Brentwood, TN – The Ohio Valley Conference named ten Austin Peay State University (APSU)football legends, along with head coach James “Boots” Donnelly, to its 75th Anniversary Football Team, Monday.
To celebrate the league’s accomplishments, a committee working with current and former schools captured the “best-of-the-best” in each sport and marked the top athletes in league history with 75th Anniversary Teams across all OVC sports. The OVC compiled a similar listing during the 40th and 50th anniversaries of the league.
Austin Peay State University Athletic Hall of Fame members Bob Bible, Tim Chilcutt, Terrence Holt, John Ogles, Harold “Red” Roberts, and Bonnie Sloan were among the 135 players recognized by the OVC. Kordell Jackson, DeAngelo Wilson, Jaison Williams, and Kentel Williams were the more recent Governors to make the league’s list.
Bob Bible, linebacker (1974-77)
Considered one of the best “pound-for-pound” players to ever don a Governors uniform, Bible was the defensive foundation for Austin Peay State University’s first OVC Championship in 1977. The 5-9, 205-pound Bible earned Associated Press All-American linebacker honors during that season while also being selected as the OVC’s Defensive Player of the Year – he was the first player in program history to receive this honor.
An All-OVC selection in 1976 and 1977, Bible ranks third in APSU history with 436 career tackles and is the program leader with 267 solo tackles. Austin Peay State University retired Bible’s No. 46 during the 2021 season.
Tim Chilcutt, defensive back (1962-65)
A Second Team Associated Press All-America selection in 1964 and a First Team selection in 1965, Chilcutt did much more for the Governors than pass defense. Chilcutt led the Govs in all-purpose yards in each season he played with his 502 punt return yards in 1965 and his 938 career punt return yards still standing as program records.
Chilcutt also ranks sixth in APSU history with 1,202 kick return yards and his 2,140 combined kick return yards are the second-best mark in program history. Chilcut also ranks eighth in program history in all-purpose yards (3,417) and sixth in all-purpose yards per game (103.9).
A 1964 and 1965 All-OVC selection, Chilcutt intercepted six passes during the 1964 season and his 133 return yards are the third-best season mark in APSU history, he ranks 10th in program history in career interceptions (10) and eighth in interception return yards (150).
Terrence Holt, running back & return specialist (2007-10)
The greatest game-changer in Austin Peay State University football history, the first time he touched the ball as a collegian he returned a kickoff 75 yards for a touchdown against Bethel. Holt would go on to return four kicks– the most in APSU history – and two punts – tied for the second-most in APSU history – for touchdowns in his collegiate career.
He racked up an NCAA record 5,230 career combined kick return yards (547 on punts, 4,683 on kicks) and is still the NCAA record holder for career kickoff return yards (4,683), career kickoff returns yards per game (106.4), and career combined kick return yards per game (118.9). Holt left APSU with the top four single-season kickoff yardage return marks and in doing so became the first player in NCAA/FCS history to tally four 1,000-yard kickoff returns seasons.
Holt was a five-time All-OVC selection, receiving the honors three times as a kick returner and twice as a running back.
Kordell Jackson, defensive back (2017-21)
Austin Peay State University’s first and only two-time Consensus All-America selection (2019, 2020), few could do it all on the defensive side of the ball like Jackson. In 2019, Jackson intercepted seven passes and returned them for 159 yards – both the second-best season marks in APSU history – while helping led the Governors to an OVC Championship and the quarterfinals of the FCS Playoffs.
Jackson also put together one of the finest defensive performances in FCS history with three tackles, a sack, a forced fumble, a pass breakup, and two interceptions returned for a touchdown – becoming the 33rd player in FCS history with multiple pick-sixes in one game – against Mercer. When quarterbacks quit throwing at Jackson in 2020, he wreaked havoc in the opposing teams’ backfield, racking up 10.5 tackles for loss, which ranked second in the OVC and 11th in the FCS while playing nickelback.
A three-time All-OVC selection, Jackson ranks fourth in APSU history in tackles for loss (33.5), fifth in interceptions (11), fifth in interception return yards (174), and third in passes defended (33). Jackson was also the first Governor to be a finalist for the Stats FCS Buck Buchanan Award twice and finished sixth in the voting in 2019 and 13th during the 2022 season.
John Ogles, running back (1963-66)
A First Team Associated Press All-America selection at fullback in 1966, Ogles was the APSU career leader in rushing yards (2,932) and rushing touchdowns (28) at the time his career ended – those marks stood for nearly four decades and now rank fifth and third, respectively.
