Marshall University Football

Tony Gibson was hired as the 32 nd head coach in Marshall Football history on Dec. 8, 2024, bringing a talented in-state coach back home to lead the Thunderi...

Anthony Leonard joined Marshall Football as an Assistant Coach in March 2026, bringing more than a decade of collegiate and professional coaching experience ...

Bob McClain is going into his second season as Marshall’s offensive line coach after being hired by head coach Tony Gibson in January 2025. During the 2025 s...

Brad Lambert is in his 1 st season back at Marshall as the Herd’s Defensive Coordinator and Linebackers Coach after being hired by Marshall head coach Tony G...

Brock McKirgan currently serves as the Chief of Staff for Marshall Football, a role he assumed in January 2025 following his departure from NC State alongsid...

Chansi Stuckey returns to Marshall to begin his second season serving as the Herd’s outside wide receivers coach for Marshall head coach Tony Gibson, whom hired him in January 2025. Stuckey’s second season will feature versatile weapons that are returning to the Herd lineup, led by outside receiver Adrian Norton, who caught 27 passes for 363 yards and a team-best five touchdowns last season. Stuckey will have several returnees to share his NFL wisdom with as Norton will be joined by versatile receiver De’Andre Tamarez and Xayvion Turner-Bradshaw, a pair of talented receivers who can go inside or outside and are a threat any time they touch the football. Stuckey comes to Marshall after most recently having served as Notre Dame’s wide receivers coach for two seasons in 2022-23. In 2022, Stuckey helped develop the Irish receiving corps to combine for 94 catches and 1,306 yards. Prior to his time at Notre Dame, Stuckey spent one season at Baylor where he mentored Tyquan Thornton to career-highs in receptions (62), receiving yards (942) and touchdowns (10). Thornton was later named as an All-Big 12 2nd Team honoree by the coaches and the Associated Press. Before his time at Baylor, Stuckey spent two years at Clemson, his alma mater, in 2019-20. He started as a graduate assistant in 2019 before elevating to a player development role in 2020. The Tigers won the ACC and reached he College Football Playoff in both seasons in which Stuckey was there, reaching the Championship in 2019.

Chip West joined Marshall Football in January 2026 as Cornerbacks coach, bringing over 25 years of collegiate coaching experience and a reputation as one of ...

Dayron Wilson serves in Defensive Quality Control for Marshall University Football, where he supports the coaching staff with film analysis, game planning, a...

Dean Hood was named as Safeties Coach for Marshall Football in January 2026. Hood brings nearly four decades of coaching experience to Marshall’s defensive c...

Dwight Galt IV was named as the Head Strength and Conditioning coach for the Thundering Herd in January 2025 by head coach Tony Gibson. Galt comes to Marshall after three seasons as Director of Football Strength and Conditioning at Virginia Tech (2022-24) and three seasons as Director of Sports Performance at Old Dominion (2019-21). Prior to his time in Norfolk, Galt worked as assistant director of strength and conditioning for Penn State football for seven seasons. Galt helped the Nittany Lions achieve back-to-back 11-win seasons in 2016 and 2017, including the program's Big Ten Championship in 2016. Displaying his acumen for preparing players for the next level, Galt helped three Penn State players finish in the top five of every category in the 2018 NFL Combine marking the first time one school accomplished that feat. He also helped prepare top combine performers RB Saquon Barkley and TE Mike Gesicki for their professional careers. Prior to Penn State, Galt spent two years at South Carolina where he started as a graduate assistant before being promoted to assistant strength coach for the Gamecocks. While in Columbia, Galt helped develop CB Stephon Gilmore - brother of former Marshall DB Steven Gilmore - and DE Jadaveon Clowney for their all-pro careers in the NFL. He helped the team to the 2010 SEC Championship game and two bowl appearances. Galt began his coaching career at his alma mater, Maryland, as a strength and conditioning intern following his playing career with t

Dylan Timberlake serves in Offensive Player Personnel for Marshall University Football, supporting recruiting strategy, player evaluation, and offensive roster development. Prior to joining the Herd, he worked as a Graduate Assistant at Campbell University and spent over four years with NC State Football as a Student Assistant Coach, contributing to film breakdown, playbook installs, and gameday operations. Dylan holds an Associate of Science in Sport and Fitness Administration from NC State, with a minor in Coaching.

Gunter Brewer is going into his second season as Marshall’s assistant head coach and inside receivers and tight ends coach for head coach Tony Gibson, who hi...

Jackson White is going into his second season as the Special Teams Coordinator for Marshall after seeing a highly-successful first season in 2025 that saw the Thundering Herd boast one of the nation’s top special teams units. In his first season with the Herd, White oversaw the development of freshman kicker Lorcan Quinn, transforming the Gaelic football star into an All-American for the Herd as a placekicker while shattering Marshall program records. Quinn earned First Team All-SBC honors as a placekicker after finishing with a program single-season record 21 field goals for the Thundering Herd. Quinn’s four field goals of 50-plus yards also established a Marshall career record. The Donaghmore, Northern Ireland native finished the season 21 of 26 on field goal attempts, which tied him for 9th in the nation in made field goals. He also was No. 3 in FBS in kickoff average at 64.8 with 61 touchbacks out of 71 kickoff attempts. Punter Nathan Totten also earned Second Team All-SBC honors in his first year collegiately as a starting punter. Under White’s development, the Ashland, Ky., native set the Marshall single-season punting average record at 45.6 yards per punt. Totten’s long punt on the year was 63 yards and he had three games in which he averaged more than 50 yards per punt for the game. Totten finished the year with 56 punts for 2,551 yards with 19 of 50-plus yards and 20 punts inside the 20-yard line. White was hired by Marshall head coach Tony Gibson to serve as Marshal

Dillon joined the Marshall defensive coaching staff in 2025 after spending 2024 at EKU as the assistant defensive backs coach. He is a three-year NFL veteran...

