COLUMBIA, S.C — Allen University head football coach Cedric Pearl has finalized his coaching staff for his first season leading the Yellow Jackets in 2024. In addition to returning assistants Montaze McRae (Offensive Line) and Jackie Robinson (Wide Receivers), Pearl has hired Kienus Boulware to serve as defensive coordinator and linebackers coach, Gary Harper as associate head coach and defensive line coach, and Charles Huff to coach the Allen University defensive backs.
Kienus Boulware – Defensive Coordinator and Linebackers Coach
A proven defensive mind and head coach, Boulware has led the No. 1 rated defense nationally at six different institutions across his 26 years of coaching experience. Prior to joining the Yellow Jackets, Boulware served as the defensive coordinator at Alabama A&M for two seasons. Last season, the Bulldogs led the NCAA in forced turnovers and fumbles recovered. In the six seasons prior to his time in Huntsville, AL, Boulware was the head coach at Winston Salem State from 2014-2020. Boulware led the Rams to two CIAA Championships, a NCAA Division II playoff appearance and 49 total wins in his tenure. Before taking over as head coach, Boulware was the defensive coordinator at WSSU from 2010-13. Boulware’s other coaching stops include Shaw University (Defensive Coordinator 2006-10), North Carolina Central (1999-05), and Livingstone College (1997-98). Boulware got his start in coaching as a student assistant coach at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, under College Football Hall of Fame Coach Mack Brown, from 1994-97. Boulware joined the Tar Heels coaching staff after a two-year playing career at UNC.
Gary Harper – Associate Head Coach and Defensive Line Coach
While Pearl previously served as head coach at Central State, Harper was a member of his defensive staff for all five seasons from 2014-17. Prior to Central State, Harper was the defensive line coach at Alabama A&M from 2012-14. No stranger to Columbia, South Carolina, Harper held the titles of associate head coach and defensive coordinator at Benedict Colege during the 2011 season, and linebacker coach in 2010. A 30-year coaching veteran, Harper has had tenures at University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff (2006-09), Savannah State (2002-06), Tuskegee (1993-96 and 2002), Morris Brown College (2001), Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College (1988-91), and Southwestern Oklahoma State (1984-86). In addition to his football duties, Harper also was the head track coach at Tuskegee for three seasons and and at Southwestern Oklahoma State from three seasons. Harper joined the coaching ranks after a stand-out playing career at Southwestern Oklahoma State where he was named an NAIA First Team All-American and later inducted into the SWOSU Athletic Hall of Fame.
Charles Huff – Defensive Backs Coach
A former All-American and NFL defensive back, Charles Huff’s coaching career spans more than three decades. Huff was a three-time All-American at Presbyterian College from 1982-84, and went on to enjoy a four-year NFL career that included stints with the San Francisco 49ers (1985-86) and Atlanta Falcons (1987-88). He joined the 49ers the same season as Hall of Famer Jerry Rice and played in the secondary alongside another Hall of Famer, Ronnie Lott. Huff joins Allen after serving as the defensive coordinator at Clark Atlanta University for the past two seasons. A coaching career that began in 1989 at his alma mater coaching running backs and defensive backs for PC, Huff went on to serve as an assistant coach at Murray State (1991-92) and West Alabama (1993), and defensive coordinator at Austin Peay (1994-96). In 1997, Huff joined the FBS ranks as the special teams coordinator at the University of Central Florida. During his tenure at UCF, Huff recruited and coached four-time Pro Bowler and two-time Super Bowl Champion Asante Samuel. After a six season stay in Orlando, Florida, Huff made coaching stops at Norfolk State (2004), Florida A&M (2005-06), Miles College (2007), Northern Arizona (2011-12), Stetson (2014), Albany State (2015-16), Hampton (2017), Alabama A&M (2018-2020), and Fort Valley State (2021).