Alabama football has lost Kyle Flood and Jeff Banks to the University of Texas, but could another on-field assistant coach be on the move too?
According to a report from The Herald-Dispatch, the hometown newspaper of Huntington, W. Va., Marshall University has targeted running backs’ coach Charles Huff to be its next head football coach. Per the article, the Thundering Herd wants to see a change within its program. It has not won a national championship since 1996, when it was a Division I-AA program and it has become a school that will win between seven to nine games a year. Marshall feels as though Huff will provide the fire it needs.
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Huff, 37, has been linked to the Marshall job at head coach or offensive coordinator.
A native of Maryland, he has been an offensive mind since his coaching career started in 2006. He has trained offensive linemen, assisted with tight ends, and has worked on special teams too. Since 2010, Huff’s best trait has been developing running backs.
Prior to tutoring Najee Harris into being a two-time 1,000-yard rusher at Alabama, Huff produced a three-time 1,000-yard back in Saquon Barkley (2015-17) at Penn State. Barkley was taken at No. 2 overall in the 2018 NFL Draft by the New York Giants.
In one season at Mississippi State (2018), Huff guided Nick Fitzgerald to be a 1,000-yard rusher (1,121) and positioned Kylin Hill and Aries Williams to be 500+ yard backs. During the 2020 campaign, Najee Harris had six 100-yard rushing performances, 26 rushing touchdowns (NCAA-best) and 1,466 rushing yards. He won the Doak Walker Award, which goes to the nation’s most outstanding running back, and was one of five Unanimous First-Team All-American selections.
When it comes to 2021 recruiting cycle, Huff played a major role in landing Damon Payne (five-star, defensive lineman) and Monkell Goodwine (four-star, defensive lineman). He also assisted in getting the Tide a commitment from five-star running back, Camar Wheaton. Huff is one of the best young recruiters in the sport, and part of winning championships is getting the best players.
He is coming off a College Football Playoff National Championship, but we’ll see what Huff does.
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Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith
