JACKSONVILLE—Head coach Charles Kelly has hired Max Thurmond as the special teams coordinator and running backs coach.
 
Most recently, Thurmond has served as the senior offensive analyst at Tennessee the last three seasons.
 
Thurmond is no stranger to Jax State, having served two previous stints on staff, starting his career with the Gamecocks as a graduate assistant under Jack Crowe.
 
The former Gamecock cornerback then spent time in a variety of coaching roles including linebackers, corners, special teams, and receivers over an 11-year span which included three Ohio Valley Conference titles.
 
Following a season as an assistant at Reinhardt, Thurmond coached special teams and linebackers at West Alabama then Austin Peay before serving as the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Central Arkansas.
 
After serving as the special teams coordinator and linebackers coach at Charlotte, Thurmond returned to Jacksonville to coach special teams and linebackers under John Gross, picking up another OVC championship. He was also the interim head coach for the final two games of the 2021 season.
 
The Gamecocks have won nine games each of the last three seasons and are coming off a Conference USA championship and an appearance in the StaffDNA Cure Bowl.