Report: Alabama Assistant Head Coach Leaving For HC Opportunity
Nick Saban is no stranger to large scale staff rebuilds for his Alabama football program. It looks like he may have another on his hands this year, not only because of Steve Sarkisian’s departure to Texas, and those that are following him. Now, 37-year old Charles Huff, who is an assistant head coach and running backs coach under Saban, is reportedly taking the job at Marshall.
The Thunder Herd job is one of the more surprising openings of the year. Longtime coach Doc Holliday just led the team to a 7-3 season, with a 4-1 Conference USA record and conference coach of the year honors. He was 85-54 in 11 years with the team, winning a conference title in 2014, and two additional division titles. He was 6-2 in bowl games.
The politics around Marshall football are always fascinating for a smaller program. The team reportedly looked at Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich, a legendary Thundering Herd player, and even reached out to Marshall great Chad Pennington. Instead, they’re plucking from the best staff in college football.
Huff is fresh off of leading Najee Harris and the ever-explosive Alabama rushing game. The 37-year old Maryland native has quickly worked his way through the ranks and now gets a really intriguing head coaching opportunity.
BREAKING: #Marshall is expected to hire #Alabama associate HC Charles Huff as the Thundering Herd’s new head coach, per sources. The 37-year-old MD native was ranked as the nation’s No. 1 recruiter in 2020, according to 247Sports.
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) January 16, 2021
The Hampton alim came to Alabama from Mississippi State, where he was AHC and RBs coach in 2018. Before that, he coached Saquon Barkley during a three-year stint at Penn State. He’s also been at Maryland, Vanderbilt, Western Michigan, Tennessee State, his alma mater Hampton, and the Buffalo Bills in the NFL.
Huff joins Sarkisian, the new coach at Texas, and analyst Butch Jones—now the head coach at Arkansas State—as those hired away from Saban’s staff to lead their own programs this year. Sarkisian is also bringing along offensive line coach Kyle Flood, and special teams coordinator Jeff Banks to Austin.
Nick Saban has done this before. He’s really the only constant in Tuscaloosa at this point, and the Alabama football machine has never slowed down.
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