Charles Huff can do a bit of everything: Give keynote addresses at the AFCA Convention in Charlotte, N.C., and find his next special teams coordinator at Southern Miss as well.
Sources tell FootballScoop that Huff has done just that.
After initially bringing Johnathan Galante with him from Marshall to Southern Miss, only to see the up-and-coming Galante snagged away by Jon Sumrall's Tulane program, Huff is moving to add another bright young coach with experience coordinating special teams at the FBS level.
Multiple sources tell FootballScoop that Huff is finalizing a deal with Joe Bolden to become the new special teams coordinator at Southern Miss as Huff transitions into a new challenge after leading Marshall to the 2024 SunBelt Conference title.
A former University of Michigan player, Bolden spent the past two seasons as the special teams coordinator under Kevin Wilson at Tulsa, where Bolden also worked with the Golden Hurricane defense and was co-defensive running game coordinator during the 2024 campaign.
Bolden previously coordinated special teams at Nevada.
He also has Power Conference experience from a two-year run on Ryan Day's Ohio State staffs in 2020-21. There, Bolden served as a defensive quality control coach.
Additionally, Bolden served on the staffs of USC and Washington State before his turn in Columbus under Day.
A Cincinnati native, Bolden was a multi-year starter during his playing career at Michigan, served as a team captain and also earned Honorable Mention All-Big Ten Conference honors in 2015.
Southern Miss hired away Huff from Marshall last month to revive its sagging program.
The Golden Eagles are scheduled to open their 2025 season Aug. 30 at Mississippi State, where Huff previously served as the Bulldogs assistant head coach and running game coordinator under then-head coach Joe Moorhead.