Boots Donnelly

James F. "Boots" Donnelly (born October 15, 1942) is an American former football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Austin Peay State University from 1977 to 1978 and at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) from 1979 to 1998, compiling a career college football coaching record of 154–94–1. Donnelly was inducted into the Blue Raider Hall of Fame in 1993. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 2013. Donnelly went on to be the head coach at Austin Peay for two seasons, and at MTSU for twenty seasons.

Later life After the conclusion of his coaching career, Donnelly served as athletic director at MTSU for several years. In 2006, he became CEO of Backfield in Motion, an organization dedicated to fostering academic and athletic abilities among inner city youth. In October 2015, a statue of Donnelly was unveiled on the MTSU campus.

Head coaching record College