Tony Gibson jumped right into recruiting at Marshall in his first college head coaching job after nearly three decades as an assistant.
It involved his own players.
The roster took an immediate hit after Charles Huff was named coach at Southern Miss on Sunday while Gibson, the defensive coordinator at N.C. State, was announced as his replacement less than an hour later.
The transfer portal opened the next day. By Thursday, at least 25 Marshall players were in it.
Gibson held a meeting shortly after arriving on campus in Huntington to introduce himself to the team. He’s following that up with phone calls, text messages and more meetings Friday and Saturday.
“Any time coaches leave to take other jobs, it is emotional,” Gibson said at a news conference Thursday. “And kids that are 18-to-22 years old are going to make emotional decisions instead of just breathing for a day or two.”
Many who entered the portal and can still come back were veterans, including all three quarterbacks who played this season: Braylon Braxton, Stone Earle and Cole Pennington. So did leading rusher A.J. Turner and three of the team’s top seven wide receivers. On defense, four of the seven leading tacklers are in the portal, including leading tackler Jaden Yates at linebacker.
Gibson signed a memorandum of understanding to coach at Marshall on Dec. 3. Huff, whose contract expired after this season and had never signed an extension, left one day after Marshall beat Louisiana-Lafayette in the Sun Belt championship game. The Herd (10-3) will play No. 19 Army on Dec. 28 in the Independence Bowl.
Under his five-year agreement, Gibson will be paid an annual salary of $1 million, compared with $750,000 for Huff. Gibson’s buyout is $4 million if he accepts a job at another Division I school or with a professional league or team before February 2026. It will be reduced by $1 million each year after that.
Gibson, 52, has his doubts the buyout will come into play. He grew up in the small coal mining community of Van, West Virginia, and it has been his wish to move back to his native state. He has been an assistant at Power 4 schools for the past 24 seasons and said he’s moved his family 15 times in the past.
“Trust me when I tell you this, I am home. And I am staying home,” Gibson said. “And it’s going to be our last house. This I promise.”
During Gibson’s first of two stints on West Virginia’s staff, the Mountaineers regularly played Marshall in the Friends of Coal Bowl two decades ago. Despite Marshall going 0-7 in the series from 2006 to 2012, he’d like to see it return.
As for the games already penciled in, it will be a daunting task right away, and Gibson turned to athletic director Christian Spears for a mild scolding.
“Thank you for scheduling Georgia as my first game as a football coach,” Gibson said to the crowd’s laughter.