Christmas came a little early for the Norfolk State community when Michael Vick agreed to become the Spartans’ 19th head football coach.
At An introductory press conference on MondayVick, a longtime NFL quarterback who inspired a generation of dual-threat offensive leaders, enthusiastically announced his arrival and vowed to build a program.
“We will make the most of it” Vic said. “We’re going to win, we’re going to have fun, and we’re going to bring in the right leadership, so when these young people leave this program, they’ll go on to bigger and better things.”
The Norfolk State administration moved quickly and decisively to name Vick as its new football leader. Vick credited university president Javaune Adams-Gaston, athletic director Melody Webb and Virginia Sen. Aaron Rouse as giving him a hand to get things moving.
I couldn’t help but feel the joy on Michael Vick’s face as I watched Monday’s press conference. Here was a native son of the Hampton Roads area (Newport News to be exact), one of their best and brightest, hopefully returning home to wake up a football program that had been dormant for 40 years, as well as a mentor to young black men.
Nice topics, coach!#GoodStandard🔰 pic.twitter.com/eOmWahTd1p
— Norfolk State Football 🔰 (@NorfolkStateFB) December 23, 2024
His excitement about his new gig is enough to admit that A previous column I wrote about leapfrog recruiting not being helpful for HBCUs may seem a little short-sighted.
I still think it would be good for young assistants, position coaches and coordinators to get their first crack at head coaching at an HBCU, but if Vick follows Eddie George’s template (information about the school community and the larger struggle HBCUs face get), he and the Spartans’ program should be in good shape.
As George is famous in Music City for his exploits as the first star of the Tennessee Titans, you can overstate what Vick means to the 757. Vick, along with fellow Hampton resident and Basketball Hall of Famer Allen Iverson (who attended Monday’s event), are millennial blacks, two Gen Xers they’ve admired for years.
We all know that the pomp and circumstance will eventually wear off and it’s time to get down to business. The questions will be: What offensive and defensive strategy does Coach Vic have in mind? Who will be his trusted employees in this transition? Can it turn children away from other facilities in Virginia? How quickly can Norfolk State compete in the small but competitive MEAC landscape?
We’ll have to wait and see, of course. For now, there is no reason to believe that the Michael Vick experiment will be anything but successful. First, it’s the most we’ve talked about Norfolk State football in … forever.
Additionally, as previously mentioned, Vick’s pride and commitment to a tall task will keep Norfolk State football relevant in the HBCU conversation, as well as perhaps nationally. He admitted that this new assignment would be a lifestyle change, but his calling to serve his community and people was greater.
It should be enough for anyone with a vested interest in HBCUs to see what Michael Vick has done with the Norfolk State football program.
