Friday, May 31, 2024

90 Days Until WCU Football Kickoff - Cody Edwards









It's now 90 days until the kickoff of Catamount Football on Thursday, August 29, 2024, against the North Carolina State Wolfpack in Carter-Finley Stadium, Raleigh, NC

To help pass those long summer days, and hopefully get the Catamount faithful a little more excited about the upcoming season, and knowledgeable of the team members, we'll continue the football countdown each day until kickoff day.

No player is currently assigned the number 90, so we will highlight another assistant coach.

Cody Edwards




TITLE Assistant Coach / Special Teams Coordinator / Linebackers


Cody Edwards joined the Western Carolina football staff as a quality control coach working primarily with the defensive unit. Ahead of the 2022 season, he was promoted to an assistant coach working with the linebackers. In February 2024, Edwards was additionally named WCU's Special Teams Coordinator.

Edwards came to Cullowhee after working at Tusculum University from 2018 through 2021, progressing to associate head coach and defensive coordinator. He served as the Tusculum safeties coach and was also the running game coordinator during the 2018 campaign. He took over coaching the TU linebackers and was promoted to defensive coordinator in March 2019.

The 2020-21 Pioneers posted a 4-1 record during the COVID shortened spring campaign where TU won the SAC's Mountain Division and followed with a 28-23 win at defending league champion Lenoir-Rhyne to win the program its first SAC Championship since 2008. The Tusculum defense limited the opposition to 17.6 points per contest while holding teams to 311.2 yards per game including a SAC-best 84 rushing yards per outing.

In his first year as defensive coordinator, the 2019 Pioneers led the SAC in defensive touchdowns scored (3 – 23rd in NCAA II), first down defense (175 – 21st in NCAA II), and fourth down percentage defense (.286 - 10th in NCAA II). Tusculum was also 28th in the country in total defense (309 ypg). He coached two All-South Atlantic Conference linebackers in Ivan Hogans and Jackson Cauthen, who was also recognized for his work off the field where he was an honors student and a two-time member of the CoSIDA Academic All-District Football first team.

A Haysi, Va., native Edwards earned his start in the coaching profession at Eastside High in Coeburn, Va., as the wide receivers and defensive backs coach, while also serving as the junior varsity head coach. He also has high school coaching experience at Pinecrest High in Southern Pines, N.C., in 2012.

Prior to going to Tusculum, Edwards served as the co-defensive coordinator at Keiser University and was defensive coordinator at The John Cooper School in 2016. He was the run game and defensive coordinator at Royal Palm Beach High School for two seasons and coached safeties and was the assistant secondary coach at John Carroll University in 2013, helping the team to a 9-2 record and a berth to the NCAA Playoffs. He mentored three all-conference players including one All-American.

Edwards served as an intern on the football staff at Tennessee during the 2012 season where duties included being a liaison for all NFL and professional scouts and the "Vol for Life" Program. He also aided the football operations staff and worked with the university’s summer football camps.

Edwards is a 2010 graduate of the University of Virginia's College at Wise with a BS in business administration while also lettering on the football team. He earned his Master's degree from Tusculum in May 2021.







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