WCS grad named to resurrect Pennsylvania college's football program

WARRENSBURG | A man raised in Warrensburg was just named head football coach at a college in northeastern Pennsylvania. Justin Higgins, a 1996 graduate of Warrensburg High School, was appointed head coach of football at Keystone College of La Plume, Pennsylvania. Higgins isn't merely stepping into a coaching position, however — he is heading up an effort to reinstate a football program at Keystone after a hiatus of nearly 70 years. Higgins' appointment was announced with fanfare in a reception held at the college March 28. "This is a great day for Keystone College as well as for the entire community," college president David Coppola said at the event, held to welcome Higgins and his family as he joined the Keystone staff. Keystone Athletic Director Matthew Grimaldi predicted that Higgins, through coaching Keystone athletes, would be encouraging academic excellence and character development alongside athletic success. "Justin has the experience, successful track record and positive attitude we sought in a head coach," Grimaldi said. "Justin epitomizes the principle of getting students to the goal line. There's no doubt that Keystone football will be in good hands." In turn, Higgins said he and his wife Korrie were "extremely excited" to become part of the Keystone College community. "I'm looking forward to the journey," he said, noting the college's positive, supportive atmosphere. "This is a great place, and we're going to do great things — We want to make sure the students do well and help change the world." Higgins' remarks were met with rousing applause. Justin and Korrie's children — Averie, Kacie, Rhett and Emilie — were all in the audience at the reception. Reportedly, Justin was chosen from a field of about 200 candidates for the job. Higgins is the son of John and Jan Higgins of Warrensburg. While at Warrensburg High School, Higgins was a standout three-sport athlete, making his mark as a wide receiver and defensive back for Warrensburg's football team; as a point guard for the Burghers' basketball team, and as a third baseman for the baseball team. "I enjoyed my time at Warrensburg High and the guys I played with," Higgins said in an interview March 30. "I learned what a positive effect coaches could have on their players, in all aspects." HIGGINS TO BEGIN HIS 20TH YEAR AS A COACH Higgins continued his education at Ithaca College, where he played both baseball and football. He graduated in 2000 with a degree in politics and a minor in coaching. As a senior there, he launched his coaching career as a student assistant defensive and line coach. "I always thought I'd coach someday, but when I took the position at Ithaca, I knew that college level was where I wanted to coach football," hes said. Higgins furthered his studies at Kean University in Union, New Jersey where he was defensive line coach, then wide receiver coach. Graduating with a Masters Degree in Classroom Instruction, Higgins moved on to Lehigh University, a Division I college, where he was assistant defensive back coach for a year. Later, he served three stints at Morrisville State College in New York state where he was defensive line coach in 2004, and linebacker coach and special teams coordinator from August 2006 through February 2008, plus defensive coordinator from May 2010 through February 2017. While coaching at Morrisville, the Mustangs shared a New Jersey Athletic Conference championship title after finishing a season 9-2 and ranking No. 1 in pass defense. Also, Morrisville won an Eastern College Athletic Conference bowl game. In between his roles at Morrisville State, Higgins served for one season as the head football coach at Richfield Springs High School, and a two-year tenure as defensive assistant and special teams coordinator for Utica College. In early 2017, Higgins left Morrisville State to become the recruiting coordinator and special teams coordinator for Seton Hill University, a Division II college. During his tenure there, his special teams ranked in the top quarter of the nation in blocked kicks and 8th in the U.S. in kick-return defense. This week, Higgins said he was ready to take on the role of reinstating Keystone's football program, non-existent since the late 1940s. "I'll be working with others to build the program up from ground zero," he said, noting that he'll be building relationships with high schools in the northeast U.S., particularly within a 200-mile radius of Keystone — where there's a lot of successful football teams, he said. Between now and August, Justin's main tasks will be recruiting players and working with college administrators to line up a full coaching staff. During the 2018-19 school year, the Higgins will be leading practices and continuing to recruit while he and his assistant coaches develop a football program. In fall 2019, the team will launch their first season of competitive football in a conference that has not yet been publicly revealed. Higgins said that he was looking forward to the many challenges of his new position. "It's big responsibility, and I'm excited," he said. "Establishing a football program is a lot of work — It's going to be a process building a program from scratch, and it will take time to do it the right way."

Signup for our newsletter

WCS grad named to resurrect Pennsylvania college's football program

COMPANY

CUSTOMER SUPPORT

SUBMISSION FORMS

BEYOND THE NEWS