Mike Berg of Central HS In Grand Forks, ND Named 2007 NFL High School Football Coach of the Year

Nominated by Minnesota Vikings QB Brooks Bollinger

MIKE BERG, former Head Coach at Central High School in Grand Forks, ND, is the 2007 NFL HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL COACH OF THE YEAR, it was announced today. Berg, now retired from coaching football, was nominated by Vikings QB BROOKS BOLLINGER, his former player.

As the 2007 NFL HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL COACH OF THE YEAR, Berg and a guest will be invited to attend Super Bowl XLII in Glendale, AZ, as a guest of the NFL. Coach Berg also will receive a check for $5,000, and a $10,000 grant will be awarded to the football program at Central High School. All grants are awarded by the NFL Youth Football Fund (YFF).

The NFL HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL COACH OF THE YEAR AWARD was created in 1995 by the NFL and its teams to honor coaches who profoundly impacted the athletic and personal development of NFL players. This year, nearly 100 NFL players nominated the high school football coaches who helped shape them during their teenage years.

Current NFL players shared their admiration and respect for their former coaches through the nomination applications they completed during the regular season. In his nomination essay, Bollinger called Coach Berg "a great man [who] taught me a lot about believing in yourself and overcoming adversity... [Coach Berg has] impacted thousands of kids' lives."

Coach Berg spent 28 of his 35 years of coaching as Head Coach at Central High School, where he registered an overall record of 141-132, with16 playoff appearances, 3 state championship appearances and a 2005 state title. He serves as the Football Chairman of the North Dakota High School Coaches Association, the Director of the North Dakota Shrine Bowl, and is a member of the High School Committee of the American Football Coaches Association.

Of his coaching philosophy, Berg wrote, "My role as a coach is to provide structure and an environment that sets high expectations for everyone involved ... I look at our program as perhaps the most relevant learning experience that many of our young people will have in their lives, and an opportunity to practice personal responsibility on a daily basis."

A blue-ribbon committee of sports leaders appointed by the NFL selects NFL HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL COACH OF THE YEAR winners. The panel is comprised of JON BUTLER, executive director, Pop Warner Little Scholars, Inc.; JACK FLEISCHER, veteran sportswriter; SCOTT HALLENBECK, executive director, USA Football; GRANT TEAFF, executive director of the American Football Coaches Association; NFL Pro Football Hall of Fame player and former NFL coach ART SHELL; and TONY DEMATTEO, RICH KALLOK, WILLIAM MCGREGOR II, and ED THOMAS, all former NFL High School Football Coach of the Year winners.

"Our players come from different backgrounds, regions and life experiences," said NFL Commissioner ROGER GOODELL. "The one thing they all have in common is that they received guidance and learned important life lessons from their high school coaches. We commend Coach Berg and the 2007 nominees for dedicating their lives to teaching young players how to become leaders both on and off the field."

Established in 1998 by the NFL and the NFL Players Association, the NFL Youth Football Fund seeks to use football as a catalyst to promote positive youth development, support youth and high school football needs nationwide and also ensure the health of grassroots football in future generations. Through the YFF's youth football initiatives and support programs, youngsters are provided with opportunities to learn the game of football, get physically fit and stay involved in productive after-school activities with adult mentors.

To see a complete list of this year's nominees or for more information on NFL Youth Football initiatives, visit www.NFLHS.com

Read more about this year's nominees and finalists.