Tucker High alum, former Hebron Christian head coach named interim head coach of Colts
Former Indianapolis Colts Center Jeff Saturday and Colts Ring of Honor member during an NFL game between the Washington Commanders and the Indianapolis Colts on October 30, 2022 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, IN. (Photo by Jeffrey Brown/Icon S
INDIANAPOLIS - An Atlanta native has been tasked with turning around the Indianapolis Colts after the team fired head coach Frank Reich following its third-straight loss on Sunday.
The Colts have named Jeff Saturday as the team’s interim head coach. Saturday is a Tucker High School grad and former head coach of Hebron Christian in Dacula.
After playing for the Tigers in high school, he would attend the University of North Carolina where he was a four-year letterman. He would go on to be signed as a free agent in 1998, but was waived. A year later, the Colts would pick him up as a free agent.
The 47-year-old Saturday is a six-time Pro Bowl and two-time first-team AP All-Pro center. He played 13 seasons for the Colts from 1999 to 2011 before playing a season for the Green Bay Packers.
He would retire as a player in the NFL in 2013 and become an ESPN analyst.
Four years later, he would be named the head coach for Hebron Christian in AAA Region 8, taking the Lions to the playoffs each of the three years there. He gave the team its first post-season win and took them to the state quarterfinals in 2019 after an 8-5 season.
Saturday would visit the Colts training camp in 2022 and would become a consultant.
He was inducted into the Colts Ring of Honor in 2015.
The Colts went into the season viewed as one of the contenders in the AFC, but developed season-long problems related to pass protection. They entered Week 9 ranked 30th in points per game.
Indianapolis allowed nine sacks Sunday during their loss to the Patriots — the previous season high came Oct. 6 when Indianapolis was sacked six times, but escaped Denver with a 12-9 win.
The Associated Press contributed to this report