Ogles was the first Gov to rush for 1,000 yards in back-to-back seasons and has two of APSU’s nine 1,000-yard rushing seasons with 1,054 yards in 1966 and 1,017 yards in 1965. Ogles also added 13 touchdowns on the ground during the 1966 season, which is still tied for the fourth-best single-season mark in program history. A two-time All-OVC selection, Austin Peay retired Ogles No. 32 during the 1992 season.
Harold “Red” Roberts, wide receiver (1967-70)
One of the most proflic pass catches in NCAA football history, Roberts finished his career with 232 receptions for 2,999 yards and 31 touchdowns – all marks that still stand as Austin Peay State University career records.
The first four-time All-OVC honoree in program history, Austin Peay State University retired Robert’s No. 84 during the 1992 season.
Bonnie Sloan, defensive line (1969-72)
A 1972 Associated Press All-America honorable mention, after his Austin Peay State University career, Sloan would go on to become the first deaf player to ever play in the National Football League. A superlative defensive tackle for the Governors, Sloan led the team during his senior year in 1972 with 89 solo tackles – the seventh-best single-season total in APSU history.
Sloan finished his Austin Peay State University career with 204 solo tackles – the eighth-most in APSU history – and seven fumble recoveries – tied for the second-most in APSU history. A two-time All-OVC selection, Sloan was drafted in the 10th round of the 1973 NFL draft by the St. Louis Cardinals.
DeAngelo Wilson, wide receiver (2017-20)
The OVC Offensive Player of the Year and a Consensus All-America selection in 2020, Wilson’s best season at Austin Peay State University came in 2019 when he helped lead the Governors to the OVC Championship and the quarterfinals of the FCS Playoffs.
Wilson finished his Austin Peay State University career with 162 receptions for 2,672 yards and 25 touchdowns, all marks that rank second in program history behind only Harold “Red” Roberts; he also ranks fourth in receiving yards per game (57.0) and receptions per game (3.77). A two-time All-OVC selection, Wilson also finished 15th in the voting for the 2020 Stats FCS Walter Payton Award.
Jaison Williams, defensive line (2016-18)
A Second Associated Press, Third Team HERO Sports, and Third Team Stats Perform All-America selection in 2017, Williams had one of the best passing rushing seasons in program history that year with 9.5 sacks – the third-best single-season mark in APSU history.
After playing just three seasons as a Governor, Williams is tied for fifth in Austin Peay State University history with 33.0 tackles for loss and ranks third with 17.5 sacks. During the 2017 season, in which he finished 19th in the voting for the Stats FCS Buck Buchanan Award, Williams tied the APSU season record with four forced fumbles while also matching the single-game record with a pair of forced fumbles against Jacksonville State.
Williams was a First Team All-OVC selection during the 2017 and 2018 seasons.
Kentel Williams, running back (2016-19)
A versatile all-purpose back, few could do as much with the football in their hands as Williams. A dynamic rusher out of the backfield, Williams ranks fourth in APSU history in rushing yards (2,941), fifth in rushing touchdowns (26), and sixth in rushing yards per game (66.8).
However, Williams also made 51 receptions for 609 yards and five touchdowns in his career, and it was his ability to also make an impact in the passing game that made him a nightmare for opposing defenses. Williams’ impact wasn’t confined to the Govs offense though, he ranks seventh in APSU history with 1,124 kick return yards and his 22.48-yard average on kick returns ranks third in program history.
Williams finished his Austin Peay State University career ranking third in all-purpose yards (4,833), fourth in all-purpose yards per game (109.8), fourth in total points scored (198), and second in touchdowns scored (33). Williams was an All-OVC selection in 2018 and 2019 while helping lead the Governors to an OVC Championship and the FCS Playoff Quarterfinals in 2019.
James “Boots” Donnelly, head coach (1977-78)
Donnelly became Austin Peay State University’s ninth head football coach after spending just one season as an assistant coach at Vanderbilt. In his first season at the helm, he led the Governors to their first OVC title in 1977 and became the second APSU coach to earn OVC Coach of the Year honors.
After a fourth-place finish in the OVC in 1978, Donnelly left to coach at Middle Tennessee, his alma mater, where he spent 20 seasons. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 2013. Donnelly had a 14-7 record at Austin Peay State Universityand his 14 wins are tied for the ninth-most by a head coach in program history.
