Blake Robert Anderson (born March 24, 1969) is an

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

coach and former player who is currently serving in his second stint as

offensive coordinator An offensive coordinator (OC) is a Coach (sport), coach responsible for a gridiron football team's offense (American football), offense. Generally, the offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator represent the second ...

at the

University of Southern Mississippi The University of Southern Mississippi (Southern Miss or USM) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award bac ...

. Anderson previously served as the head coach at

Utah State University Utah State University (USU or Utah State) is a public university, public land grant colleges, land-grant research university with its main campus in Logan, Utah, United States. Founded in 1888 under the Morrill Land-Grant Acts as Utah's federal ...

from 2021 to 2023,

Arkansas State University Arkansas State University (A-State or ASU) is a public university, public research university in Jonesboro, Arkansas, United States. It is the flagship campus of the Arkansas State University System and the second-largest university in the st ...

from 2014 to 2020, the

at the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the Public university, public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referre ...

from 2012 to 2013, and the offensive coordinator, run game coordinator and

quarterbacks coach In American football, a position coach is a team official in charge of coaching a specific position group. Position coaches have more specialized duties than the head coach, associate and assistant coach, and the offensive and defensive coordina ...

at Southern Miss from 2009 to 2011.

Playing career

Anderson began his playing career as a

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

and

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

Baylor University Baylor University is a Private university, private Baptist research university in Waco, Texas, United States. It was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Te ...

from 1987 to 1989, but tore his ACL during practice. After his recovery, he chose to transfer to

Sam Houston State University Sam Houston State University (Sam Houston, SHSU or Sam) is a public research university in Huntsville, Texas, United States. Founded in 1879, it is the third-oldest public college or university in Texas. It is one of the first normal schools wes ...

where he played as a wide receiver for the Bearkats from 1989 to 1991. At Sam Houston State, he was named to the

Southland Conference The Southland Conference (SLC) is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the South Central United States (specifically Texas and Louisiana). It participates in the NCAA's Division I for all sports; for football, it participates in ...

All-Academic team as a senior. During his college days, he played in the

I formation The I formation is one of the most common offensive formations in American football. The I formation draws its name from the vertical (as viewed from the opposing endzone) alignment of quarterback, fullback, and running back, particularly wh ...

and

Veer The Veer is an option running play often associated with option offenses in American football, made famous at the College football, collegiate level by Bill Yeoman's Houston Cougars football, Houston Cougars. It is currently run primarily at Hi ...

offenses popular at the time. Sam Houston State defensive coordinator

Mike Lucas Michael Lucas (born March 7, 1959) is an American college football coach. He is the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach for Southwestern Oklahoma State University, positions he has held since 2024. From 2007 through the 2011 season he wa ...

told Anderson that he believed he was suited for a coaching role.

Coaching career

Eastern New Mexico (1992–1993)

Anderson got his start from Howard Stearns at the

Eastern New Mexico Greyhounds The Eastern New Mexico Greyhounds are the athletic teams that represent Eastern New Mexico University, located in Portales, New Mexico, in NCAA Division II intercollegiate sports. The Greyhounds compete as members of the Lone Star Conference for ...

as a graduate assistant in 1992 and received a full-time position there tutoring wide receivers for the Greyhounds in 1993.

Howard Payne (1994)

In 1994, he coached wide receivers for the

American Southwest Conference The American Southwest Conference (ASC) is an intercollegiate athletic conference, founded in 1996, whose member schools compete in the NCAA's Division III. All member schools are located in the state of Texas. The conference competes in baseb ...

co-champion Howard Payne University Yellow Jackets under head coach Vance Gibson.

Trinity Valley (1995–1998)

Anderson joined Trinity Valley in 1995 as an assistant. He was the

during the Cardinals' run to the 1997 NJCAA National Championship under coach Scott Conley.

New Mexico (1999–2001)

Before the 1999 season, he joined

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

as running backs coach under

Rocky Long Roderick John Long Jr. (born January 27, 1950) is an American college football coach and former player currently working as a defensive analyst at Fort Lewis Skyhawks#Football, Fort Lewis College. He was previously the defensive coordinator at S ...

and served in that position until 2000. During the 2001 season, he took the wide receivers coaching position. During the 2000 season his rushing attack averaged 148 yards per game which accounted for 56% of the team's offensive production.

