I n 2016, Will Healy took over a horrible program and was
the second youngest head coach in college football…just
thirty-one years old. Austin Peay went 0-11 his first year
and were on a 29-game losing streak but managed to reel in a
top 5 FCS recruiting class. Fast forward, and now Healy brought
in the #1 overall recruiting class in FCS according to 247 sports.
Healy was named the winner of the Eddie Robinson Award and
the Ohio Valley Conference awarded him with the Roy Kidd
Coach of the Year award in 2017.
Snapping a 29-game losing streak and reversing a losing culture
takes vision and a special leader. In a sit down with College
Football Today, Healy expressed how he instilled confidence in a
system for a team that went from 0-11 to 8-4.
“My guys have convinced me as much as I have convinced them.
The dynamic of our team has totally changed, but I think as we
continued to do things the right way our confidence built up,”
Healy noted.
Healy brought senior leaders Jaison Williams, a starting defensive
end and offensive tackle Kyle Anderton to the OVC media day,
both are All-OVC preseason first team. Media swarmed around
Healy and the Governors, a sign of change as much as anything.
The Governors were long and also-ran in the OVC, something
reflected by the tepid interest from the media that the Govs used
to receive.
Jaison Williams was glowing about the chance to face Georgia
in the Governors’ 2018 opener. “Very excited, and I think it
brings hype to the university.”
Anderton noted, “You get to see where you lie, who your friends
are and who your brothers are. Also, why not see where you are
in week one. Going up against the best is only motivation for us
to go out there and compete.”
Healy said a game against Georgia helps put his team on the
map “My hope in scheduling the game was number one, it
would give the university publicity and notoriety. Number two,
our guys would have an opportunity that would be unique for
an FCS player. We’re playing at 3:30 on ESPN on opening week,
I mean what else do you want as a college athlete?”
Installing a winning culture in Clarksville, Tennessee took time
for Healy who is now widely considered one of the top young
coaches in the country. The Governors now have weapons at
all levels of the offense and defense. The offense averaged 258
rushing yards per game which ranked sixth nationally in the
FCS. Quarterback Jeremiah Oatsvall was named OVC Freshman
of the Year. He’s a local star from just under an hour away in
Brentwood, Tennessee.
Oatsvall earned the starting position midway through his freshman
season last year. He went on to complete 80 of 141 passes for
1,148 yards and seven touchdowns while also rushing for 453
yards and six touchdowns.
OVC Commissioner Beth DeBauche talked about the resurgence
of Austin Peay and the impact of having multiple teams make
the playoffs.
“The attention and energy is very exciting,” DeBauche said. “The
national attention that Austin Peay has brought to our league is
incredible. If we’re being honest, conferences are judged on how
many teams make the playoffs and with multiple teams from the
OVC in the playoffs that will only improve the reputation and
credibility of the conference.”
Austin Peay is certainly one of the hottest teams in FCS. That
statement would have been unbelievable just a year ago, but a visionary
like Healy can alter the course of a university. Good football
increases the number of applicants; it invigorates a campus
that yearns for Saturdays, and it alters the course for a university.
What Healy took over was undoubtedly one of the toughest
reclamation projects in recent football history, so mark us down
as believers that his success is just beginning.
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