As the Philadelphia Eagles celebrated their Super Bowl LIX victory over the Kansas City Chiefs, there were few connections to West Virginia on the sidelines of the Caesars Superdome. However, Assistant Sports Performance Coach Autumn Lockwood, originally from Morgantown, W.Va., made history by becoming the first Black woman to earn a Super Bowl ring.
Lockwood has been a part of the Eagles’ strength and conditioning staff since 2022, playing a crucial role in the team’s physical and mental performance. Former Eagles linebacker Christian Elliss praised her influence in an interview with The Philadelphia Inquirer, highlighting her kindness, positivity, and dedication to player well-being. Through her role, she helps monitor the players’ mental and physical health, providing a much-needed support system throughout the grueling NFL season.
Born in Pennsylvania, Lockwood has deep ties to West Virginia. Her father, David Lockwood, was a four-year letterman for the West Virginia Mountaineers in the 1980s and later served as an assistant coach at WVU under Don Nehlen and Bill Stewart. His coaching career brought the family back to Morgantown, where Autumn attended University High School. A standout soccer player, she earned multiple All-State honors and was named Co-Defender of the Year in 2012 while helping her team secure two Class AAA State Championships.
She later followed her father to Arizona, playing soccer for the Wildcats before earning her undergraduate degree. After obtaining a master’s degree from East Tennessee State, she took on various strength and conditioning roles at the Division I level. Her NFL journey began in 2019 when she interned with the Atlanta Falcons through the Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship. While working at the University of Houston, she was encouraged by Cougars Strength and Performance Coach Kevin McCadam to take the opportunity with the Eagles, a move that proved to be a career-defining decision.
Now, as a trailblazer in her field, Lockwood has cemented her place in history, inspiring future generations of Black women in sports performance. Her journey proves that, sometimes, “Country Roads” lead to places far beyond the West Virginia hills but always where one truly belongs.
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