After leaving Clark Atlanta University, Teddy Keaton is preparing to return to the school where he built his coaching career. Recently, Stillman College announced it was bringing back its football team. The program hired Keaton as athletic director and head coach.

In comments obtained by WBRC, Keaton spoke about his history with the program and how he wants to restore it to where it once was.

“It’s a process where we want Stillman to be who Stillman was,” Keaton said. “I was a part of that regime when we built Stillman in 1999. I came back as the head coach in 2011. And now I come back to restart a program that I feel will help us and this community.”

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Keaton became head coach and athletic director of Stillman College after stints as head coach at Allen University and Clark Atlanta University in the SIAC. Keaton joined the Panthers in 2024 after a stint as Allen University head coach. He finished his first season 7-3-1, including a huge win over SWAC opponent Bethune-Cookman that made headlines. After a struggle in his second season in 2025, where the team ultimately went 3-7, Clark Atlanta and Teddy Keaton decided to part ways.

He now joins a Stillman College program, which last fielded a football team in 2015. They now return to the gridiron at an interesting point in college football across the collegiate athletics landscape. They will compete independently as an NAIA team, as the HBCU Athletic Conference, which hosts its other collegiate athletic programs, does not sponsor football.