RICHMOND, Ky. – Eastern Kentucky University football head coach Dean Hood has been named the head coach for the United States national team at the 2014 World University Championships this May in Uppsala, Sweden.
Athletes in Action (AIA) Football is facilitating the team of collegiate football players featuring 2013 and 2014 graduating seniors from NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), Division II and III and NAIA rosters. AIA Football is currently recruiting the U.S. team’s 60 player and eight coach roster with initial invites extended to the Allstate AFCA Good Works Teams.
“I am highly honored to have the opportunity to be the head coach of the U.S. team in the inaugural University Championships to include American football,” Hood said. “The chance to travel to Sweden, coach the game that I love and compete for a gold medal is one that only a few people receive. I am very excited to build relationships with players from all over the world and implement the principles of transformational coaching.”
Hood just completed his sixth year at the helm of the EKU football program and has an overall record of 40-29. He has led the Colonels to a pair of Ohio Valley Conference championships and two appearances in the NCAA FCS playoffs (2008, 2011). The Eastern football program has produced eight All-Americans, one OVC Defensive Player of the Year and 24 first team all-conference performers in Hood’s six years on the EKU sidelines.
Eight nations will be represented in the 2014 World University Championships. In addition to the U.S., China, England, Finland, Japan, Mexico, Sweden and South Korea will compete for gold.
“We’re excited to expose our athletes to character and leadership development which will help equip them for a lifetime of success on and off the field,” director of AIA football Clint Mahan said. “I’m also looking forward to connecting globally where American football seems to be exploding in popularity.”
Athletes in Action is the sports outreach of Cru (formerly Campus Crusade for Christ) and works with professional and amateur athletes and coaches to use the unique platform of sports to help people around the world answer questions of faith. AIA is active on more than 250 collegiate campuses in the U.S. and 90 countries worldwide.
For more information about Athletes in Action Football, visit www.athletesinaction.org/football.
For more information on the World University Championships, visit http://www.fisu.net/en/World-University-Championships-3525.html.
