Marshall Faulk is set to begin his first college football season as the head coach at Southern University in just a few weeks. He does not know how to define success because his goal is to win every game.
However, the early signs of progress go far beyond results on the field.
It is too early to tell whether or not the Jaguars are going to meet expectations during their first college football season with Faulk as head coach. Everything seems to be trending in that direction but the results will speak for themselves.
Southern University demands college football greatness.
Established in 1880, Southern is a public HBCU land-grant university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It enrolls approximately 7,483 students. The Jaguars compete on the FCS level of Division-I college football as members of the Southwestern Athletic Conference. Historically speaking, they are one of the most respected HBCU programs in the country.
Southern won the SWAC in 1938, 1940, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1955, 1959, 1960, 1966, 1975, 1993, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2003 and 2013. It claims Black College National Championships in 1948, 1949, 1950, 1960, 1993, 1995, 1997 and 2003.
Even in recent years, the Jaguars have had a decent amount of success. They won the SWAC West Division in 2018 and 2019 but they lost the championship game to Alcorn State in both seasons. It was a similar result as SWAC runners-up in 2022 and 2024.
That is not good enough. Southern expects to win the SWAC and play in the HBCU National Championship (the Celebration Bowl) every single year. Nothing else matters. One bad year and you’re gone!
Eric Dooley was hired as the Jaguars’ head coach in 2022. He went 7-5 in Year 1 and won the division. He didn’t even make it through his entire second season before he was fired after a 5-5 start.
Terrence Graves took over as Dooley’s replacement. Went 8-5 in Year 1 and won the division. He also did not make it through his entire second season before he was fired after a 1-6 start.
Southern expects to win. It is clearly not afraid to cut ties with coaches that don’t.
Does Marshall Faulk get a longer leash?
NFL Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk spent the 2025 college football season as the running backs coach on Deion Sanders’ coaching staff at the University of Colorado. His lone year with the Buffaloes was his first experience as a coach on any level of the sport.
That did not stop Southern from taking a chance. The Jaguars hired Faulk to replace Graves in December.
The 53-year-old completely flipped the roster during the offseason with 49 new additions, including 17 players from the state of Louisiana. Highlights include former Louisiana, Tulane and Houston quarterback Zeon Chriss, former 4-star Nebraska linebacker Roger Gradney, highly-touted St. Augustine High School quarterback Vashaun Coulon, three-star JUCO wide receiver Miles Dixon and former UNC and Liberty edge rusher Bryson Jennings. It was the top-ranked class in the conference. Associate head coach Curtis Johnson called it “one of the best athletic recruiting seasons that we’ve had around at Southern for a while.”
There is a lot of talent in Baton Rouge. There is no excuse not to win right away. Especially considering that the last two head coaches were fired in the middle of their second seasons. They had a short leash.
Does Faulk?
When asked about his barometer for success, the first-year head coach refused to give a specific win total. That is up to his boss.
“I can’t say what it is. You’d have to ask my AD, you’d have to ask the president, the chancellor, what they’re looking for and what success is for them. Because my expctation is to win every game that we line up to play. That’s what I want to do. I’m trying to win every damn game we line up to play.”
Faulk was willing to divulge what he thinks has gone well thus far.
“I’m gonna say this early successes were we able to recruit? Yes. The players that we retained, did they get better? Did they get better through the offseason program? Yes. Those are some of the things that I like.”
His team looks like a cohesive unit.
“Do we look like a team? Do we smell like a tam? Are we moving like a team? Yes, that’s early success.”
However, the only thing that matters is whether or not Southern wins games. That starts with Alabama State on August 29.