THE DAUGHTER OF FOOTBALL
Autumn Lockwood
Associate Performance Coach, Philadelphia Eagles
SUPERPOWER: SPREADING POSITIVITY AND LOVE
The daughter of a former West Virginia University football player and coach, Autumn Lockwood says football has always had a special place in her heart. Though she studied criminal justice and psychology in school with the intent to become an ATF agent, the sport and her desire to have it in her life kept making its way back to her until she finally gave in and began pursuing her dream in earnest. “I had a lightbulb moment where I realized I wanted to serve people,” she says. “I loved the weight room when I played soccer, and with my dad being a coach, I felt like coaching was in my blood.”
Lockwood joined the Philadelphia Eagles coaching staff in 2022. Not long after, she broke barriers when she became the first Black woman to ever coach in the Super Bowl. She has never felt more at home. “Being an assistant on an amazing staff that brings the opportunity to grow is exactly where I want to be. We are able to bring a lot of diverse perspectives, and I truly believe that the more diverse your department is, the more opportunities there are to grow.”
Throughout it all, Lockwood leaned on her family, friends, and belief in God to fortify her, helping her be a beacon of light for those around her. “I always leave people with the challenge to ‘be the light’ in whatever they are in,” she says. “Be a light in your department, with your athletes that you work with, and within your organization as a whole. God has placed a light and individual greatness inside all of us, so our jobs are to bring those out of each other and to serve others as much as we can.”
Written by Tara Wine-Queen
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Since 2014 WV Living magazine has been honoring West Virginia Wonder Women, amazing women who are raising the bar in their communities, serving as beacons of light in their industries, and forcing change for the greater good. WV Living is proud to celebrate these Appalachian mothers, millennials, and mavens proving that in a time full of uncertainty, divisiveness, and hate, love for one another is all we really need. No need for bulletproof bracelets or a golden lasso of truth—these women are creating a better West Virginia with their can-do attitudes and Mountain State spirit.
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