Bill Glennon Receives Hall of Fame Award

The NFL hosts the Super Bowl, college football hosts the Rose Bowl and the NEPSAC (New England Preparatory School Athletic Council) Class A football hosts the Bill Glennon Bowl. This fall, the NEPSAC named its prestigious football bowl after the Academy’s football coach Bill Glennon, after the council’s Coaches Association (NEPSFCA) inducted him into its hall of fame.Glennon first came to Exeter to coach the football team in the fall of 1978, hired by then Athletic Director Ted Seabrook. But at the end of the year, a school-wide budget cut forced him to leave Exeter and instead coach football and lacrosse at the college level.More than a decade later, in 1991, when Exeter’s athletic department offered to hire him again as the football co-coach and lacrosse coach, Glennon promptly returned to Big Red. He continues to coach lacrosse and coached football until 2012, leading Big Red to two Class A undefeated records, two NEPSAC championships and also a third appearance as runner-up.Glennon felt honored to be recognized by the Coaches’ Association for his over 20 years of work. “The longer that you do a job with quality, people see that. I was quite honored and humbled that my colleagues would think enough of me to name a bowl game after me,” he said.  “I think I was chosen out of respect for doing a good job and for trying to be a good person to the players and to my coaches; without my coaching staff over the years, I would have been nothing.”Senior James Quinn, this past season’s football captain who had played for Glennon during his prep and lower years, agreed that the award speaks for Glennon’s successes during his time at Exeter and more.“I think it goes beyond the success that he had on the field as a football coach, which is evident in the numerous successful seasons. The award speaks to his outstanding character as both a coach and a person,” Quinn said.“The award speaks to his impact on players as well. The award speaks to the relationships that he has developed with players and the growth and success of his players.”Glennon’s colleagues described him as a role model for other coaches and a peer from whom to learn.“We worked together with the varsity football programs, and he was one of the best coaches I had ever worked for and with,” wrestling and football coach David Hudson said.“He’s extremely good at motivating the kids and also game and practice planning. After working with him, I have a greater appreciation of how to work with individual kids and how to organize practices to get the most out of them.”Coach of girls hockey and water polo Melissa Pacific agreed, impressed by how he works with the younger students.  “I have learned a lot from Coach Glennon about how to teach in the prep program. He does a great job with the preps, and he has some very creative ways of teaching,” she said. “I do believe he deserved to be inducted into the hall of fame; he has grit and integrity.”

“So I think there is a lot of mutual respect. He shows the kids he works with, the coaches he works with and the coaches he competes against a lot of respect. In turn, over time, a lot of people see that and respect...him an awful lot.”

Hudson added that apart from his ability to work well with his players and to lead the team effectively, Glennon’s sportsmanship portrays his character well and is one of the many reasons Glennon deserves the award.  “He has always shown good sportsmanship. For him, it is not win at all costs, and that’s how he treats his players, coaches he plays against and assistant coaches,” Hudson said. “So I think there is a lot of mutual respect. He shows the kids he works with, the coaches he works with and the coaches he competes against a lot of respect. In turn, over time, a lot of people see that and respect...him an awful lot.”No matter how much his colleagues and players praise him, Glennon returns the honor of his hall of fame induction to the people around him.  “The student athletes here have made coaching at Exeter special for me. The coaches that I have had over the years, without their great leadership and knowledge, I would have never been in this position,” Glennon said. “I am humbled and honored to have actually been able to coach here for the last 24 years and [continue] on in a non-football role. I am thankful, very thankful.”To Glennon, football has meant more than just a win-loss record. Watching students mature as both football players and great teammates under his lead is an invaluable experience for him and has created long lasting memories.“I have had the enjoyment of watching the guys who have been through the program from grades 9-12 grow as students, athletes, people and eventually as family men and fathers,” he said.“You are going to still be a member of your dorm 35 years from now, and you will remember that group of guys that were there. It is the same with football. It is a bonding experience with a group of 40 to 45 guys who will always be a part of each other.”