Fall Camp Notebook: The Blake Anderson Offense

Fall Camp Notebook: The Blake Anderson Offense

7/31/2025 5:30:00 PM | Football

HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- Southern Miss hits the Joe P. Park Practice Facility field for day two of fall camp on Thursday evening. As one field is littered with defensive players, it's the side with the offensive players that will be today's focus.

With just seven returners on the offensive side of the ball, the Golden Eagles are working on laying the foundation of how they want their offense to run under Anderson. Notable returners include offensive lineman Greg Nunnery who started all 12 games, wide receiver Davis Dalton who started 10 of the 12 games he played in, and tight end Kyirin Heath who started four games. The remaining returners include quarterback Kyle McCormick, quarterback John White, wide receiver Zavian Hales and offensive lineman Larry Edwards.

Offensive coordinator Blake Anderson, who returns for his second stint in Hattiesburg, discussed his offense in Wednesday's pre-camp press conference. Below is a breakdown of key topics he discussed.

Established Quarterback Room
The quarterback room is led by the Sun Belt Preseason Offensive Player of the Year Braylon Braxton. The Marshall transfer made a name for himself in the league last season as he was named Most Valuable Player of the Game in the league championship and earned Sun Belt Newcomer of the Year honors. The Frisco, Texas native started eight games for Marshall, throwing for 1,624 yards and 19 touchdowns, while going 8-0. He ran for another 610 yards and scored four touchdowns on the ground.

Southern Miss added Landry Lyddy and Jacobe Robinson to the room with the intention of adding competition amongst the group. Although transferring from UAB, Lyddy's best season came at Louisiana Tech as a freshman. In 2022, the Stonewall, La. product threw for 767 yards and three touchdowns. Robinson played in two games at Boston College but was a heralded four-star recruit out of Henderson, Texas.

John White saw action in four games for Southern Miss last season as he threw for 240 yards. McCormick appeared in one game last season and Denzel Gardner joins the group from DeMatha Catholic High School.

Anderson on Braxton: "Well, I've been pleased with him. I purposely just kind of wanted a blank slate, let him be who he wanted to be, and he's done everything I've asked him to do. He's been extremely mature about the process, and he spent the extra time this offseason. We have not dumbed it down and I've thrown a lot on him, and he's handled it at a really high rate. We do want to push the ball vertically and we want to spread the field sideline to sideline. I think the one thing that we've done well is figure out what the personality of our room is now and molded the offense to be what they're good at."

What's Going on in the Trenches
Greg Nunnery returns to the offensive line as the only Southern Miss student-athlete to play and start in all 12 games from the 2024 season. Luke Rogers played nine games with one start last season and Larry Edwards also returns but redshirted during his freshman season.

One member of the group has been getting a lot of praise early on in camp — Aloali'i Maui. Known as Maui to his teammates and coaches, the senior transferred from Utah State after starting 12 games for the Aggies last season. The American Samoa native started 21 games over two years at Utah State and played in a career-high 779 snaps his junior season.

Anderson on Maui: Well, the best thing he brings to the line is just a violent, very competitive, physical demeanor. That's who he is to the core. You get out there and you start pulling tug-of-war tires, nobody wants to go up against him. And he earned the respect of everybody on both sides of the ball really quickly with how competitive, how physical, and violent he is. He loves ball, just kind of wants to quietly go out and just do his job at a really high level every day. He's one of my favorite dudes to be around every day and I think our team respects what he brings to the table, which is a physical, nasty presence.

The rest of the room has no shortage of experience as seven upperclassmen joined the Golden Eagles with playing experience at four-year schools. That group includes graduate transfer Cooper Frazier (Samford), redshirt junior Carlos Slayden (Troy), redshirt senior Broderick Roman (Eastern Michigan), redshirt junior Christian Anderson (Alabama A&M), redshirt senior Aaryn Parks (South Carolina), redshirt junior Hayes Creel (McNeese) and redshirt senior Jez Janvier (Eastern Michigan). The rest of the room features RJ Whitehead, Camden Myers, Jahmir Davis, Hayden Breal, Chase Malamala and Liam Cassidy.

Anderson on the Group: We're only going to be as good as they let us be. We can have skill all over the place, but if we can't get it to them, if we can't run the ball effectively, it makes for a really long day. People can just kind of keep things in front of you and make it really frustrating. So, balance and being able to run the ball and play physically is at a premium for us, and that starts up front. I think we have created a room where we've got eight, nine, maybe ten guys that we can work with to create your five starters and the next center to go, the next interior guy to go, the next edge guy to go. There are years that we haven't had that kind of depth and that kind of experience. We need to stay healthy, and some guys have to develop, but adding the four that we did this summer that all have played or transferred in with at least some experience as starters at where they came from, to go with what we had in the spring, I think we have a chance to be really good up front.

Plenty of Weapons at His Disposal
Anderson wasn't shy to mention the type of players he has at his disposal on the offensive side of the ball. One that he noted was tight end Kyirin Heath, who is a match up nightmare due to his size and speed. Despite only 15 catches last season for 220 yards, Heath showed flashes of the type of player he can be when the quarterbacks involve the 6-foot-5 tight end.

Southern Miss also has a three-headed monster in the running back room with Robert Briggs (Utah State), Matt Jones (Ole Miss) and Jeffery Pittman (Mississippi State). The group has combined for over 1,437 yards on the ground at their previous schools and give Anderson different looks out of the backfield. Micah Davis (Ole Miss) is a dangerous weapon at wide receiver and one that Anderson knows well. Davis and Anderson teamed up at Utah State in 2023 and Davis had 628 receiving yards and six touchdowns.

Braxton will also have the luxury of throwing to three of his top four receivers at Marshall last season. Chuck Montgomery, Carl Chester, and Elijah Metcalf all transferred to Southern Miss. The trio combined for 929 yards and nine touchdowns last season — each had three scores.

Anderson on the Skill Groups: I'm a much better coach and better play caller when we've got weapons that can get the ball and make things happen. I think we have the ability -- again, assuming that we can develop like we should, and guys stay healthy -- to put defenses in a pretty good bind. We have speed, size and length on the outside. We can put guys in the slot that can run by you or out quick you. Kyirin [Heath] is a matchup nightmare for a lot of people. We've added a couple guys in there so it's not all on his plate — we've added two freshmen and two transfers. That room looks completely different than it did a year ago and even different than it did in the spring. So, yeah, I mean, my idea of balance is the defense not knowing where it's coming from next. I literally want all of our skill guys to touch it. I want to use every inch of grass, side to side, and every inch of grass north and south. What we've done at the running back room...I think any three of those guys can go. The group that came from Marshall all bring different kind of fun little skill sets. Now the hard part for me is figuring out what I want to do next and how do I get it.

#PackTheRock
Single game tickets went live to the general public on Wednesday morning. The Golden Eagles host seven opponents this season, including a pair of in-state foes to start the season. Season tickets are still available for as low as $99 for all seven home games. Fans are encouraged to buy now as Section E and South End Zone are approaching sellouts for Mississippi State. The To The Top Terrace, a group opportunity with food and beverage included, is sold out for the Mississippi State game and approaching a sellout for Jackson State. Visit SouthernMiss.com/Tickets to buy today.

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