ERIE, Colo. — The name Jeff Giger is on the lips of most high school football fans, especially those supporting the Erie Tigers football team. He recently became the coach of the Erie High School football team in May this year.

Erie High School is the solitary high school you’ll find in Erie, Colorado. The school was established in 2005. They believe in taking excellence to the next level, and sport is one of the tools used to achieve that.

For a school that believes in excellence, there is no better man for coaching the school’s football team than Coach Giger.

Giger is one of the most experienced high school coaches in the state of Colorado. He has close to 20 years of coaching experience, and the Erie Tigers team is the fifth high school team he will be coaching.

Not many know that Coach Giger served in the U.S. Army from May 1990 to February 1997 before going to New Mexico State University. He obtained a bachelor’s degree in physical education teaching and coaching. Giger also has a master’s degree in Education Leadership and Administration from the University of Phoenix.

Coach Giger graduated from the university in 2000 and started his teaching and coaching career with Los Lunas High School in June 2003. He spent three years with them before joining the Strasburg School District in June of 2006, where he spent 13 years as a coach and a teacher.

He came in as the coach of Strasburg when the team only won one game in three seasons. He started building the team to the point that they became one of the most feared teams in high school football. He took Strasburg to three consecutive state championships and won two for them before moving to Brighton.

He became the head coach of Brighton High School in August 2019.

At Brighton, he met the school’s expectations more than they anticipated. In just two seasons with them, he broke a 12-year barrier. Brighton had not been in the playoffs for 11 years before he came. In his first season, he gave them their first playoff games in 12 years.

He was appointed as the Erie Tigers coach in 2021, taking over from Chad Cooper. Cooper was promoted as Erie High School’s sports director and assistant principal, leaving the position of head coach vacant.

“It was a really talented pool (of coaching candidates), which kind of speaks to where the program is at. But Jeff stood out,” Cooper said regarding why the management picked Giger as the Erie Tigers coach.

Aside from achieving records for the high school teams he has coached, he also made some personal achievements. He was the 1A Coach of the Year for two consecutive seasons (2016 and 2017) and was named Denver Broncos High School Coach of the Year in 2016.

Giger is married to Marie Giger, and together they have two adult sons, Angel, 26, and Bryan, 24. As a father, it is not just about teaching the players how to play football but making them better people after school.

“To help them become better young men,” Giger said about his goals as a coach. “All of them have great role models at home, parents and everything, we are hoping we can be a small part of helping them develop.”

We are excited for the Erie Tigers because having Coach Giger is like winning a jackpot. Keep your eyes open as he brings another level of exciting football to Erie High School.

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