Doug Porter

Bio

A fixture in historically black college athletics, Doug Porter forged an indelible coaching and administrative career for more than fifty years. In 1961, Porter accepted his first head coaching job at Mississippi Valley State, where he turned around a program that had not had a winning season in five years. He then served as Eddie Robinson's assistant at Grambling State for nine seasons and later took the helm at Howard from 1974-78. After Fort Valley State hired him in 1979, it took Porter only one season to lead the Wildcats to a conference title. He led his teams to six Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference titles and two NCAA playoff appearances. He had only five losing seasons in 26 years as a head coach. The Memphis, Tennessee native and seven-time SIAC Coach of the Year served as Fort Valley's Athletic Director for 16 years. He also acted as chairman of the Division II Football Committee and as president of the National Athletic Steering Committee. Porter returned to Grambling in 1997, becoming an advisor to former GSU coaches Doug Williams, Melvin Spears and Rod Broadway.