The Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States. It participates in Division I of the NCAA; the conference's football programs compete in partnership with the Big South Conference in the Football Championship Subdivision, the lower of two levels of Division I football competition. The OVC has 11 members, six of which compete in football in the conference.
Roy Lee Kidd was an American collegiate football league player and coach. He served as the head coach at Eastern Kentucky University from 1964 to 2002, compiling a record of 314–124–8. Kidd's Eastern Kentucky Colonels won NCAA Division I-AA Football Championships in 1979 and 1982 and were runners-up in 1980 and 1981. His 314 career victories are second-most in NCAA Division I-AA/FCS history, trailing only those of Grambling State's Eddie Robinson. Kidd was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 2003.
The Eastern Kentucky Colonels football program represents Eastern Kentucky University (EKU) in college football, competing at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level as a member of the United Athletic Conference (UAC). The school has traditionally had much success on the football field, having won 21 OVC conference titles and two Division I FCS National Championships in 1979 and 1982, and reaching the finals in 1980 and 1981. Much of the success came during the long tenure of head coach Roy Kidd from 1964 to 2002. In 1990, Eastern honored Kidd by naming the school's football stadium Roy Kidd Stadium. Eastern Kentucky's football team was able to secure 31 consecutive winning seasons before finally posting a losing season record in 2009.
The Eastern Kentucky Colonels are the intercollegiate athletic teams of Eastern Kentucky University (EKU), located in Richmond, Kentucky, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the NCAA Division I ranks, primarily competing in the ASUN Conference since the 2021–22 academic year. Its football team competes in the United Athletic Conference (UAC), which starts play in 2023 as a football-only merger of the ASUN and the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). The Colonels previously competed in the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) from 1948–49 to 2020–21.
The 2009 Eastern Kentucky Colonels football team represented Eastern Kentucky University in the 2009 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The team was led by Dean Hood, the 2008 Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) Roy Kidd Coach of the Year. Hood was in his second season as head coach. The season marked the Colonels' 100th season of play. The Colonels played their home games at Roy Kidd Stadium in Richmond, Kentucky. The team finished the season with a record of 5–6 overall and 5–3 in OVC play.
The Murray State Racers football team represents Murray State University in the sport of American football. The Racers compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) Division I and the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC).
The 2011 Eastern Kentucky Colonels football team represented Eastern Kentucky University in the 2011 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Colonels were led by fourth-year head coach Dean Hood and played their home games at Roy Kidd Stadium. They were a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC). Eastern Kentucky has an overall record 7–5 with a 6–2 mark in OVC play share the conference title with Jacksonville State and Tennessee Tech. They received an at–large bid in the FCS playoffs, where they lost in the first round to James Madison.
The 2011 Jacksonville State Gamecocks football team represented Jacksonville State University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 2011 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by 12th-year head coach Jack Crowe, the Gamecocks compiled an overall record of 7–4 with a mark of 6–2 in conference play, sharing the OVC title with Eastern Kentucky and Tennessee Tech. Despite the conference title, Jacksonville State was not invited to the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs. The Gamecocks lost to both Tennessee Tech and Eastern Kentucky. The team played home games at Burgess–Snow Field at JSU Stadium in Jacksonville, Alabama.
The Battle for the Red Belt is an American college football rivalry between the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team of Western Kentucky University and the Murray State Racers football team of Murray State University. The rivalry began as an in-conference rivalry within the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC), but both schools have since departed for other conferences. The Hilltoppers were the first to move, transitioning to the Football Bowl Subdivision and playing as an independent in the 2008 season before moving football to the Sun Belt Conference in 2009, followed by a move to Conference USA in 2014. The Racers, which remain in the Football Championship Subdivision to this day, played their final OVC season in 2022, and joined the Missouri Valley Football Conference in 2023. The rivalry has continued as a trophy game, although it is no longer played on an annual basis.
The 2013 Eastern Kentucky Colonels football team represented Eastern Kentucky University during the 2013 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by sixth year head coach Dean Hood and played their home games at Roy Kidd Stadium. They were a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC). Eastern Kentucky had an overall record of 6–6 with a mark 4–4 in OVC play to finish in a tie for fifth place.
The 2014 Eastern Kentucky Colonels football team represented Eastern Kentucky University during the 2014 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by seventh-year head coach Dean Hood and played their home games at Roy Kidd Stadium. They were a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC). Eastern Kentucky had an overall record of 9–4 and 6–2 in OVC play to finish in second place. They received an at-large bid to the FCS Playoffs, where they lost in the first round to Indiana State.
Jordan Thomas Berry is an Australian professional American football punter who is a free agent. He played college football at Eastern Kentucky.
The 2016 Eastern Kentucky Colonels football team represented Eastern Kentucky University during the 2016 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by first-year head coach Mark Elder and played their home games at Roy Kidd Stadium. They were a member of the Ohio Valley Conference. They finished the season 3–8, 2–6 in OVC play to finish in eighth place.
The Eastern Kentucky Colonels women's basketball team is a women's college basketball team at Eastern Kentucky University (EKU), located in Richmond, Kentucky, United States. After having played women's basketball in the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) since it began sponsoring women's sports in 1977, and also having been an OVC member since the conference's formation in 1948, EKU joined the ASUN Conference in July 2021. Home games are played at Alumni Coliseum.
The 2017 Eastern Kentucky Colonels football team represented Eastern Kentucky University during the 2017 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by second-year head coach Mark Elder and played their home games at Roy Kidd Stadium. They were a member of the Ohio Valley Conference. They finished the season 4–7, 3–5 in OVC play to finish in a tie for fifth place.
The 2018 Eastern Kentucky Colonels football team represented Eastern Kentucky University during the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by third-year head coach Mark Elder and played their home games at Roy Kidd Stadium as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference. They finished the season 7–4, 5–2 in OVC play to finish in third place.
The 2019 Eastern Kentucky Colonels football team represented Eastern Kentucky University during the 2019 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by fourth-year head coach Mark Elder and played their home games at Roy Kidd Stadium as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference. They finished the season 7–5, 5–3 in OVC play to finish in fourth place. Elder was fired following the season. He finished with a record of 21–24.
The 1980 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team represented Western Kentucky University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 1980 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by 14th-year head coach Jimmy Feix, the Hilltoppers compiled and overall record of 9–1 with a mark of 6–1 in conference play, winning the OVC title. However, Western Kentukcy was not selected for the NCAA Division I_AA Football Championship playoffs. Instead, the OVC's second-place finisher, Eastern Kentucky, was invited despite the fact that Western had beaten them earlier in the season. This perceived snub was a factor in Western Kentucky's decision to leave the OVC in 1982. The Hilltoppers finished the season ranked fifth in final Associated Press poll.
The 2020 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by second-year head coach Adam Cushing, the Panthers compiled an overall record of 1–5 overall with an identical mark in conference play, placing last out of eight teams in the OVC. Eastern Illinois played home games at O'Brien Field in Charleston, Illinois.
The 1954 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team represented Western Kentucky State College as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 1954 college football season. Led by seventh-year head coach Jack Clayton, the Hilltoppers compiled an overall record of 6–4 with a mark of 2–3 in conference play, tying for second place in the OVC. The team's captains were Jerry Passafiume and Jim Phifer.
