Source: Marshall Trims List of Coaching Candidates to Three Finalists

Marshall University’s search to replace football coach Doc Holliday has produced three finalists, a source close to the search committee has told WVSN.

MU narrowed its list this week to Louisville offensive coordinator Dwayne Ledford, Alabama associate head coach/running backs coach Charles Huff and Brad Lambert — Marshall’s most recent defensive coordinator under Holliday.

Ledford, who coaches the offensive line in addition to his duties as offensive coordinator at Louisville, was a player at East Carolina in the 1990s when current Marshall athletic director Mike Hamrick was the Pirates’ athletic director. After college, Ledford went on to a professional playing career spanning six years between four NFL teams. Ledford then began his coaching career as an assistant strength and conditioning coach at North Carolina in 2005 and made stops at East Carolina, Gardner-Webb, Tennessee State and Appalachian State before landing at Louisville.

Huff’s playing career started as a walk-on at Hampton and ended with him being a captain for the Pirates as a senior before immediately getting into coaching. His stops along the way have included Tennessee State, Maryland, Hampton, Vanderbilt, the Buffalo Bills, Western Michigan, Penn State and Mississippi State before joining Nick Saban’s Crimson Tide staff in 2019. Huff is regarded as one of the nation’s top recruiters — evident by his current No. 1 ranking among recruiters according to 247Sports.

Lambert has been Marshall’s defensive coordinator since 2019 and helped turn the Herd defense into one of the nation’s best in 2020. Marshall ranked No. 1 in scoring defense and No. 2 in total defense this season, and Lambert — a favorite among the current Marshall players — was a Broyles Award nominee as the nation’s top assistant coach this season. Prior to his time at Marshall, Lambert was the first coach in Charlotte program history and guided the 49ers from 2011 through 2018.

Ledford, Huff and Lambert are expected to interview on campus in the coming days with Marshall hopeful to make a hire soon, according to the source.