High school football coach whose on-field prayer led to SCOTUS ruling quits after 1 game

A Washington state high school football coach who became a national figure when he was fired for praying on the field resigned Wednesday after one game back following his re-instatement with a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in his favor.

Joe Kennedy, whose name made national headlines in 2015 when he was let go from his position as assistant coach at Bremerton High School, returned to the field for a sole game Sept. 1.

The public high school is in the port city of Bremerton, home to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, just west of Seattle.

Following the Bremerton Knight's victory that evening, Kennedy prayed at midfield by himself, the Kitsap Sun, part of the USA TODAY Network reported.

"I said 'thank you' probably 30 times," Kennedy said. "I had no other words."

Less than six days later, the coach announced his resignation.

In a statement provided by his publicist, Jennifer Willingham, Kennedy confirmed his resignation and cited multiple reasons, including the need to care for an ailing family member who lives outside Washington.

"I believe I can best continue to advocate for constitutional freedom and religious liberty by working from outside the school system so that is what I will do," he said. " I will continue to work to help people understand and embrace the historic ruling at the heart of the case. As a result of our case, we all have more freedom, not less. That should be celebrated and respected and not disrespected."

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School board slated to review resignation Thursday

Bremerton School District spokesperson Karen Bevers confirmed the district received Kennedy's resignation intent on Wednesday.

"The District has received Mr. Kennedy's resignation and it is pending board approval at tomorrow's regularly scheduled meeting," Bevers said. "The District does not comment on personnel matters so we will not be issuing any further statements."

When reached by the USA TODAY Network, Bremerton head football coach Paul Theriault directed inquiries to the district spokesperson.

Denied free speech

Kennedy lost his coaching job in 2015 following a battle with the school district over a dispute that centered around Kennedy's practice of praying at the 50-yard line immediately after games, at times including players. He took his case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court where judges, in 2022, ordered he could return to coaching the high school.

A majority of the justices concluded Kennedy's prayers were a private matter and did not amount to the school district's endorsement of Christianity.  

Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote the 6-3 majority opinion. The court's three liberal justices dissented.

Throughout the legal battle, Kennedy became well-known among religious conservative groups who argued he was denied his free speech rights as a private citizen.

His actions garnered support from people including former Florida State football coach Bobby Bowden, who at the time told Fox News he was proud of Kennedy for "standing up for what he believes. "

I'm proud of him for putting God first," the legendary Seminoles coach said in 2019."I don't know how I didn't get fired because I prayed all the time at Florida State."

The case also caught the eye of former President Donald Trump who tweeted − inaccurately at the time − about Kennedy's suspension.

First Liberty Institute actually represented Kennedy in the case.

“The Supreme Court seems to understand that banning all coaches from praying just because they can be seen is wrong and contradicts the Constitution,” First Liberty President Kelly Shackelford said at that time. 

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The Sept. 1 winning game

Kennedy rejoined the football team as an assistant coach for its first preseason practice Aug. 16 and took the sidelines for the Knights' first game Sept. 1 against Mount Douglas Secondary School.

Bremerton won, 27-12.

During interviews with media members after the game, Kennedy said he wasn't sure how long he'd continue to coach.

"That's what I'm leaving up to God. We haven't even talked about it," said Kennedy, standing next to his wife, Denise. "Tonight was the milestone and where we wanted to get to. We fought eight years. What we asked for from the Supreme Court and all the courts was just to be able to be a coach and be able to pray after a football game. Both of those were accomplished and I've gotten what I asked for. Anything beyond that is just a plus and we're going to let God direct us and our family direct us."

As part of the Kennedy's Supreme Court settlement, Bremerton School District reached an agreement to pay Kennedy's attorneys a sum of $1,775,000.

The agreement was approved by the school board in March and the fees will be paid over the course of three fiscal years.

According the district's website, the "extent of insurance coverage is the subject of continuing discussions between the school district and its insurers."

As his case became nationally known, Kennedy, who had earlier moved away from Bremerton to Florida, become a public speaker on the national stage. He expects to have a new book, "Average Joe: The Coach Joe Kennedy Story," released in October. A publicist for Kennedy said a movie about his life, "Average Joe," is also currently in production.

Contributing: John Fritze and Richard Wolf

Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior correspondent for USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected] and follow her on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter @nataliealund.

Jeff Graham is a sports and education reporter for the Kitsap Sun. Follow him on X at @JeffGrahamKS.