasoned quarterback to join the squad for the 2025 season. But why a seasoned quarterback? And can it be Aaron Rodgers who will be joining them?

Will the Raiders make Aaron Rodgers their starting quarterback?

Rodgers’ time in white and green is up. And according to recent speculations, Las Vegas has a high opinion of him. There have been rumors that Chip Kelly, the team’s offensive coordinator, and Pete Carroll have been considering the possibility of integrating A-Rod into the men in black. Furthermore, Carroll, in that media appearance, began to convey how much the team is thinking about the quarterback position.

Carroll stated, “It’s our mission to build this football team around the quarterback position. It isn’t the only spot. We happen to have the greatest of all time to help us and to see clearly, and we’re going to lean on Tom as much as we possibly can for his insights because nobody has the insights that he has. He’s that unique. But the quarterback position is one of the positions on the team, and we’ve got to make it all fit together well. I’ve had pretty good success with my quarterbacks in the past.”

So can the former Super Bowl-winner and four-time league Most Valuable Player fit in that role? CBS Sports’ Cody Benjamin keyed on the 41-year-old Rodgers specifically, listing the pros and cons of grabbing the Super Bowl winner. The pros of Rodgers, per Benjamin, are, “The Raiders need someone — anyone — under center, and they’ve got loads of cap space to spend on potential upgrades up front and out wide. New coach Pete Carroll insisted Las Vegas is focused on winning immediately, and that makes sense, considering he’s 73. Rodgers, whose sheer volume of experience could attract new minority owner Tom Brady, could make for a perfect short-term partner.”

The cons, or, to be more specific, the question about Rodgers, Benjamin says, “Even if it required a trade up, the Raiders are decently positioned to address quarterback in the draft, owning the No. 6 overall pick. And while they’ve got money to spend, young tight end Brock Bowers is one of their few Grade-A building blocks on offense. Is this the right time to go all in on an aging passer?”

Indeed age has taken a toll on Rodgers. He was once criticized for taking sacks to avoid the risk of interceptions. Now he risks interceptions to avoid sacks. His lack of mobility, caused in part by the knee and the hamstring and whatever lingers from the Achilles, occasionally manifests itself as nervousness. Game after game, he takes the snap and taps his feet, looking to get rid of the ball as quickly as possible. Do you think he is going to be the right choice for the Raiders?