Maine Maritime names Calvin Powell as next head football coach
CASTINE, Maine — Calvin Powell is the new head football coach at Maine Maritime Academy.
The school’s director of athletics, Steve Peed, made the announcement Monday. Powell will become 11th head coach in program history, dating back to 1946.
"I am incredibly excited to welcome Calvin to our campus community," said Peed. "He is a thoughtful and humble leader of young people who is in this profession for all the right reasons. He brings a deep and genuine care for the athletes he coaches and will be an incredible addition to our department and our campus community."
Powell will officially join the Mariners in Castine on Monday, March 13.
"I am truly honored to be named the 11th head football coach at Maine Maritime," said Powell. "It is truly a unique opportunity to help re-establish the great tradition of Mariner football. I want to thank President Paul, Steve Peed and the entire hiring committee for entrusting me with the task of bringing football back to Castine. MMA has a great tradition of educating and preparing students and I am thankful to be a part of President Paul's plan for the future."
Powell will be the first head coach since Maine Maritime indefinitely suspended the football program in 2020 because of financial challenges faced by the Academy resulting from the pandemic.
"I enthusiastically welcome Coach Powell to the Maine Maritime campus and I'm confident he will instill The Mariner Standard throughout his leadership on and off the gridiron," said Maine Maritime President Jerry Paul. "He is a true coach on and off the field, and that degree of dedication will greatly benefit our student-athletes in his charge. We got our guy and are excited to return the legacy of Mariner Football with Coach Powell at the helm. Go Mariners!"
Powell brings a vast array of experiences over his 15-year coaching career with him to Castine for the program's reboot including being a part of a startup program at Texas Wesleyan and having coached for a season at Maritime (New York). Most recently, Powell served as the assistant head coach with oversight of the offensive line and run game in his second stint at Langston University in Oklahoma. The 2022 Lions ranked fifth in the nation in rushing and 12th in the nation in points per game with Powell coaching five all-conference players.
Powell had previously coached the offensive line and running backs while coordinating the recruiting efforts at Langston between May 2010 and May 2012. In his first stint with the Lions, Powell coached Langston's all-time leading rusher, three first-team all-conference offensive linemen and two honorable mentions along the front. The Lions shared the Sooner Athletic Conference title and ranked 23rd in the nation.
Prior to his tenure at Langston, Powell served as the offensive line coach and academic coordinator at Lyon College. He coached six All-Sooner Athletic Conference offensive linemen, while raising the team GPA by three-tenths of a point. He also worked with three Daktronics NAIA Scholar-Athletes in his time.
"I am excited to welcome Coach Powell to our team. His passion for advanced education and the power of higher ed was clear throughout the interview process," said Associate AD and Senior Woman Administrator Tricia Carver. "I believe in Coach Powell. He will be instrumental in building a program that provides an excellent experience for our Mariners. More than that, I believe that his influence on their academic lives and career pursuits will instill an incredible culture of achievement here at MMA and beyond."
Before his time at Lyon College, Powell was part of a startup program at Texas Wesleyan University for two years. He served as the offensive and recruiting coordinator, while instructing quarterbacks and running backs. He has also served as the running backs coach and video coordinator at SUNY Maritime, an offensive graduate assistant at Temple University, and as a tight ends and running backs coach at Northeastern Oklahoma, where he also served as a resident director. Powell also coached at two high schools in Texas, Green Hill School and St. Michael's Catholic Academy.
"Calvin's experience and successes in recruiting his home state of Texas is meaningful as we want to establish a deep recruiting presence in both Texas and Florida as we re-develop our program," said Peed. "Our coaches in other sports have had tremendous successes already in the Lone Star State. His insights into that market should help football establish a steady pipeline and the entire department in making deeper inroads."
"In addition to his on-field successes, Calvin has experience in nearly every aspect of off-field operations which will provide him with a well of experience to draw from and legitimacy with the staff he will oversee," Peed added.
Powell holds a bachelor's degree in sports management from Southwestern College and a master's in educational leadership from Langston University.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Maine Maritime names Calvin Powell as next head football coach
