University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Blake Anderson Announced as 24th Head Football Coach
12/11/2025 2:05:00 PM | Football
HATTIESBURG, Miss. – Blake Anderson, a proven winner in leading two Division I football programs, takes over as the 24th head coach in Southern Miss history in an announcement Thursday by Director of Athletics Jeremy McClain.
"We are excited to announce Blake Anderson as the next leader of our football program," said McClain. "He brings a wealth of experience and a ten-year run as a successful head coach, including multiple conference championships in the Sun Belt, a Mountain West conference championship, and nine bowl appearances. Blake is an exceptional leader, a great communicator, and has the respect of the players and the staff throughout the Duff Center. We look forward to supporting him at the highest level and continuing the positive momentum for our program."
In his first year back with the program in 2025 – Anderson also served as an assistant coach for the Golden Eagles from 2008-11 – he helped the Golden Eagles make a six-game turnaround that included a five-game winning streak during the year. His passing offense ranked first in the Sun Belt Conference and the team was fifth in scoring.
During his 30 year career that has included six conference championships, 14 bowl games and a national championship on the junior college level, Anderson provided 10 successful seasons as a Division I head coach with stops at Arkansas State (2014-20) and Utah State (2021-23), registering a 74-54 (.578) overall head coaching record, including a 53-27 (.663) conference mark, which included nine bowl games and three conference titles.
Under Anderson, Utah State tied for the best turnaround in the nation in 2021, as the Aggies became the first FBS program ever to go from zero or one win to 11 wins the following season. Anderson, who was named the 2021 AFCA Region 5 Coach of the Year and a finalist for the Eddie Robinson National Coach of the Year Award, was the only first-year head coach in the nation to lead his team to nine or more wins.
During the 2022 campaign, Anderson led Utah State to six wins and an appearance in the SERVPRO First Responder Bowl. In his first season at Utah State, Anderson led the Aggies to their first-ever Mountain West Championship with a 46-13 win at No. 19 San Diego State, along with a bowl win over Oregon State, a school-record-tying 11 wins and ranked No. 24th in the final Associated Press. Anderson led Utah State to six wins and its 11th bowl game in the past 13 seasons in 2023 as it played in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl.
He joined Utah State after spending seven years as the head coach at Arkansas State, leading the Red Wolves to six-consecutive winning seasons and six-straight bowl games from 2014-19, including a 31-13 win against UCF in the 2016 Cure Bowl and a 34-26 win against FIU in the 2019 Camellia Bowl.
Arkansas State also won back-to-back Sun Belt Conference Championships under Anderson in 2015 and 2016 and competed for another in 2017 in A-State's regular-season finale that was a de facto championship game.
Entering the 2020 COVID season, the Red Wolves had won at least seven games, including at least five league games, every year under Anderson, including a nine-victory campaign in 2015 and eight-win seasons in 2016, 2018 and 2019. In all, Anderson posted a 51-37 (.580) record during his seven seasons at Arkansas State, including a 38-18 (.679) mark in the Sun Belt Conference.
Following the 2019 campaign, Anderson received the Capital One Orange Bowl-FWAA Courage Award and was named the Grant Teaff Coach of the Year, presented annually by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, as he guided the Red Wolves to an 8-5 record and Camellia Bowl championship after his wife, Wendy, passed away prior to the start of the season following a courageous battle with cancer.
He went to Arkansas State after spending the previous two seasons as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at North Carolina, where he helped lead the Tar Heels to an Atlantic Coast Conference Coastal Division title in 2012 and the Belk Bowl in 2013.
Anderson went to Chapel Hill after a record-setting run as Southern Miss's offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. The Golden Eagles set school records for total offense in each of Anderson's last two years. He was part of a Southern Miss staff that won a school-record 12 games in 2011.
He came to Southern Miss after spending the 2007 campaign at Louisiana as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. The Ragin' Cajuns posted the No. 6-rated rushing offense nationally (251.6 ypg) in 2007 and became the Sun Belt's first-ever 3,000-yard rushing team (3,019).
Anderson, who was in private business from 2004-06, previously worked at Middle Tennessee, where he helped direct an offensive unit as co-offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach from 2002-04.
He also spent three seasons at New Mexico, serving as the wide receivers coach in 2001 and running backs coach from 1999-2000. Before joining the FBS ranks, Anderson worked at Trinity Valley Community College (1995-98) in Athens, Texas, where he helped lead the Cardinals to the 1997 NJCAA National Championship.
His coaching career began at Eastern New Mexico in 1992 (graduate assistant) and 1993 (full-time), where he tutored the wide receivers. He then moved on to Howard Payne University in Brownwood, Texas, to coach the wide receivers as HPU won the Texas IAA conference title in 1994.
