Veteran head coach Larry Kennan has quickly raised the profile of the University of the Incarnate Word football program in his first four years at the helm. Since coming on board in December of 2011, Kennan has brought a positive attitude to his position every single day.
Kennan, a former NFL assistant coach and World Football League head coach, has the Cardinals on the cusp of being a major contender for a Southland Conference championship. Entering the final year of the transition from Division II to Division I, the Cardinals are ready to compete against the top teams in the conference. Kennan led UIW to a fourth place finish and a winning record in the Southland in 2015.
The talent level in the program has risen every year under Kennan’s tutelage. The 2015 team went 6-5 overall and led all Division I programs in the state of Texas in yards allowed per game. The big names on the team were outside linebacker Myke Tavarres, tight end Cole Wick and quarterback Trent Brittain. Tavarres was the Southland Conference Newcomer of the Year, AFCA First Team All-America, STATS First Team All-America and AP Second Team All-America while setting school records for tackles, tackles for loss and sacks in a season. Wick was a first team all-conference selection and Brittain rewrote the record books for passing stats. In addition, Tavarres signed with the Philadelphia Eagles and Wick signed with the Detroit Lions following the conclusion of the 2016 NFL Draft.
It only took Kennan two seasons to show a significant upgrade in the product on the field for UIW. The 2013 season proved to a best in the program's first five years of existence. A 6-5 record, the first winning season for the program, and a few milestone victories along the way made it a season to remember.
The 2013 Cardinals posted the first two shutouts in school history and accumulated more school records along the way than can be reasonably written down. The two biggest wins of the season came on the road at McMurry when the team battled back from an 11-point fourth quarter deficit to win 47-43 and give Kennan his first road victory at UIW. The next came the following week at home when the Cardinals came back from a 10-point fourth quarter deficit to defeat Abilene Christian, 34-31. ACU had defeated UIW, 40-6 just three weeks earlier in Abilene.
The 2014 season was one that went bad from the start with the loss of starting quarterback Trent Brittain in the first quarter of the first game to a season-ending injury. An already daunting schedule that included national champion North Dakota State plus three other playoff teams became nearly untenable. Despite the loss of Brittain and a few other starters to season-ending injuries, Kennan remained upbeat and the Cardinals improved throughout the season.
One of the high points of the 2014 season for Kennan and the Cardinals came off the field. The program appeared on ESPN's College GameDay program when they traveled to North Dakota State. The entire experience and the national exposure proved to be something great for Kennan and the program despite the outcome of the game.
Kennan patrolled the sidelines in 2012 for the first time since 1997, however he remained close to the game during his time away from coaching. He was executive director of the NFL Coaches Association based in Washington, D.C. for the 13 years prior to becoming the head coach of the Cardinals. Those years combined with his 16 seasons as an NFL coach means he knows just about everyone who has walked the professional sidelines for the past three decades.
The Cardinals were only 2-9 in Kennan’s first year at the helm, but there were a number of firsts for the program. The “Forever First” class completed their eligibility and the 2012 class set a record with 25 seniors. The team played a game in AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX. Devan Avery became the first UIW player to play in a postseason all-star game when he went to California for the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl. Tight end Andrew Mocio became the first receiver in school history to earn all-region honors. Avery and Mocio also participated in UIW’s first Pro Day in the Spring of 2013.
He has been an NFL offensive coordinator, a quarterbacks coach, a tight ends coach and a wide receivers coach. He owns a championship ring from the Los Angeles Raiders Super Bowl XVIII win. He was the head coach of the London Monarchs when they won a World Football League championship in 1991.
Perhaps most attractive aspect of Kennan to prospective Cardinals is that he is a quarterback guru. During his tenure with the NFL Coaches Association he kept his hand in the game by tutoring quarterbacks as they prepared for their professional careers. The list of students includes Tim Couch, Chad Pennington, Drew Brees, Tony Romo, Byron Leftwich, Eli Manning, Alex Smith, Drew Stanton and T.J. Yates to name a few.
Prior to his career in the NFL, Kennan was an offensive coordinator for three years at both Nevada-Las Vegas and SMU. He took over as head coach at Lamar University in 1979 and spent three years in the Southland Conference. His LU squad set 38 team or individual awards in his first year when they posted a 6-3-2 record. His biggest win at Lamar was an 18-17 win over defending Southwestern Conference champion Baylor in 1981. He went 13-17-3 before moving on to the NFL.
Considering all of that, what Larry Kennan wanted to do was coach. When the first opportunity came with 2012 spring drills at UIW he openly admitted to being “excited.” He recalled that on the first day when the clouds broke and the sun came out he knew all was good.
Kennan has had success bringing in former NFL players and coaches to work on his staff. One of the most important decisions he made in 2013 was to hire former Heisman trophy winner Ricky Williams as the running backs coach. The addition of Williams to the staff brought instant recognition to the program and played a major role in the recruiting process for a number of players. Prior to the 2015 season, he added former NFL linebacker Robert Lyles to the staff. Lyles brought enthusiasm and expertise to the program and is showed on the field.
Kennan enters his fifth season with the Cardinals with a record of 16-28 and he is 40-46-3 in nine years as a head coach.
