Marshall University Athletics
Inside The Herd: From Student-Athletes To Staff
9/30/2026 6:43:00 PM | Baseball, General, Women's Basketball, Track and Field
Following playing days, several athletes start career in sports within Herd family
Editor's Note: Inside The Herd is an original series where we highlight our student-athletes and tell their Marshall stories. Every student-athlete at Marshall has a story about their journey and we hope that their stories inspire others to live their Marshall moments as well! Go Herd!
INSIDE THE HERD – From Student-Athletes To Staff
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – From the time that a student-athlete steps onto campus to represent Marshall University, they are part of something bigger than themselves.
They are part of a community that is immersed in Marshall University and part of one of the most unique stories in all of college athletics.
However, wearing the collegiate jersey isn't just all about representing Marshall University; Instead, the journey as a student-athlete is just as much about an individual finding out who they are and their own passions and strengths to mold their successful path once their playing days are done.
For several athletes, that path continues on at Marshall.
Marshall Women's Track & Field athlete Alycia Rivera's collegiate journey offered just that as she stood out on the track and in the community, embracing the pillars of the Herd Mentality, which include Honoring the Journey, Engaging With Purpose, Rising Through Innovation and Dedicating To Others.
During Rivera's time representing Marshall, she created HerdPaws – a community service initiative that supported the adoption of mature dogs from the Cabell County area while also collecting food, toy and supply donations for the Huntington Cabell Wayne Animal Shelter.
Rivera credited her time as a Marshall student-athlete for not only helping her find her passion for animals, but also for the community embracing her and supporting her with HerdPaws.
"Marshall, the people here, the staff and fans, they've made it easy to implement myself," Rivera said. "They've made this feel like a second home and it made me so much more open to give back to the community, which is why I started HerdPaws in the first place. I connect with animals in a unique way and always have – especially dogs. As soon as I got into a leadership position, I knew I wanted to focus all my time outside of sports on that initiative."
For Rivera, that community connection has prompted her to serve as a graduate assistant for Herd Hospitality, another effort by Marshall Athletics' administration to bring the community and Marshall closer together.
As the playing days start to wind down, the question sometimes looms over what's next for an athlete.
For Jay Kehoe, that question loomed as his Senior Weekend approached, but he knew he wanted to help promote the game of baseball after playing for Marshall Baseball head coach Greg Beals.
Then, the unexpected happened for Kehoe.
"Going into our Senior Weekend my last year playing, I went in to give Coach Beals a little gift for being my coach for two years and for everything he did for me," Kehoe recalled. "He said, 'Jay, I want you to stick around. I've got to ask you something really quick.' He asked me if I'd want to come back and coach for us. For me, it was a no-brainer. He's someone I've always had a tremendous amount of respect for with how he runs a program. I thought what better place and what better person to work for!"
Much like Kehoe is starting his career working alongside the coach that helped mold him in college, the same can be said of Marshall Women's Basketball players Peyton Ilderton and Blessing King, who have joined the staff of head coach Juli Fulks this year.
Ilderton's journey is unique in that she came to Marshall as a walk-on and quickly earned a scholarship. Over the next four years, her career featured three head coaches and two championships – one SBC Championship and another WNIT Championship.
Her final two years featured growth on the floor as a leader from the point guard position under Fulks, which also transitioned into leadership off the court as she earned the prestigious Kay Yow Servant Leader Award and she was part of Marshall's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.
Ilderton has joined Marshall's Women's Basketball program as its new Assistant Director of Basketball Operations, allowing her to continue to grow under Fulks' guidance while also serving as a mentor for younger players within the program.
"As a player, (Fulks) taught me so much about leadership and I grew as an individual, so I just am continuing to learn from her in the leadership aspect," Ilderton said. "I feel like I grow every day and she just teaches me so many things. It's really exciting to put that kind of effort that she put into me into the girls on the team and to watch them grow. It's been really exciting."
King's journey combines her passions with basketball and sports reporting as she is taking on a hybrid task, working with both the Women's Basketball program and Strategic Communications as a graduate assistant.
In her hybrid role, King works closely with the Women's Basketball team in a promotional realm while also expanding her reach as she continues her blossoming career as a sideline reporter for Marshall's ESPN+ events.
"I thought it would be a smarter idea to stay here at Marshall because I've built so many connections with the athletes, coaching staff, support staff and everybody to do what I want to do in the future – being able to work around athletics and still be able to tell people's stories," King said.
All the athletes who have started their careers with roles in Marshall Athletics said that building relationships and having a vision for their future was crucial to making a successful transition from student-athlete to the career-oriented world within athletics.
"Take initiative in building relationships with the people you see every day and work with every day, and let them know what it is you want to do in the future and that you will put the effort in to be the best at what you do," King said when sharing advice for those who want to follow a similar path.
Kehoe echoed Rivera's previous statements on learning to be comfortable with who you are and how that translates to the career world as a key aspect for finding success.
"I'd say the biggest thing is to just be yourself," Kehoe said. "I've come to know that people really appreciate the authenticity piece of it. If you can just be yourself, people really respect that and they'll respect you for who you are. Just don't try to be somebody else."
That authenticity and confidence in being yourself are two of the most important results from the focus on the Herd Mentality that Marshall Vice President and Director of Athletics Gerald J. Harrison has built as his foundation for the ultimate student-athlete experience.
Having student-athletes not only get that type of experience at Marshall, but also to start their careers within Marshall Athletics will only perpetuate the type of winning culture Harrison envisions when he speaks of having the most well-rounded athletics department in the nation.
And, for the student-athletes, it also means that their transition starts with familiar faces and familiar places as they continue to Run With The Herd.
"It means so much to me because obviously this university has done so much for me," Ilderton said. "I'm so thankful that I got to spend my time here at Marshall and that I'm continuing to do so. I'll always pour back into Marshall. Because so many people poured into me over the course of my years, I'm going to do the same. I'll always be a part of the Herd."
To watch the video on these student-athletes starting their careers, click HERE.
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