A two-year letterwinner at wide receiver for Sam Houston State from 1990-91, Anderson was named Southland Conference all-academic as a senior. He also played for two years as a quarterback and receiver at Baylor (1988-89) before transferring. Anderson graduated with his bachelor's degree in kinesiology from Sam Houston State in 1992. He also attained his master's degree in sports administration from Eastern New Mexico in 1994.
BLAKE ANDERSON FILE
Coaching History
2023 Utah State – Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks
2021-22 Utah State – Head Coach
2014-20 Arkansas State – Head Coach
2012-13 North Carolina – Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks
2010-11 Southern Miss – Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks
2008-09 Southern Miss – Run Game Coordinator/Quarterback
2007 Louisiana – Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks
2002-04 Middle Tennessee – Co-Offensive Coordinator/Wide Receivers
2001 New Mexico – Wide Receivers
1999-2000 New Mexico – Running Backs
1998 Trinity Valley CC – Offensive Coordinator
1995-97 Trinity Valley CC – Recruiting Coordinator/Quarterbacks/Wide Receivers/Defensive Backs
1994 Howard Payne – Wide Receivers
1993 Eastern New Mexico – Wide Receivers
1992 Eastern New Mexico – Graduate Assistant
Bowl Games (14)
Utah State (3): 2023 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl; 2022 SERVPRO First Responder Bowl; 2021 LA Bowl
Arkansas State (6): 2019 Camellia Bowl; 2018 Arizona Bowl; 2017 Camellia Bowl; 2016 Cure Bowl; 2015 New Orleans Bowl; 2014 GoDaddy.com Bowl
North Carolina (1): 2013 Belk Bowl
Southern Miss (4): 2011 Hawaii Bowl; 2010 Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl; 2009 New Orleans Bowl; 2008 R+L Carriers Bowl
National Championships (1)
Trinity Valley Community College (1) – NJCAA, 1997
Conference Championships (6)
Utah State (1) – Mountain West, 2021
Arkansas State (2) – Sun Belt Conference, 2015, 2016
Southern Miss (1) – Conference USA, 2011
Trinity Valley CC (1) – Texas Junior College Conference, 1997
Howard Payne (1) – Texas IA, 1994
Divisional Championships (2)
Utah State (1) – Mountain West, 2021
North Carolina (1) -– Atlantic Coast Conference Coastal Division, 2012
Playing Experience
1990-91 Sam Houston State – Wide Receiver
1988-89 Baylor – Quarterback and Wide Receiver
Education
1994 Eastern New Mexico – Sports Administration (M.S.)
1992 Sam Houston State – Kinesiology (B.S.)
"We are excited to announce Blake Anderson as the next leader of our football program," said McClain. "He brings a wealth of experience and a ten-year run as a successful head coach, including multiple conference championships in the Sun Belt, a Mountain West conference championship, and nine bowl appearances. Blake is an exceptional leader, a great communicator, and has the respect of the players and the staff throughout the Duff Center. We look forward to supporting him at the highest level and continuing the positive momentum for our program."
In his first year back with the program in 2025 – Anderson also served as an assistant coach for the Golden Eagles from 2008-11 – he helped the Golden Eagles make a six-game turnaround that included a five-game winning streak during the year. His passing offense ranked first in the Sun Belt Conference and the team was fifth in scoring.
During his 30 year career that has included six conference championships, 14 bowl games and a national championship on the junior college level, Anderson provided 10 successful seasons as a Division I head coach with stops at Arkansas State (2014-20) and Utah State (2021-23), registering a 74-54 (.578) overall head coaching record, including a 53-27 (.663) conference mark, which included nine bowl games and three conference titles.
Under Anderson, Utah State tied for the best turnaround in the nation in 2021, as the Aggies became the first FBS program ever to go from zero or one win to 11 wins the following season. Anderson, who was named the 2021 AFCA Region 5 Coach of the Year and a finalist for the Eddie Robinson National Coach of the Year Award, was the only first-year head coach in the nation to lead his team to nine or more wins.
During the 2022 campaign, Anderson led Utah State to six wins and an appearance in the SERVPRO First Responder Bowl. In his first season at Utah State, Anderson led the Aggies to their first-ever Mountain West Championship with a 46-13 win at No. 19 San Diego State, along with a bowl win over Oregon State, a school-record-tying 11 wins and ranked No. 24th in the final Associated Press. Anderson led Utah State to six wins and its 11th bowl game in the past 13 seasons in 2023 as it played in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl.
He joined Utah State after spending seven years as the head coach at Arkansas State, leading the Red Wolves to six-consecutive winning seasons and six-straight bowl games from 2014-19, including a 31-13 win against UCF in the 2016 Cure Bowl and a 34-26 win against FIU in the 2019 Camellia Bowl.
