Shane Blackwell jokes that he had a simple reason for his choice of a new assistant coach this season for Polk County Youth Football.
“Do you know what his last name is?” Blackwell said.
The name of Overholt has indeed become synonymous with athletic success in Polk County, so perhaps within Blackwell’s humor can be found a kernel of truth. Certainly, having former Polk County and Brevard College standout Andre Overholt work with PCYF’s five- and six-year-olds seems like a logical move, one of the organization’s early standouts returning to help mold the next generation of Wolverines.
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The season ended Saturday for Overholt and the PCYF Tiney Mites, the Wolverines dropping a 30-26 decision to East Rutherford in the first round of the Mid-Atlantic Carolinas American Youth Football & Cheer Conference playoffs (the PCYF 9- and 10-year-olds earned a bye and play Saturday in the semifinals). But the loss in no way diminished the yearlong experience for Overholt, getting his first taste of life as a coach.
“It has been a blast,” Overholt said. “It’s still so rewarding to see the kids make good plays and see them put things to use that you taught them and have that show up on the field.
“It’s been a lot more difficult than I thought it would be. These are five- and six-year-olds, and I have to remind myself of that. As long as I was around college lingo, you can’t really use that with five- and six-year-olds, things like trying to tell them to set level blocks or how to get off blocks. It’s been a challenge to find new and creative ways to show kids the right way to do things.”
Overholt, who followed up graduation from Brevard by getting married in June and returning to Polk County to work at Main Street Insurance in Tryon, had no plan to spend this fall on a football field. But a call from Blackwell and an appearance at PCYF’s preseason workouts changed that.
“He came to help us at our football camp, and I saw how good he was teaching the kids the right way, like getting into a good stance, how to take a handoff, the little things that make you great,” Blackwell said. “We are always needing good coaches and role models for the kids, not to mention he has played a lot of football.”
All that football led to a stellar career at Brevard, where Overholt graduated as the career leader in several categories, including kick return yards, and ranked second in all-purpose yards with 4,607 over four years. While he truly enjoyed his time as a Tornado, Overholt said he’s enjoying life away from the field just as much.
“I haven’t missed not playing as much as I thought I would miss it,” he said. “It had become another job. I do miss high school football, but my body and mind were shot as far as college football goes. I do not miss the the early morning workouts and the mandatory running.”
His first year as a coach complete, Overholt isn’t ruling out a return to the sidelines.
“It’s something I would like to stay involved in, though it’s hard to do that with this age group unless you have kids playing,” Overholt said. “Before that, I think I would enjoy coaching an older age group. I feel like I could provide a little more knowledge there than I can with the five- and six-year-olds.
“I’ve enjoyed this. I think the kids have come a long, long way. We finally got people in the right positions.”
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