Alma Adams

Ernie Adams has had a deep, life-galvanizing connection to Phillips Andover Academy since he first stepped on campus as an inquisitive 14-year-old in the late 1960s.

The 72-year-old Adams (’71) is returning to his formative roots as the interim varsity football coach for the 2026 season, replacing Trey Brown (’12), who guided the Big Blue to a 2-7 finish in NEPSAC Class A last fall.

Adams, who retired as the Patriots research director in 2021 after a two-decade run working alongside Andover classmate Bill Belichick, has been a presence at his alma mater the past three seasons, driving up from his Brookline home to practices and games. Last fall, he worked with the linebackers.

This will be his first head coaching position.

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“This is definitely an interim appointment,” Adams told the Globe. “The school is going to do a comprehensive search for a younger, full-time football coach after the season, so I am here for this year.”

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He is anxious to get started.

“Listen, it’s great. [Been] working there the last couple years, so I know all the players. But just standing in front of them [Monday] afternoon when I was introduced to them, these are a great bunch of kids and it was a lot of fun.”

What schemes will Andover run?

“Hopefully the offense we run is one that moves the ball and scores points,” he said.

At the moment, Phillips Andover is in the heart of the admissions process.

“Coming to Andover is a great opportunity, so letting the young people know who are interested that this would be a good place for them,” Adams said.

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That message, said athletic director Lisa Joel, resonates deeply with Adams.

“The Phillips Andover experience was formative for him,” she said Tuesday night en route to watch a pair of alums play a squash match at Tufts. “He’s all in. He loves the school, he loves the game of football, and he understands what it means to be an Andover student. He’s a team guy. And he’s incredibly humble and understated.”

A four-year varsity football player, Adams still speaks glowingly of his head coach, Steve Sorota, a member of the school’s Hall of Honor.

Adams said he received a congratulatory note from Belichick.

“Of course he’s an alumnus too, so I know he wishes us well, just like I cheer for [North] Carolina.”

Brown, head coach since 2019 and a respective presence on campus, is the assistant director of admissions. The Big Blue had its last winning season in 2017 (6-3) under Leon Modeste, and was 9-0 in 2013.

Ben Volin of the Globe staff contributed to this story.

Craig Larson can be reached at [email protected].