By Samantha Cart
In celebration of those who have adopted our Mountain Mama as their own, “Talent Transplant” recognizes Mountaineers who were born elsewhere but relocated here, embraced our beloved state and now help us work toward a brighter future.
“We believe in our family that a place is what you make it.”
Charles Huff grew up on a small farm in Denton, MD. Since then, he has lived in a variety of places—including Hampton, VA; Starkville, MS; State College, PA; and Tuscaloosa, AL—as he pursued his passion for playing and coaching football.
In January, that passion brought him to Huntington, WV, when he was named the 30th head football coach at Marshall University—a move he believes was divinely planned for him.
“I had zero reservations about moving my family here,” he says. “I believe when you take a job, you have to look at the whole picture, not just part of it. For me, a university with such great tradition and history was an unbelievable opportunity. One of the things that drew me here was the close-knit community and the love and passion for the university. In my opinion, it rivals some major colleges.”
Huff had visited the Mountain State once before while serving as associate head coach and running backs coach for the University of Alabama. He traveled with Alabama head coach and West Virginia native Nick Saban last year to visit a recruit.
“While we were traveling, Saban gave me the rundown on the state,” he recalls. “When this job came up later, he said, ‘I think it is a great opportunity. I want to make sure you understand, though, to be careful. Huntington is one of those places where you go and fall in love. Then one day you look up, and it’s 15 years later and you are still there. It is one of those places that grabs you and wraps you up.’”
Huff’s diverse background has laid a strong foundation for his new role as head coach. He was a walk-on at Hampton University who earned a full scholarship and has since garnered 17 years of coaching experience in various roles at both the NFL and collegiate levels.
His resume includes coaching positions at the University of Alabama, Mississippi State University, Penn State University, Western Michigan University, Vanderbilt University, Hampton University, University of Maryland and Tennessee State University, as well as assistant running backs coach for the Buffalo Bills.
“I fully understand the maturation process,” he says. “I have been everybody in that locker room—a walk-on, a scholarship player, a backup, a starter and a coach. I think it helps me relate to the players. My college coach was very driven about turning young boys into men and teaching lessons that are not only useful in football but things you need to know in life. I still use a lot of those tools and learning lessons today.”
Huff believes his experience allows him to see all sides of the game, as well as the different personalities of each group of players.
“From an Xs and Os standpoint, I have great knowledge because I have coached different positions and have had to learn and teach different aspects of the game, which I think helps when you become a head coach because you have a wider knowledge base of the individuals in your program,” he says. “If you’ve always coached quarterbacks, you see the game and think like a quarterback. I have coached multiple positions, so I know how different groups learn and receive information and what motivates them.”
One of the things Huff is most excited about is Marshall’s strong tie to the community.
“The plane crash and the rebirth have forever tied these two entities together,” he says. “There are a lot of universities that have a lot of tradition and history, but because of where the world has gone now, people come and go, people move and bounce around. There are very few universities that have such a deep connection to the community. Marshall is Huntington, and Huntington is Marshall. Those strings are tied tightly, and that separates this university from a lot of other places.”
While Huff has already taken steps to learn and honor Marshall’s history and traditions, he also wants to make sure the university never stops moving forward.
“I want our players and our community to understand that in order for us to grow and benefit from this history, we have to continue to move forward,” he says. “That is not forgetting the past but instead understanding that as great we did in ’74, ’75, the ’80s and ’99, those memories aren’t going to help us make plays now. We have to continue to step forward and evolve.”
For Huff, this evolution includes helping new students, players and community members create their own memories and histories in Huntington. He plans to do this by immersing himself in the Huntington community.
“This university represents something the world needs, and it is our job to tell the story,” he says. “I think the world needs a little bit of community and connection, a little bit of a tragic story with a great rise and a little bit of hope. I think the world needs a little bit of ‘yes, we’ve been knocked down, but we are not knocked out,’ and I think Marshall is the vehicle to tell that story.”
One of Huff’s biggest challenges as he prepares for the 2021 season opener against Navy in his home state of Maryland is that Marshall’s program does not require a rebuild—just a restart. In 2020, the Herd went undefeated for much of the season.
“This team has won before,” he says. “It’s not like it’s the first time that the program is going to win, so the biggest challenge is convincing people to come for something that may not look completely different from what they have seen in the past. We do that by creating an environment inside and outside the stadium. I’m going to do that by connecting with the community. People have to want to come see people they feel they have a connection to versus just wanting to see winning. We need to capitalize on the momentum that has already been built while still showing progress.”
Part of Huff’s strategy both for coaching and for life is his philosophy that everyone should be working to be a champion in everything they do.
“I think everyone—regardless of their chosen field of endeavor—should want to be the best,” he says. “You should wake up every day and try to make that the best day you’ve ever had. Take pride in your work. Take pride in your small piece to this big puzzle. I want everyone in Huntington and everyone on campus to understand that their role is just as important as the next person’s. The more people we can get to dominate or be champions in their lane, the better. Then we are not waiting for one person to lead the charge. If everybody takes an individual approach to be the best they can be in their role, how great can this place be? That is uncomfortable for some people because the body is set to be average. Sometimes, in order to be a champion, you have to be uncomfortable. Our players may hurt a little bit to maximize their ability. I think it is a good platform for me in this program to show what it is like to work every day to be a little bit better. That doesn’t mean that you’re going to be perfect every day. I tell my players all the time that I need 100% of whoever you are today. If you are at 80% today, I need 100% of your 80. The more of those days we can put together in a row consistently—one day when we look up, we will be champions.”
