Johnson C. Smith Golden Bulls

Coach Fly is entering his fourth season at Johnson C. Smith University, where he serves as the Director of Football Performance and Defensive Line Coach.

Since arriving at Smith, Coach Fly has helped transform the program by building one of the premier strength and conditioning systems in Division II football. His leadership has helped the Golden Bulls secure back-to-back winning seasons for the first time in over a decade, while producing a dominant defense. In 2023, Smith’s defense finished #1 in total defense nationally across all of Division II, followed by a #6 national ranking in 2024. The Golden Bulls also earned back-to-back #1 overall defensive rankings in the CIAA (2023 & 2024), a testament to the players and coaches working together to build new traditions based on hard work and teamwork. 

Before his tenure at Johnson C. Smith, Coach Fly gained valuable experience as an assistant strength coach for all sports at Edward Waters University (2022) and as a sports science intern with the University of Miami football program. His career reflects a unique blend of performance training, sports science, and defensive coaching at the highest levels of competition.

A first-generation college graduate, Coach Fly earned his B.A. in Political Science and History (with additional studies in Psychology) from Tennessee State University. He went on to complete his M.Ed. in Education and Exercise Science at Tennessee Tech University and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Applied Behavior Analysis.

Coach Fly credits his family as his foundation of strength: his father, Lester Rose; his mother, Antonia Fly; his grandmother, Gail Forte; his great-grandmother, Birdie Fly; and his grandfather, Bobby Fly.
He is most proud of his role as a father to two children: Keyshawn, an industrial engineer, and Kemariah, a freshman at Austin Peay University.