Courtland Hays returns to EMCC as member of Buddy Stephens’ football coaching staff

SCOOBA – A key offensive coaching component of East Mississippi Community College's 2017 and 2018 national and conference championship teams, Courtland Hays has returned to the Scooba campus as an assistant football coach. The official hiring announcement was made Thursday by EMCC head football coach Buddy Stephens.

"I'm thrilled to be back at East Mississippi with Coach (Buddy) Stephens and this great staff," Hays said. "This place is very special to me, and I can't wait to get started."

Having previously worked primarily with EMCC's running backs during the 2017 and 2018 seasons that saw the Lions put together a combined two-year record of 23-1, Hays will now concentrate on working with the team's wide receivers in addition to serving as the program's recruiting coordinator. During his prior successful EMCC coaching stint, Hays worked with 2022 Walter Payton Award winner and current UFL quarterback Lindsey Scott Jr. (Incarnate Word/Arlington Renegades). Hays also coached FCS running backs Tyrell Price (Chattanooga) and Deon McIntosh (Washington State), who both ranked among the NJCAA's rushing leaders during their EMCC playing days. Hays also previously gained experience working with NFL wide receivers Kirk Merritt (Arkansas State/New Orleans Saints) and Dontario Drummond (Ole Miss/Dallas Cowboys).

"We're very excited to have Courtland back home with us. He's had an opportunity to get out and do some great things, and we're thrilled to have him back on staff," Stephens said. "Courtland has a great offensive mind, and he fits in so well with the rest of our high-caliber coaching staff."

In between his two coaching stops at East Mississippi, Hays divided his previous five years coaching at Mississippi College, Southwest Mississippi Community College and Samford University. Most recently, Hays served as MC's offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach during the 2023 season. Under his direction, the Choctaws transitioned from the triple option to a more spread offensive attack and finished the season ranked second in rushing offense within the Gulf South Conference.

Prior to that, Hays returned to the Mississippi junior college coaching ranks as Southwest Mississippi's offensive coordinator under the direction of Bears head coach and former EMCC defensive coordinator Cliff Collins. While having installed a new offensive philosophy for the program, Hays worked primarily with quarterbacks and running backs. During his two seasons (2021-22) at Southwest, the Bears had their first two SEC signees in more than 20 years with Izavion Miller (Auburn) and Jacoby Bellazar (Mississippi State).

Following his prior two-year coaching stint at EMCC, Hays spent the 2019 season serving as a lead analyst at Samford while working with the Bulldogs' offensive tackles and tight ends.

Before initially joining Stephens' East Mississippi football coaching staff in 2017, Hays previously gained a decade's worth of valuable experience at the University of North Alabama, where he spent five years as a part-time assistant coach and graduate assistant for Hall of Fame coaching great Bobby Wallace within the powerhouse NCAA Division II program. While working with quarterbacks and running backs, Hays was an essential part of the UNA staff that guided the Lions to four consecutive Gulf South Conference championships (2013-16) and a national runner-up finish in 2016.

Along with having the privilege of coaching with Wallace, Hays also gained hands-on experience as an undergraduate working with former North Alabama football coaches Terry Bowden and Mark Hudspeth. During his first five seasons as a UNA student staffer, Hays worked diligently behind the scenes as an integral part of the Lions' 2008 NCAA Division II semifinal-round playoff team and their GSC championship club the following year.

A product of Tuscaloosa's Northridge High School, Hays received an undergraduate degree in sports management from North Alabama in 2012 and stayed on the Lions' football coaching staff to earn his master's in higher education administration.