How Southern Miss is building something under Coach Charles Huff

On December 8, Southern Miss hired former Marshall coach Charles Huff to make the Golden Eagles great again. The once-proud program is coming off a 1-11 season. Since his introduction to the Southern Miss fan base, coach Huff has already made some key additions to his staff and roster that will pay dividends next season.

QB Braylon Braxton (transfer from Marshall)

Braxton will be an RS-Senior in 2025 and is the reigning Sun Belt Conference Newcomer of the Year. He quarterbacked the Thundering Herd to a 10-3 record and the 2024 Sun Belt Conference title.

In the SBC title game vs. Louisiana-Lafayette, Braxton completed 69 percent of his passes and threw 2 TD passes in a 31-3 win, earning MVP honors.

At 6-2, 200 pounds, Braxton accounted for 2,234 total yards and 23 total touchdowns. Skilled at protecting the football, Braxton only threw 2 INTs on the season. He didn’t throw his first pick until Week 5 against Georgia State. Over the last six games, Braxton has thrown just 1 INT and 11 touchdown passes.

Before Marshall, Braxton played 19 games with the Tulsa Golden Hurricane.

Braxton is the most experienced quarterback currently on the Golden Eagles roster and coach Huff could name him as the QB1 starter.

S/KR Ian Foster (transfer from Marshall)

Foster earned 1st Team All-Sun Belt Conference honors as an all-purpose player after he led the nation in kick return yardage with 32 yards per return. Foster will be a welcome addition to the special teams’ room that finished around the middle of the pack in kickoff returns in the Sun Belt.

Over three consecutive games, Foster posted over 100 yards in kickoff return yardage:

• vs. Coastal Carolina: 3 returns 135 yards for a 45-yard average

• vs. Old Dominion: 3 returns, 118 yards for a 39-yard average

• vs. James Madison: 3 returns, 102 yards for a 34-yard average

From his safety position, Foster recorded 48 tackles.

Blake Anderson, Offensive Coordinator

Anderson returns to Southern Miss after he was an offensive assistant from 2008 to 2011 under the Larry Fedora regime. His duties included coaching the running game and quarterbacks. Anderson coached Austin Davis to three seasons of over 3,000 yards passing and 10,892 career passing yards during his tenure. Davis is No. 2 on the school passing list.

In 2010, the Golden Eagles averaged 36 points per game, good enough for No. 15 in the country. Southern Miss posted 5 consecutive games of 40 or more points and 2 games were over 50 points.

The next season was one for the ages for the Golden Eagles as they went 12-2 and hoisted the Conference USA championship. Southern Miss went on an 8-game win streak and produced five games of over 500 yards total offense. The Golden Eagles finished ranked No. 20 in the final AP poll.

Anderson has won three conference championships as the head coach at other schools. He won 2 Sun Belt Conference titles with Arkansas State and won the Mountain West Conference championship at Utah State in 2021.

There is another week left before the transfer portal closes. You can tell the excitement is building in Hattiesburg as the Coach Huff adds more transfer players, signs high school recruits in February, and puts more resources in place to prepare for spring practice and beyond in 2025.