Athlete of the Week: Kennedy Billings-Sullivan

Kennedy Billings-Sullivan

Kennedy Billings-Sullivan is a 2025 graduate of White County High School where she was a multi-sport athlete. Sullivan was a member of the Warriorette volleyball, basketball, and track teams and, in her senior year, branched out to join the school’s flag football team as well.

“I always kind of grew up playing and being around football. My cousins played in high school, I played powder puff right from my freshman year, and I really enjoyed it,” Sullivan said, and further stated that despite having fun in the school’s annual powder puff tournament, she was reluctant to join the Warriorette flag football team in its inaugural season. “Then my senior year came around and I was like, ‘I’m just going to do this,’ and I’m so glad I did. I had so much fun.”

While she saw plenty of similarities between her time on the court and her time on the gridiron – like studying offenses to be better defensively and relying on your teammates – Sullivan said flag football taught her some lessons she hadn’t really taken to heart before.

“It taught me to be patient with myself and not be so hard on myself,” she said, adding that her time on the basketball court was always full of seriousness and competitiveness, and she didn’t find time to remind herself that it’s OK to make mistakes. “When I started playing flag and I would drop a pass, I would be so mad at myself. But then I realized that it’s a mind game and if I would relax, be easy on myself, remind myself that there’s a learning curve here, I would be able to focus and play much better. It definitely was a great lesson for me.”

She went on to say she is excited about the future of the sport she learned to love late, especially with it becoming an official TSSAA sport this year.

“I think it’s great. The more sports there are the more chances for girls to get involved. The more involved you get, the less time you have to find trouble,” she said. “Plus, I really love this sport. It has been so much fun.”

Fun wasn’t the only thing Sullivan got from playing flag football her senior year. She was also the second White County student-athlete to ever be offered a scholarship to continue playing flag football at the college level. The former Warriorette plans to study nursing with aspirations of becoming a neo-natal nurse in the future.