Central State is optimistic about its 2022 football season that kicks off against Winston-Salem State in the Black College Hall of Fame Classic.
Hopes are high after the Marauders hired former NFL player Kevin Porter in a return to the SIAC as their head coach.
HBCU Sports spoke with Porter about the Central State job, his NFL playing career, and his journey as a football coach.
What are some things that you’re looking to instill into this Central State roster and how much are you talking to them about the importance of playing in the Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic?
Kevin Porter: “First and foremost, we have to get our football student-athletes to really reflect back on the tradition and the greatness of the Central State football history. Central State has won a couple of national championships. Central State had a history of being one of the great HBCU football programs in the history of HBCUs. You got legendary people that have been here. Billy Joe did a fantastic job when he was here in the program and put the program on a national level by simply winning. The program has been down for a while but it’s a journey every year. This year, our journey could not start at a better place to play in this Hall of Fame Classic. You’ve got two great universities with rich traditions. Winston-Salem State is a football program that has played on the biggest stage in Division II, they’ve played for a national championship. Our goal is to start there.”
Also read: Ultimate HBCU Sports Division II Preseason Football Poll
What has it been like experiencing the HBCU environment firsthand?
Porter: “Well it is a culture-rich environment that, in my opinion, has allowed us to be able to push our guys and girls to another level in their lives. The biggest thing you’ll get at a majority of HBCUs I’ve been at or experienced is a great deal of personal attention and that’s important for our students and student-athletes. We have always been a group that has always tried to help and push each other through the nest threshold, and I think that’s what we’ve gotten.”
What was it like playing for the Kansas City Chiefs being coached by Marty Schottenheimer?
Porter: “Well, Coach Schottenheimer was a great football coach and a great motivator of men. I was fortunate because when Coach Schottenheimer came to Kansas City, we played really a tough, physical hard nose brand of football like I played in college in the SEC. It was a great chance to play for a guy that had come from a defensive background who truly believed in defense. Who truly believed that defense wins football games. So to be able to play Coach Schottenheimer was a great honor. Actually, I was fortunate to play on a defense in Kansas City which featured some of the best coaches I have ever had the honor to play for. Bill Cowher was our coordinator, Tony Dungy was our secondary coach so a lot of great minds that have really shaped and helped me become the coach I am today.”
So what did you learn from those coaches and what have you adapted from your experience in Kansas City that you use as a coach today?
Porter: “Well, just really a philosophy of being accountable on defense — having guys that will constantly play hard guys that will play till the end. Coach Dungy, Coach Cowher, and Coach Schottenheimer all really taught the importance of positioning and leverage. (I) was able to glean a lot of really fundamental things and the importance of all of those fundamental things. From a coaching standpoint, they always put you and every one of your teammates on defense in a position to be able to make your plays. So I think that one of the biggest things that I got from all of them is we will put you in a position to make the plays, but you need to make the play when they present themselves.”
So you played five years in the NFL. When did coaching start to become a possibility?
Porter: “Most of the guys that had the biggest impact on my life were coaches. I think that going back to high school. My head football coach, Robert Davis, was a Hall of Fame football coach in Georgia. He had a tremendous effect on my life. Going from there to Auburn and playing for Pat Dye — a great man who instilled a lot of life lessons into me. Then moving on to the NFL playing for Coach Schottenheimer and Coach Dungy. Actually, Pete Carroll was my DB coach when I was with the Jets. Herman Edwards was my DB coach for one year when I was in Kansas City. So just being around all of those guys, (and) seeing how they conducted their business on a daily basis just kind of led me to coaching. Wanting to have the opportunity to impact the lives of young men, and I think that God has blessed me to be a part of the HBCU experience and affect the lives of the young men I deal with every day.”
How did the Fort Valley State coaching job come about?
Porter: “Fort Valley is actually 20-25 minutes from where I grew up in Warner-Robins. One of my high school coaches had been an assistant at Fort Valley. One of my high school teammates Eddie Anderson had gone to Fort Valley and gone on to the NFL and played 11 years. My sister went to Fort Valley. It wasn’t a stretch. It was one of those opportunities that was kind of made in heaven. An opportunity to be able to go back home. An opportunity to coach a program that I had great knowledge of and great respect for. Doug Porter, who was the coach at Fort Valley, actually recruited me when I was in high school, so I was very familiar with the program and the tradition. When the opportunity came about, I just jumped at it and I was fortunate to be hired.”
