Coach Earl Rose
Founder
Founders' Bio
“An interesting road” does not begin to describe Coach Earl Rose’s football career. Coach Rose played four years of recreation football, beginning in 1979, and did not play again until 1988, his sophomore year at Grimsley High School. There, Coaches Jeff Smouse, Neal Hatcher, and Malachi King molded him into an solid football player.
However, because Coach Rose was an undersized offensive lineman, there were no scholarship offers. As a result, college football was not an option at that time. Therefore, after high school, Coach Rose enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1991, and serving a brief tour in Iraq, while based in Ft. Richardson, AK. Coach Rose was then stationed at Ft. Gordon, Georgia, where he played on his units football team. While playing in Georgia, a former NFL player said to him, “you look like you can play in the league.” Coach Rose then decided he would try to live the NFL dream after serving four years in the Army and being honorably discharged.
In 1995, Coach Rose contacted his former high school coach, Coach Jeff Smouse. Immediately, Coach Smouse, began making calls to get Coach Rose into college to play football. In the fall of 1995, Coach Rose enrolled at Appalachian State University as a fullback. That year, the ASU was the first team in North Carolina history to go undefeated throughout the regular season. In addition, at ASU, Coach Rose met influential players, including Damon Scott, Cuabeya Woods, Kareem Young, and Marvin Hodge. More importantly, he worked with coaches Tim Horton, Ruffin McNeil, and George Edwards, where he learned so much more about the game of football.
After leaving ASU, Coach Rose had 2 opportunities in the NFL, but was not able to land a permanent job. Coach Rose returned to Greensboro, his home town, to coach at his former high school. He coached at Grimsley for two years, all while being a single father, raising his young daughter, Alysha. Though the drive of wanting to be an NFL player was still there, it seemed like only a dream at that time.
In 1998, a local semi-pro team asked Coach Rose to play football once again. After winning two championships as a player there, Coach Rose was contacted by Coach Clayton Banner, the head coach and general manager of the new arena football team, Greensboro Prowlers, that would begin in 2000. While playing semi-pro football as a center, Rose had the pleasure of playing with some great players, such as Antonio “Tiny” Stevenson, a former NFL player and Winston Salem State University Hall of Famer and Travis Pender, another Winston Salem State University standout. When Coach Rose signed to play with the Greensboro Prowlers, Stevenson and Pender both signed contracts to play as well. During Coach Rose's time with the Prowlers, he had the pleasure of along Dell Seagraves, and James Duckett, both of whom played with the Washington Redskins.
Also in 2000, Earl started his own semi-pro football team, which was comprised of players that he has previously played with either in high school and semi-pro. From 2000 to 2002, Rose was a player and coach for the Greensboro Prowlers, while also being the owner and head coach for the Carolina Heat.
In 2007, Rose and his family moved from North Carolina to Texas. Since being in Texas, Rose has coached a number of arena teams, as well as an internship with the Dallas Cowboys. Most recently, Coach Rose coached along side Greg Ellis, former 1st round draft pick of the Dallas Cowboys, at Texas College, and Nelson University.
All of this has led him to the decision to train children the fundamentals of football.
With the help of all of his current and former NFL, arena, college, and high school coaches, players, and teammates, Coach Rose began “Football FUNdamentalz 52,” to train youth how to play the game of football, starting with the basic fundamentals of the game.
In 2020, Coach Rose lost his son EJ, after a battle with Leukemia. He has since dedicated all of his coaching efforts in memory of EJ!
