Hannah Weiss

Felicia Teeter Joins JCU Football Staff, Becoming First Female Coach in Program History

4/14/2026 9:00:00 AM | By: JCUSID

Teeter, a retired service member, will mentor the running backs for JCU after last coaching at Bethel (KS)

UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS – John Carroll Football is breaking barriers.

For the first time in program history, JCU Football will have a woman on the coaching staff.

Felicia Teeter has been added to the staff as the running backs coach. Teeter spent 10 years on active duty in the United States Army, as well as 20 years as a Department of Defense Air Force civilian. Most recently, she served as the Head Women's Flag Football Coach and Running Backs Coach for Football at Bethel College in Kansas.

"We are very excited to welcome Coach Teeter into the John Carroll football program. We spoke to a number of different candidates and Felicia distinguished herself immediately," said Head Coach Brian Polian '97. "Her military and work experience make her a very unique candidate in regard to leadership, team-building and culture. Her football acumen is excellent and I have no doubt she will continue to develop our running backs, both on and off the field. We set out to hire a great football coach and we achieved that goal with the addition of Felicia Teeter."

Teeter arrived on campus in University Heights last week, getting to know the players and coaches before beginning full-time in May.

"I'm so excited to be here. The legacy and tradition of this program, the players and coaches in this program are great," said Teeter. "On every level, I'm so excited for this opportunity."

Teeter spent 10 years on active duty serving in the U.S. Army. Upon giving birth to her oldest daughter, Teeter transitioned to working as a Department of Defense Civilian for the Air Force.

During her time working for the Air Force, Teeter's job revolved around resource and training development, as well as leadership planning. All very important skills in building a football program and working with student-athletes.

While living in Texas and working for the Air Force, Teeter enrolled in Angelo State University. She acquired a Masters of Military Occupational Art and Science from Air Command and Staff College and an M.P.A. and B.A. in Government from Angelo State.

Upon leaving the civil service, Teeter began the process of starting her own business. Completing all the steps necessary to to launch the business, Teeter ran into a massive problem in March 2020, as did the rest of the world: The COVID-19 pandemic.

Teeter soon pivoted. During her time in the civil service, Teeter joined the Texas high school athletic directors association and Texas high school coaches association, not necessarily having an end goal in mind. Fascinated by football, she sat in many of the breakout sessions.

So, when the pandemic hit, Teeter decided to give football a try. On an online Texas football job board, Teeter applied for 20-30 entry level positions. One of the first was a job at Lubbock Independent School District.

"There is no woman coaching football who doesn't have a unique path," said Teeter. "None of us had the stereotypical path of playing and then becoming a GA. My journey is also different. Sometimes you don't know what you're going to do in life until you get to your 50's. I was 52 when I got my first football job. I didn't grow up saying, 'I want to be a football coach,' that was not my path."

Teeter fell in love with coaching in her first gig. Teeter coached the 7th grade and 8th grade "A" and "B" teams, working with the offensive and defensive lines while calling the offense. On Friday nights, she served as the getback coach. Teeter soon earned a promotion to the varsity tight ends/fullback coach. It was fate indeed that led her to Lubbock, as her son had played football at Holy Cross, but decided to walk-on at Texas Tech.

Opportunity soon came knocking again. A mentor sent her name and resume to a junior college in Kansas for a flag football job, telling her it would be good interview practice.

"I was on a bus with a bunch of students when I did the interview, I didn't know flag football was a thing," joked Teeter. But she nailed the interview, then did an in-person follow-up a few days later. And just like that, two weeks later, Teeter was the head flag football coach at Pratt Community College.

Six months after her hire, Pratt's athletic director departed for Bethel College in Kansas. Shortly after, the AD called up Teeter and brought her along to North Newton, Kansas.

"Having done resource and training development and leadership planning during civil service, program management was easy for me," said Teeter. "I also wanted to get back to coaching on the men's side, and Bethel had a men's team.

"There are a million things I love about football, but one of them is the impact you can have on the campus with the team. A football team can drive the energy and direction of a campus. Plus, the cross pollination between the two teams makes for stronger adults on both sides. I had guys break down film and coach, while the women did the chains for the men's games."

In addition to growing the nascent flag football program at Bethel, Teeter helped with the defensive line. Then when a new coach arrived, she worked with the running back room.

Meanwhile, Teeter was active with an organization called Soldiers to Sidelines, which connected veterans with football coaching. Teeter received the opportunity to be a soldier coach for the 2026 American Bowl, where JCU wideout Tyren Montgomery starred on the field and Scott Phillips coached on the sidelines. Phillips became JCU's Offensive Coordinator this spring under Polian.

"I know what it'll be like working with Scott after seeing how he ran the organization. It was such an amazing week."

Teeter is incredibly excited to get underway working on the coaching staff and join a Blue Streaks program on the rise.

"I always tell people that it doesn't matter how old you are, you want to feel inspired. When I talked to Coach Polian, I was inspired. What an opportunity to work around people who inspire you all the time. To be part of an organization like this is going to be incredible. The couple days I've gotten to spend around the team, I'm already excited to be here."

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