Seattle Seahawks coach Chris Partridge traveled to New Jersey this summer to run a football clinic at Cardinal Newman High School, where he worked directly with the Crusaders’ varsity squad.
The visit carried a personal connection: Partridge is the cousin of the school’s athletic director, Ryan Partridge, and he used the occasion to pass on the same drills he employs with the NFL franchise.
During the session he guided players through fundamental exercises — footwork, tackling angles, and gap‑sound defensive concepts — that mirror the routines of the Seahawks’ own practice field.
A Shared Football Culture
Partridge praised the team’s enthusiasm, attentiveness and eagerness to learn, noting that the Crusaders’ culture reminded him of the Seahawks’ own locker‑room spirit.
Head coach Jack Daniels observed the players’ rapid improvement, saying the drills had already begun to shape a more disciplined approach on both sides of the ball.
The session also sparked a wave of questions from the high school athletes, who wanted to know about Seahawks personnel, schematic details and the philosophy behind the gap‑sound defense.
Partridge, who began his coaching career at Paramus Catholic High School in 2010 and later served at the University of Michigan and Ole Miss before joining Seattle, highlighted the universality of fundamentals, stating that “the basics are the same at every level.” He added that the experience would help the Crusaders as they aim to defend their first state championship title, a goal they have pursued since the program’s rise.