Middle Tennessee (2002–2004)

In 2002

Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders are the men's and women's athletic teams at Middle Tennessee State University, in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. MT athletic teams participate in NCAA Division I ( Bowl Subdivision in football) in Conference USA. MT co ...

coach

Andy McCollum Andrew Jon McCollum (born June 2, 1970) is an American former professional football player who was a center for 15 seasons in the National Football League for three teams. He played college football at Toledo Rockets. He was signed by the M ...

hired Anderson to serve as co-offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach in replacement of

Larry Fedora Herbert Lawrence Fedora (born September 10, 1962) is an American football coach and former player who is the former coach and General manager (American football), general manager for the New Orleans Breakers (2022), New Orleans Breakers of the Un ...

who had left for

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. At Middle Tennessee he was exposed to variations of the

hurry-up offense The hurry-up offense is an American football offensive style, which has two different but related forms in which the offensive team avoids delays between plays. The hurry-up, no-huddle offense (HUNH) refers to avoiding or shortening the huddle t ...

which dramatically changed his outlook. The Blue Raiders passing offense increased each year under his tenure, improving from 154.0 yards per game in 2002 to 226.7 in 2003 and 267.7 in 2004. Anderson's offense led the

Sun Belt Conference The Sun Belt Conference (SBC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference that has been affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA's NCAA Division I, Division I since 1976. Originally a non-football confe ...

in scoring offense in 2003 and saw the school's first 1,000 yard receiver in 2004. After leaving Middle Tennessee he left coaching for three years for a stint in private business.

Louisiana–Lafayette (2007)

Anderson was hired by Coach Rickey Bustle as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the

Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns are the athletic teams of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. The college has been competing athletically since 1901. The Ragin' Cajuns compete in NCAA Division I, fielding 16 varsity teams. Nickname The unive ...

for the 2007 football season, replacing Rob Christophel. Anderson's offense churned out over 250 yards per game on the ground, making it the #6 ranked rushing offense in the nation. The 2007 Ragin' Cajuns became the Sun Belt's first ever 3,000-yard rushing team.

Southern Miss (2008–2011)

Anderson joined

Southern Miss Golden Eagles The Southern Miss Golden Eagles and Lady Eagles (also known as Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles and Lady Eagles) are the intercollegiate athletics teams that represent the University of Southern Mississippi (USM), located in Hattiesburg, Miss ...

in 2008 as quarterbacks coach and run game coordinator under new coach Fedora. He mentored record-setting future

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

quarterback Austin Davis during his freshman and sophomore years and was promoted to offensive coordinator for the 2010 season where the Golden Eagles averaged 36.9 points per game. Anderson was the play-caller during Southern Miss's 12-win season in 2011 including the

Conference USA Football Championship Game The Conference USA Football Championship Game is an annual American football game that has determined the season champion of Conference USA (CUSA) since 2005. History The championship game from 2005 to 2021 showcased the CUSA East Division regula ...

victory over the previously unbeaten

Houston Cougars The Houston Cougars are the athletic teams representing the University of Houston. Informally, the Houston Cougars have also been referred to as the Coogs, UH, or simply Houston. Houston's nickname was suggested by early physical education inst ...

. Southern Miss capped off the 2011 season with a 24–17 victory over

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

in the

Hawaii Bowl The Hawaii Bowl is a college football bowl game that has been played in the Honolulu, Hawaii, area since 2002. The game was originally held at Aloha Stadium in Halawa, Hawaii, a suburb of Honolulu, before moving to the Clarence T. C. Ching At ...

North Carolina (2012–2013)

When Fedora left Southern Miss for the

North Carolina Tar Heels The North Carolina Tar Heels (also Carolina Tar Heels) are the college sports in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The name Tar Heel is a nickname used to refer to ...

in 2012 he took Anderson along as his offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. In his inaugural season with the Tar Heels, Anderson oversaw an offense that produced 485.6 yards per game, setting over 35 school records, and ending the campaign ranked eighth in the nation in scoring. During the 2013 campaign his offense gained 432.4 yards per game.

Arkansas State (2014–2020)

Anderson was announced as

Arkansas State Arkansas State University (A-State or ASU) is a public research university in Jonesboro, Arkansas, United States. It is the flagship campus of the Arkansas State University System and the second-largest university in the state. The university ...

