Jack Coan has gone from Sayville to Riderville.
Along the way, he held one of the most prestigious positions in football — that of starting quarterback for the University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
The spotlight isn’t as bright these days for the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ No. 14, but quarterbacking colleague Trevor Harris expects that to change in due time.
“I think we have a future franchise quarterback right there in 14,” the CFL team’s first-string signal-caller says. “I’m excited for him and his future.”
It is a future Coan dreamed of while growing up in the small Long Island community of Sayville, N.Y.
“I just love the game of football,” he says. “That has been Number 1 ever since I was a kid.
“I’ve always wanted to play professional football and just having an opportunity here to keep playing, I love this stuff.
“I have fun every single day and I know I’ll have even more fun when I’m playing out here someday.
“It’s a goal of mine to get out here in front of these fans and hopefully have success one day.”
Coan enjoyed success at Sayville High School before committing to the University of Wisconsin.
He became the Badgers’ unrivalled starter in 2019, when he threw for 2,727 yards and 18 touchdowns, but was forced to miss the following season with a foot injury.
In 2021, he transferred to Notre Dame and finally became a part of the school’s athletic program. Out of high school, he had initially committed to play lacrosse for the Fighting Irish, only to subsequently opt for football and Wisconsin.
Coan proceeded to pass for 3,150 yards and 25 touchdowns, with only seven interceptions, while helping Notre Dame post an 11-2 record in 2021.
“That’s the team I really rooted for growing up, college-wise, and it was a dream come true to get to play there,” he says.
“It was just everything about it — hearing the fight song, slapping the (“Play Like a Champion Today”) sign, playing in that stadium.
“There was just so much attention around you and it was amazing. All the highs and lows and ups and downs of people I met in that program were just truly incredible.
“It’s sort of surreal that I got to experience that.”
The Notre Dame Victory March — the Fighting Irish’s fight song — still echoes for Coan.
“I remember the first home game,” he recalls. “It was tough to even control your emotions.
“You almost want to cry tears of joy. You can’t believe it’s even happening.
“It was incredible — the players I got to play with and the coaches. Everything about it was amazing.”
That was especially true in his final college football game. He set Fiesta Bowl records for aerial yards (509) and touchdown passes (five) against Oklahoma State on Jan. 1, 2022.
On May 13 of that year, Coan signed with the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts as an undrafted free agent.
He appeared in three pre-season games with the Colts. Most notably, he went 7-for-11 for 83 yards versus the Detroit Lions on Aug. 20, 2022.
He threw a 27-yard touchdown pass to Samson Nacua with 38 seconds left in the fourth quarter to reduce the Colts’ deficit to 27-26. An attempt at a go-ahead two-point convert was unsuccessful.
Coan finished the game with an impressive quarterback efficiency rating of 116.9, only to be among the Colts’ final cuts two days later.
In 2023, Coan played for the XFL’s San Antonio Brahmas, throwing for 1,403 yards and six TDs in eight games. He had subsequent NFL tryouts with the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks.
Next stop: Saskatchewan.
As a first-year CFLer, the 6-foot-3, 220-pounder has dressed for each of the Roughriders’ 17 regular-season games.
He began the season as No. 3 on the depth chart, behind Harris and Shea Patterson.
For Games 4 to 9, Coan was second in line behind his roommate (Patterson) while Harris was recovering from a knee injury.
The pecking order has been Harris, Patterson, Coan since an Aug. 16 home game against the Montreal Alouettes.
Coan’s season is comparable to Darian Durant’s experiences in 2007. That year, Durant dressed for every game as the third-stringer, but did not see any game action as Kerry Joseph and Marcus Crandell handled the quarterbacking for a team that capped the season with a championship.
By 2009, Durant was the full-time starter. He ended up piloting the Roughriders to three Grey Cup appearances, culminating in a home-field win in 2013.
Durant, a recent SaskTel Plaza of Honour inductee, has often expressed his gratitude for the mentorship provided by Joseph and Crandell. Coan is comparably appreciative of his own situation.
“The season has been amazing so far, just to be in the QB room that I’ve been in,” he says.
“Trevor has so much experience and knowledge, so I’ve just been in his hip pocket the whole season, just trying to learn everything that he’ll give me. Just watching the way he goes to work every day has been super-helpful.”
The respect goes both ways.
“Jack’s a tremendous teammate,” Harris says. “He’s a gym rat. He’s here at 6 in the morning and he stays here with me until 6 at night.”
There was a time when Harris was the apprentice, learning from an accomplished veteran like Ricky Ray.
Harris broke into the CFL with the Toronto Argonauts in 2012 but did not receive extended playing time until three years later.
Such is the reality of life in professional football. Many a quarterback has been The Guy in college, only to be bumped a few spots down the depth chart and work his way up the ladder in the NFL or CFL.
“I think in the past, I maybe took it a little bit harder not to be playing, but I think I’ve done a good job of really just focusing on getting better each and every day,” Coan says.
“I really enjoy it here so far, because I really like my teammates and my coaches, so it’s just a pleasure to come to work with them every single day.
“I feel like it’s a good spot for me, because I’m going to have to work my way up. I enjoy the challenge. It’s good to just have a goal and strive for it every day.”