Landon Cornutt was elevated to the position of Senior Offensive Analyst in January 2026. Cornutt has been part of championship-winning programs and has experience coaching multiple offensive positions, including wide receivers, tight ends, and quarterbacks. Cornutt has served as an Offensive Analyst at Marshall since 2025, bringing a strong background in offensive strategy, player development, and recruiting. He assists with game planning, playbook installs, coverage breakdowns, and weekly scouting reports. He works closely with quarterbacks, inside receivers, and tight ends, while playing a key role in recruiting evaluations and on-campus visits. Prior to Marshall, Cornutt spent three seasons at Jacksonville State University (2021–2024) as a Graduate Assistant for Wide Receivers. During his tenure, he contributed to multiple titles, including the 2020 Ohio Valley Conference Championship, 2022 Atlantic Sun Conference Championship, and the 2023 R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl victory. His responsibilities included coaching wide receivers, signaling offensive play calls, preparing scouting reports, and assisting with recruiting efforts. Cornutt earned a Master of Science (GPA 3.9) and a Bachelor of Science in Education (Cum Laude) from Jacksonville State University. A former student-athlete at Huntingdon College, he was part of the travel roster and competed through fall camp before a Grade II Lisfranc injury ended his playing career.

Miles Edmond joined Marshall as an Assistant Strength Coach in January 2025. He assists with football and is the head strength and conditioning coach for track and field with an emphasis on sprinters and jumpers. Edmond comes to Marshall after spending two-plus years at Lamar University where he initially started as a graduate assistant before being promoted to assistant strength coach. At Lamar, he served as an assistant for football and the head strength coach for women's soccer, women's golf and track and field. Edmond began his career as an intern, garnering experience at the University of Kentucky, Old Dominion University and the University of South Florida. Edmond graduated with his Bachelor of Arts from Morehouse College (2022) and Master's of Science from Lamar (2024). He is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) from the National Strength and Conditioning Association.

Rod McDowell is in his second season as Marshall’s running backs coach after being hired by head coach Tony Gibson in January 2025. Marshall’s running backs saw success in his first season with the Herd, featuring a balanced attack, led by Jo’Shon Barbie, who returns to the Herd backfield for the 2026 season. Barbie overcame injuries throughout the middle of the season to rush for 249 yards and five touchdowns, which was second-best on the team. He came back from injury and scored a pair of touchdowns, including the game-winner, in the Herd’s 40-37 overtime win over Texas State. Barbie was part of a four-headed monster at running back for McDowell that rushed for 1,700 yards and 17 touchdowns while earning nearly five yards per carry. McDowell joined Gibson’s staff with the Herd after three seasons at Jacksonville State in the same capacity. In his last two seasons at Jacksonville State, the Gamecocks finished No. 3 in the nation in rushing offense, averaging 251 yards on the ground in 2024 and 236.7 on the ground in 2023. The 2024 season featured running back Tre Stewart, who rushed for 1,638 yards and 25 touchdowns while averaging 117 yards per game – all of which were top-10 in FBS. Prior to his time at Jacksonville State, McDowell served in the same role at ULM during the 2021 season. He took over a running backs unit that averaged less than 80 yards per game the season before he arrived and added over 50 yards per game to that average in his first season in 2021. McDowel

Rod Smith was hired in January 2025 by head coach Tony Gibson as the Thundering Herd's Offensive Coordinator and Quarterbacks Coach. Smith joins Marshall’s staff after serving in the same capacity at Jacksonville State for the last three seasons under head coach Rich Rodriguez. He also served as interim head coach for the 2024 Cure Bowl after Rodriguez took the head coaching position at West Virginia. In 2024, Jacksonville State ranked No. 12 nationally in scoring offense, averaging 36.0 points per game. That offense was powered by a rushing attack that produced an FBS-best 51 touchdowns while rolling up 251.2 yards per game on the ground, which was No. 3 in FBS. In all, Jacksonville State racked up 441.6 yards per game to rank in the top-20 in FBS in total offense under Smith’s guidance. In 2023, Jacksonville State ranked as the nation’s fastest offense, snapping the ball every 20.6 seconds. The Gamecocks boasted of the No. 3 rushing offense in FBS, rushing for 236.7 yards per game and averaged 30.2 points per game during a 9-4 campaign capped by the program’s first bowl win. Smith has more than 25 years of collegiate coaching experience with 20 years at the FBS level with many years having been under Rodriguez, whom he played for as an All-American at Glenville State from 1993-96. During Smith’s coaching career, he helped develop two of the premier quarterbacks in college football: Michigan’s Denard Robinson, who won the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year award in 2010, a

Sydney Spears serves as the Director of Football Campus Recruiting at Marshall University, where she leads the coordination of campus visits, recruiting events, and prospect engagement. She brings a strong background in football recruiting operations, with prior roles at Western Carolina, Middle Tennessee State, Tennessee, and Alabama. Sydney earned her bachelor's degree in Marine Biology and Biological Oceanography from the University of Alabama, where she also served in multiple football recruiting leadership positions. Her experience reflects a deep commitment to building relationships and enhancing the student-athlete experience.