's head coach on December 19, 2013. He became Arkansas State's fifth head coach in five years, replacing

Bryan Harsin Bryan Dale Harsin (born November 1, 1976) is an American college football coach. He is the offensive coordinator at California. He was the head coach for the Auburn Tigers from 2021–2022. Prior to coaching at Auburn, he coached the Boise State ...

who had left for

Boise State Boise State University (BSU) is a public research university in Boise, Idaho, United States. Founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church, it became an independent junior college in 1934 and has been awarding baccalaureate and master's degrees It ...

. Arkansas State played in 6 consecutive bowl games and won 2 Sun Belt conference championships under Anderson.

Utah State (2021–2023)

On December 12, 2020, Anderson was hired to be the head coach at

, replacing

Gary Andersen Gary Lee Andersen (born February 19, 1964) is an American football coach who was most recently head football coach at Utah State University. Andersen has also been the head football coach of Southern Utah (2003), Wisconsin (2013–2014), and O ...

. In his first season, he guided the team to an 11–3 record, winning the Mountain West championship against

San Diego State San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California, United States. Founded in 1897, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system. SDSU is ...

and the inaugural

LA Bowl The LA Bowl is an annual NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college football bowl game played at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, first played in December 2021. The bowl has tie-ins with the Mountain West Conference, Mountain ...

against

Oregon State Oregon State University (OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate degree programs and a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees through all 11 of the universit ...

. His second and third seasons saw the Aggies regress to back-to-back 6–7 records, both ending in bowl losses. Utah State announced its intention to fire Anderson on July 2, 2024, prior to the start of the 2024 football season, which was made formal on July 18. Following an internal investigation, he was alleged to have been non-compliant with university rules regarding the reporting of complaints of sexual misconduct. Defensive coordinator Nate Dreiling succeeded Anderson as interim head coach.

Return to Southern Miss (2025– )

On December 13, 2024, Anderson was named the returning offensive coordinator on new head coach Charles Huff's staff.

Personal life

Anderson was born in

Jonesboro, Arkansas Jonesboro () is a city located on Crowley's Ridge in the northeastern corner of the U.S. State of Arkansas. Jonesboro is one of two county seats of Craighead County, Arkansas, Craighead County. In 2023, the city had an estimated population of ...

, but moved to

Hubbard, Texas Hubbard is a city in Hill County, Texas, United States. It was named for Texas Governor Richard B. Hubbard. The city is northeast of Waco. The population was 1,394 at the 2020 census, down from 1,423 at the 2010 census. History Hubbard was ...

, at an early age. He graduated from Hubbard High School. He obtained a degree in

kinesiology Kinesiology () is the scientific study of human body movement. Kinesiology addresses physiological, anatomical, Biomechanics, biomechanical, Pathology, pathological, neuropsychological principles and mechanisms of movement. Applications of kines ...

from Sam Houston State in 1992 and his master's degree in

sports administration The Sports Administration (SA; ) is a sub-agency of the Taiwanese Ministry of Education. History The Sport Administration was initially established in 1932 as the Sports Council (體育委員會). On 12 January 1998, the Sports Affairs Council ...

from

Eastern New Mexico University Eastern New Mexico University (ENMU or Eastern) is a public university with a main campus in Portales, New Mexico, and two associate degree-granting branches, one at Ruidoso and one at Roswell. ENMU is New Mexico's largest regional comprehensi ...

in 1994. Anderson married his first wife, Wendy, in 1992. They had three children together: sons Coleton and Cason, and daughter Callie. Wendy died on August 20, 2019 at the age of 49, after public battle with an aggressive form of

breast cancer Breast cancer is a cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a Breast lump, lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, Milk-rejection sign, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipp ...

. Defensive coordinator David Duggan coached the team during Anderson's leave. Following his move to Utah State, Anderson married the former Brittany King in 2021 and adopted her two daughters Collins and Ellison. Further tragedy struck in February 2022 when Cason Anderson died by suicide at the age of 21. Anderson is a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

Head coaching record

References

External links

Arkansas State profile

Utah State profile

Southern Miss profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Anderson, Blake 1969 births Living people American football quarterbacks American football wide receivers Arkansas State Red Wolves football coaches Baylor Bears football players Eastern New Mexico Greyhounds football coaches Howard Payne Yellow Jackets football coaches Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football coaches Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football coaches New Mexico Lobos football coaches North Carolina Tar Heels football coaches Sam Houston Bearkats football players Southern Miss Golden Eagles football coaches Trinity Valley Cardinals football coaches Utah State Aggies football coaches People from Hubbard, Texas Coaches of American football from Texas Players of American football from Texas People from Jonesboro, Arkansas