Southern Miss Football Coach Blake Anderson Unveils Expanded Coaching and Support Staff Ahead of 2026 Season
By: Luke Matheson
Southern Miss football coach Blake Anderson announced a series of coaching and administrative hires Monday as the program continues to build its staff ahead of the 2026 season.
Among the new on-field additions, Anderson named Bobby Dodd as special teams coordinator, BJ Edmonds as running backs coach, Quinshad Davis as outside receivers coach and Kendrick Shaver as safeties coach. Additional on-field personnel include Brandon Bowling as inside receivers coach, Cob Summers as assistant offensive line coach, Tyler Cardwell as assistant defensive line coach, Avi Rushinek as assistant defensive backs coach and Luke Kerver as assistant special teams coordinator.
Anderson also announced several administrative hires. Matt Shadeed has been named Director of Sports Performance/Football, with Trey Kiser added as athletic performance assistant. Brittany Watts, formerly Southern Miss’ assistant athletic director for compliance, will transition into the role of director of on-campus recruiting. Joel Baron was hired as video coordinator, and Drake Diedrick joined the staff as a recruiting analyst.
Dodd arrives at Southern Miss after spending the 2025 season as a special teams analyst at Pittsburgh. He previously spent four seasons at Utah State, where he played a key role in multiple bowl appearances and nationally ranked special teams units. During his time with the Aggies, Utah State blocked multiple kicks in several seasons, produced all-conference returners, and helped the program to a Mountain West championship in 2021. Dodd has also held coaching roles at Arkansas State and Lamar, and he is an Arkansas State alumnus.
Edmonds comes to Hattiesburg after serving on Duke’s coaching staff since March 2024 as an analyst working primarily with the cornerbacks. He helped the Blue Devils post a 9-5 record, win the ACC Championship and defeat Arizona State in the Sun Bowl. Edmonds previously coached at Utah State and Kansas Wesleyan and was a standout defensive back at Arkansas State, where he was a team captain and earned multiple All-Sun Belt honors.
Davis joins the Golden Eagles after serving as wide receivers coach at Georgia State since 2022. He was named to 247Sports’ “30 Under 30” list in 2023. At Georgia State, Davis coached multiple all-conference receivers, including Ted Hurst and Jamari Thrash. A former All-ACC receiver at North Carolina, Davis finished his college career as the Tar Heels’ all-time leader in receptions and touchdown catches before brief professional stints in the NFL and CFL.
Shaver comes to Southern Miss following the 2025 season at UConn, where he worked with the defensive backs. He brings extensive experience, including stops at Mississippi State, Tulsa, Washington State and Utah State, where he served as co-defensive coordinator during bowl-winning seasons. Shaver has more than two decades of coaching experience at the collegiate and professional levels.
Shadeed returns to Southern Miss after two seasons as a defensive analyst at Alabama. He previously served as assistant head coach and director of football athletic performance at South Alabama and held senior performance roles at Massachusetts, Baylor and Arkansas State. Shadeed, a Southern Miss graduate, has been part of multiple championship-caliber programs, including Baylor’s NCAA title-winning women’s basketball teams and Arkansas State’s Sun Belt championship football squads.
Anderson said the additions reflect a continued commitment to strengthening the program both on and off the field as Southern Miss prepares for the upcoming season.
