Phillips Academy football coach honored for turning team around

CHICAGO (WLS) -- It's Troy McAllister's time to shine. The Wendell Phillips Academy football coach is getting special recognition for turning a once-failing team into a multi-state championship winning program. But, true to character, he deflects the spotlight.

"It's great recognition for our team and our program," he said.

McAllister is one of only two coaches in the United States to receive the 2018 Gatorade Coaching Excellence Award.

It's a testament to his perseverance with the team, which only had 12 players when he took the job eight years ago. He wondered if he could do it.

"That's the first question I asked myself. And the first practice, it was, did I make the right decision?" he said.

"They were in grass, dirt, bugs, all type of stuff and those guys didn't look so good," Phillips junior Joseph Thompson said.

Thompson said McAllister has brought out the best in the team, which has translated into winning two state football championships in three years. Thompson said he also emphasizes excellence off the field.

"We really look at him like a second father because we know he sets high goals for us and we don't want to let him down," McAllister said.

McAllister said because of the accomplishments of his players, the Phillips football program is on the national radar.

"This week alone, Ohio State, Auburn, Florida, Iowa State have all been in the building to see our young men including Penn," he says.

McAllister will travel to Los Angeles in July, where he will be recognized at the annual ESPY awards.