Charles Mack is in his first season as Utah State’s defensive backs coach. The 2025 season will be his fifth working for head coach Bronco Mendenhall. In all, Mack brings six years of collegiate coaching experience with him to USU. He got his coaching start under Mendenhall at Virginia.
Mack came to Utah State after spending the 2024 season as the defensive backs coach at New Mexico. He helped the Lobos to a 5-7 record, marking the program’s most wins in eight years. Their season was highlighted by a 38-35 victory against No. 19 Washington State, snapping a 26-game losing streak against nationally ranked teams. The UNM victory was its first win over a top-20 team since 1994 and its first non-conference win against a top-20 opponent since 1940.
At New Mexico, Mack helped mentor three defenders who earned All-Mountain West honors as the team ranked third in the conference and 29th in the nation with two defensive touchdowns.
Before New Mexico, Mack spent the 2023 season at Virginia Military Institute, serving as safeties coach and director of player personnel. At VMI, Mack coached Josh Knapp to a career season with 87 tackles, two sacks, three pass breakups, and two fumble recoveries, and Evan Eller to second-team All-Southern Conference honors after a team-high 107 tackles, two forced fumbles, and an interception.
Mack got his coaching career off the ground with four years on staff at Virginia (2019-22), three of which were with Mendenhall. He began his career in 2019 as a regional scout, where he was instrumental in the recruiting efforts for the Cavaliers. He then moved into a graduate assistant coaching position, working with the offense in 2020 and 2021 before moving to the defense in 2022.
While with the Cavs, Virginia was bowl eligible all three seasons. The 2019 season was special in Charlottesville as the Cavaliers won the Atlantic Coast Conference Coastal Division for the first time and made their first appearance in the ACC Championship Game. UVA appeared in its first New Year’s Six bowl game, the Orange Bowl, and finished No. 24 in the final College Football Playoff poll and No. 25 in the final USA Today Coaches Poll.
Mack played for four years at Richmond (2013-16), appearing in 45 career games for the Spiders. Overall, he recorded 59 tackles, six pass breakups, an interception, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. His senior year, he helped lead the Spiders into the FCS quarterfinals, including a career-high eight tackles in a second-round win against North Dakota. Richmond also made the FCS playoffs in 2014 and 2015, including a semifinal appearance in 2015.
Mack earned his bachelor’s degree in leadership studies and sociology from Richmond in 2017 and his master’s in social and philosophical foundations from Virginia in 2021. He is married to the former Carley Wilson, and they have a son, Wesley.
CHARLES MACK FILE
Coaching History
2025- Utah State – Defensive Backs
2024 New Mexico – Defensive Backs
2023 VMI – Safeties/Director of Player Personnel
2022 Virginia – Defensive Graduate Assistant
2020-21 Virginia – Offensive Graduate Assistant
2019 Virginia – Regional Scout
Bowl Games (2)
Virginia (2): 2021 Fenway Bowl*, 2019 Orange Bowl
*Not Contested
Division Championships (1)
Virginia (1) – ACC Coastal: 2019
Playing Experience
2013-16 Richmond
Education
2021 Virginia – Philosophical Foundations (Master’s)
2017 Richmond – Leadership Studies and Sociology (Bachelor’s)
Family
Wife, Carley, and son, Wesley