Arkansas State also won back-to-back Sun Belt Conference Championships under Anderson in 2015 and 2016 and competed for another in 2017 in A-State's regular-season finale that was a de facto championship game.
Entering the 2020 COVID season, the Red Wolves had won at least seven games, including at least five league games, every year under Anderson, including a nine-victory campaign in 2015 and eight-win seasons in 2016, 2018 and 2019. In all, Anderson posted a 51-37 (.580) record during his seven seasons at Arkansas State, including a 38-18 (.679) mark in the Sun Belt Conference.
Following the 2019 campaign, Anderson received the Capital One Orange Bowl-FWAA Courage Award and was named the Grant Teaff Coach of the Year, presented annually by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, as he guided the Red Wolves to an 8-5 record and Camellia Bowl championship after his wife, Wendy, passed away prior to the start of the season following a courageous battle with cancer.
He went to Arkansas State after spending the previous two seasons as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at North Carolina, where he helped lead the Tar Heels to an Atlantic Coast Conference Coastal Division title in 2012 and the Belk Bowl in 2013.
Anderson went to Chapel Hill after a record-setting run as Southern Miss's offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. The Golden Eagles set school records for total offense in each of Anderson's last two years. He was part of a Southern Miss staff that won a school-record 12 games in 2011.
He came to Southern Miss after spending the 2007 campaign at Louisiana as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. The Ragin' Cajuns posted the No. 6-rated rushing offense nationally (251.6 ypg) in 2007 and became the Sun Belt's first-ever 3,000-yard rushing team (3,019).
Anderson, who was in private business from 2004-06, previously worked at Middle Tennessee, where he helped direct an offensive unit as co-offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach from 2002-04.
He also spent three seasons at New Mexico, serving as the wide receivers coach in 2001 and running backs coach from 1999-2000. Before joining the FBS ranks, Anderson worked at Trinity Valley Community College (1995-98) in Athens, Texas, where he helped lead the Cardinals to the 1997 NJCAA National Championship.
His coaching career began at Eastern New Mexico in 1992 (graduate assistant) and 1993 (full-time), where he tutored the wide receivers. He then moved on to Howard Payne University in Brownwood, Texas, to coach the wide receivers as HPU won the Texas IAA conference title in 1994.
A two-year letterwinner at wide receiver for Sam Houston State from 1990-91, Anderson was named Southland Conference all-academic as a senior. He also played for two years as a quarterback and receiver at Baylor (1988-89) before transferring. Anderson graduated with his bachelor's degree in kinesiology from Sam Houston State in 1992. He also attained his master's degree in sports administration from Eastern New Mexico in 1994.
BLAKE ANDERSON FILE
Coaching History
2023 Utah State – Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks
2021-22 Utah State – Head Coach
2014-20 Arkansas State – Head Coach
2012-13 North Carolina – Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks
2010-11 Southern Miss – Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks
2008-09 Southern Miss – Run Game Coordinator/Quarterback
2007 Louisiana – Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks
2002-04 Middle Tennessee – Co-Offensive Coordinator/Wide Receivers
2001 New Mexico – Wide Receivers
1999-2000 New Mexico – Running Backs
1998 Trinity Valley CC – Offensive Coordinator
1995-97 Trinity Valley CC – Recruiting Coordinator/Quarterbacks/Wide Receivers/Defensive Backs
1994 Howard Payne – Wide Receivers
1993 Eastern New Mexico – Wide Receivers
1992 Eastern New Mexico – Graduate Assistant
Bowl Games (14)
Utah State (3): 2023 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl; 2022 SERVPRO First Responder Bowl; 2021 LA Bowl
Arkansas State (6): 2019 Camellia Bowl; 2018 Arizona Bowl; 2017 Camellia Bowl; 2016 Cure Bowl; 2015 New Orleans Bowl; 2014 GoDaddy.com Bowl
North Carolina (1): 2013 Belk Bowl
Southern Miss (4): 2011 Hawaii Bowl; 2010 Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl; 2009 New Orleans Bowl; 2008 R+L Carriers Bowl
National Championships (1)
Trinity Valley Community College (1) – NJCAA, 1997
Conference Championships (6)
Utah State (1) – Mountain West, 2021
Arkansas State (2) – Sun Belt Conference, 2015, 2016
Southern Miss (1) – Conference USA, 2011
Trinity Valley CC (1) – Texas Junior College Conference, 1997
Howard Payne (1) – Texas IA, 1994
Divisional Championships (2)
Utah State (1) – Mountain West, 2021
North Carolina (1) -– Atlantic Coast Conference Coastal Division, 2012
Playing Experience
1990-91 Sam Houston State – Wide Receiver
1988-89 Baylor – Quarterback and Wide Receiver
Education
1994 Eastern New Mexico – Sports Administration (M.S.)
1992 Sam Houston State – Kinesiology (B.S.)
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