Returning to his roots
Archbishop Wood High School alum Kyle Adkins takes over from Steve Devlin as head football coach for the Vikings
By Samantha Bambino
The Times
Kyle Adkins has some big shoes to fill. But he’s more than ready for the challenge.
At only 24-years-old, the Holland native and Archbishop Wood alum is taking over at his alma mater as head football coach, filling the recently vacated position held by Vikings legend Steve Devlin. In 11 seasons, Devlin won five PIAA state championships and compiled a record of 132–22–1. Impressive, right?
While many would shy away from the prospect of filling these shoes, Adkins is excited. He’s ready to get to work, to show the world that one of the youngest head coaches in the area can lead his team to victory. But when you take his extensive athletic background into consideration, there’s no question a sixth championship is a possibility.
Growing up, Adkins could usually be found running, tackling or stealing bases. Athleticism was just in his blood.
“I’ve been playing football, baseball and basketball for as long as I can remember,” he said.
His passion for this trio of games continued during his time at St. Bede the Venerable School until he reached Wood, where he narrowed his focus to football and basketball. From freshman to senior year, Adkins dedicated the majority of his time outside the classroom to perfecting his craft in both, though he especially excelled on the football field. A three-year starter, the 5’10”, 185-pound teen played defensive back and linebacker.
After graduating in 2012, Adkins traded his Vikings gear for the Bears, joining the football team at Ursinus College as a defensive back until 2016. With four years of college-level experience under his belt, Adkins returned to Wood to serve under Devlin as defensive coordinator.
Now, life has come in an ironic full circle for this duo. Devlin announced in March he would be stepping down from his position at Wood to join the team at (you guessed it) Ursinus as defensive coordinator. After watching and learning from Devlin for so many years both as a coach and colleague, Adkins jumped at the chance to carry on his legacy.
Through the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, Adkins applied for the job. Despite living and breathing Wood for much of his life, Adkins didn’t expect it to be handed to him. He had to prove himself. After two intense rounds of interviews, he did just that and was soon offered the position.
“It was definitely exciting,” he said of learning he was named head coach. “But now the work begins.”
Adkins and the Vikings are in the midst of preseason training, which kicked off in January. Though Adkins will surely have his own coaching strategy and ways of doing things, he isn’t rocking the boat too much. The entire coaching staff, with the exception of Devlin of course, is still intact, along with most of Devlin’s assistants.
“He was wildly successful here,” Adkins said. “I want to try to emulate some of his success.”
Since the transition took place, Adkins has been in touch on a regular basis with his former coach, who wanted to make sure his protege wasn’t thrown to the wolves. While Adkins said there are a million positive things he witnessed Devlin do that he wishes to continue, one will remain at the forefront — helping the young men on his team excel not only in football, but life.
“I want to keep producing really good kids,” he said. “I want to help them be successful in whatever they want to do.” ••
Samantha Bambino can be reached at sbambino@newspapermediagroup.com
