A Homecoming of a Football Idol.
Few people in the history of football have had a revered name like that of Marshall Faulk. Faulk is said to be making his first full-time head coaching position at Southern University after a legendary career in playing, as well as an unsuccessful experience on the Colorado Buffaloes coaching staff under Deion Sanders. The relocation takes him back to Louisiana – a significant relocation to a New Orleans native – and it is also a significant relocation to the Southern University football program.
It is not just another coaching recruitment. It is an expression of aspiration: a legendary HBCU aims to regain its glory, and the fact that they have recruited a Pro Football Hall of Famer such as Faulk demonstrates that they are not fooling around. The three-year, with an option, bargain is a show of good faith, and anticipations, on the part of fans, alumni, and the rest of the college football fraternity, are already very high.
What Faulk Bears to the Table.
Faulk isn’t a figurehead. His off-field resume is as good as on the field. He was a second-overall draft pick, Super Bowl champion, NFL MVP, and one of the most feared running backs of his time as a player. He became a coach in 2025, and his coaching tenure as the coach of Colorado running backs saw the school change a dismal rushing unit into an extremely better one, which is an indication that his knowledge of the game is not just specific to his own performance as an athlete.
Faulk is not only X and O, but he is credible. To recruits, to fans, to the community, his name in itself is a source of attraction. To a program that has had a bad omen as of late, particularly following a poor season that has involved a change in coaches and mixed performances, such credibility may be a precious item. However, more than fame, perhaps what is important is the fact that Faulk is ready to teach, mentor, and mold young men. He has said that he would like to share what he has learned, not as an outstanding running back but as an athlete who was able to reach the height of challenges and opportunities of professional football.
An opportunity to bring Back Fame to a Famous Show.
Southern University is a football-heavy institution, just as many other HBCUs are. The history, the fans, the community pride, all these are what make Southern unique. However, over the recent years, there has been a lack of consistency on the field, and to some degree, this has tarnished that shine. The team has been experiencing various changes in coaches, and stability has not been achieved.
To bring Faulk in is no longer a reset; it is a redefinition. Having him as head gives new hope that the recruiting will improve, training will be enhanced, and most importantly, the program will get back to its roots. To players, it is a seldom-experienced opportunity to have someone who has played on the highest levels coaching them. To the fans, it is an answer to the question that Southern has ambitions. The new seasons may turn out to be a new start, a new start in the past, but with the future in mind.
Come the Dark Things days before.
Naturally, big names do not ensure success. It is not an insignificant jump from a position coach (even at a major program) to the head coach of an HBCU that has its own unique set of challenges. Faulk will need to get staff together, forge relationships with players, recruitment pipelines, as well as rebuild morale, not to mention his name and the expectations that come with it.
Still, he’s not alone. Another trend in college football is former NFL stars assuming head coaching positions at HBCUs, which has been blazed by others. This mixture of his hometown base, experience, and hunger for a program that is old and is waiting to be released would provide him with the tools needed to take on the uphill battle. Should Faulk manage to transform his leadership and his football intuition into a successful coach, Southern may regain a part of its lost glory.
The Implication of This on College Football and HBCUs.
The story of Faulk being hired is not a one-off Southern story, but rather a continuation of a bigger trend. With the increased presence of increasingly prominent former professional athletes in college coaching, and more so in HBCUs, the attention is brought back to colleges that have been a central part of the Black culture, community, and sports history. This may change the recruiting process, inject more national interest in HBCU football, and (most importantly) serve as an inspiration to a new generation of players and coaches.
In the case of Southern University, it will be a time to create identity anew: to make the gravitas of tradition and the hope of renewal. It is a new frontier to both the fans and the players to win on the scorecard and to restore pride, unity, and a sense of belonging. Under Faulk, the Jaguars can be entering a period that tries to celebrate the old and create a new chapter towards a better future.
