Joe Tippett stars as Coach Sam Strickland in the new NBC drama "Rise."   Tippett recently returned to the role of Earl in the hit Broadway musical "Waitress," which he originated at ART in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Off-Broadway, Tippett co-starred with Abigail Breslin in Erica Schmidt's "All the Fine Boys" for The New Group. Other Off-Broadway credits include the world premiere of Nicky Silver's "This Day Forward" at the Vineyard Theatre, and back-to-back critically acclaimed plays at Playwrights Horizons, "Indian Summer" (written by Gregory Moss) and "Familiar" (written by Danai Gurira). On Broadway, Tippett was last seen opposite Julie White in the Steppenwolf Theatre Company's commission of the Lisa D'Amour play "Airline Highway" for Manhattan Theatre Club. Other New York theater credits include "Ashville," "Seven Minutes in Heaven," "Happy Birthday" and "A Thick Description of Harry Smith." Regional productions include the world premiere of "Familiar," "Waitress," "Bull Durham: The Musical," "The May Queen," "Picnic," "Three Sisters," "The Corn Is Green," "Peter and the Starcatcher" and "Equus."On television, Tippett has guest-starred on "Chicago Justice," "Bull," "The Blacklist" and "Boardwalk Empire." His film credits include "License Plates," "Damascus Road," "All Saint's Day" and the upcoming "Monsters and Men," which will premiere at Sundance in 2018. "All Saint's Day" and the upcoming "Monsters and Men," which will premiere at Sundance in 2018.