Football
- Title:
- Safeties/Special Teams Coordinator
- Email:
- danthony@richmond.edu
- Phone:
- 287-6846
2024 marked Drew Anthony’s sixth season on Russ Huesman’s coaching staff and his fifth as the safeties coach. Anthony initially joined the staff in 2019 as a defensive assistant, working with the Spiders’ dimes position. He also serves as the Special Teams Coordinator.
Under Anthony’s leadership, the 2024 season saw Richmond's starting safeties, team captain and redshirt senior Jabril Hayes, and redshirt freshman Matthew Traynor, both earn All-CAA and All-America honors. The duo, two of Richmond's top four tacklers for the season, combined for 133 tackles and seven interceptions. Hayes earned All-America honors after a season where he recorded 64 tackles (fourth on the team), including 51 solo stops. Hayes led the Spiders and was tied for sixth in the country with five interceptions, two of which he returned for touchdowns. Hayes led the nation in interception return yards with 247—nearly 100 more than the next closest player. His pair of pick-sixes tied for first in the country. Hayes also added a pass breakup, two fumble recoveries, and one forced fumble. Traynor was named the CAA Defensive Rookie of the Year and earned Third Team All-CAA honors. A finalist for the prestigious Jerry Rice Award, Traynor finished third on the team with 69 tackles, including 52 solo stops. He also recorded 4.5 tackles for loss, totaling -8 yards, and contributed two interceptions along with three pass breakups. With his help, Richmond ranked 11th nationally and first in the CAA in scoring defense and tied for 10th nationally (second in the CAA) in defensive touchdowns.
The 2024 season also saw continued success for Anthony’s special teams units, with punter Aaron Trusler being named an FCS Punter of the Year semifinalist for the third consecutive year, as well as the Touchdown Club of Richmond's Kicking Specialist of the Year. A Second Team All-CAA selection, Trusler, under Anthony’s guidance, helped Richmond rank fifth in the country in net punting with an average of 41.82 yards per kick and ninth nationally with just 42 opponent punt return yards allowed all season. Trusler ended his Richmond career responsible for three of the 10 longest punts in program history, with kicks of 76, 75, and 74 yards. He also set program records for single-game punting average (52.8 yards against North Carolina A&T on Oct. 5), season punting average (43.9 in 2024), and finished second (by 0.1 yards) in career punting average (41.8), behind NFL veteran Mike Bragg. 2024 also saw the emergence of freshman and Ireland native Sean O'Haire. In just his first-ever season playing football, O'Haire was Richmond's third-leading scorer with 45 points and was a perfect 12-for-12 on field goals and 9-for-9 on PATs. O'Haire was named the Stats Perform FCS National Special Teams Player of the Week after contributing 17 points in the Spiders 35-24 victory over Towson on Nov. 2 and earned CAA Special Teams Player of the Week on two occasions.
With Anthony’s help, the 2024 Spiders went 10-3, reached the FCS Playoffs for the third consecutive year, and won back-to-back conference championships for just the second time in program history. The team finished the regular season with 10 wins, its best regular-season record since 2009. Richmond also completed an undefeated 8-0 conference season, marking just the second such accomplishment in program history. The 2024 team became only the seventh in CAA history to finish conference play unbeaten.
Anthony’s fifth season on staff was also highlighted by the success of Aaron Trusler, who was named an FCS Punter of the Year semifinalist. Trusler earned All-American honors after a season in which he punted 63 times for 2,168 yards, including a long of 76 yards (tied for the longest in the CAA this year), averaging 41.6 yards per punt. He was named CAA Special Teams Player of the Week on November 13, 2023. Jabril Hayes was named First Team All-CAA Special Teams and Fifth Team All-CAA by Phil Steele. Aaron Banks, a Second Team All-CAA selection in 2024, started and played in all 13 games, recording 63 tackles (second on the team), including 46 solo tackles, and a tackle for loss. He led the Spiders with eight pass breakups and three interceptions.
In 2022, Anthony helped lead safety Aaron Banks to Second Team All-CAA honors. Banks finished the season with 53 tackles and four interceptions, including a pick-six. Safety Bryson Parker led the Spiders’ secondary in tackles with 63, including 42 solo stops and one tackle for loss (-3 yards).
In 2021, Anthony guided transfer safety A.J. Smith into a starting role on defense. Smith finished the season fourth on the team with 54 tackles, while fellow safety Aaron Banks was sixth on the team with 51 tackles.
In 2019, Anthony worked closely with redshirt freshman Nile Harris, who moved into the position mid-year after injuries forced the Spiders into a two-linebacker scheme. Harris finished the year with 37 tackles, including five tackles for loss.
Before joining Richmond, Anthony spent the 2018 season as the defensive coordinator at South Pointe High School in South Carolina, where he helped the team win the AAAA Region 3 Championship.
Anthony spent the 2017 season as the defensive coordinator at ASA Miami Junior College, where he helped the program finish 12th in the country in overall defense, including 4th in pass defense, 5th in forced turnovers, 6th in defensive touchdowns, 8th in interceptions, and 8th in fumbles recovered.
From 2012 to 2016, Anthony was on the coaching staff at Limestone College, serving primarily as the defensive coordinator for the NCAA Division II program. He also worked with the defensive backs and defensive line at various times and spent three months as the interim head coach. In 2016, Limestone finished first in the nation in defensive touchdowns and 8th in turnovers forced. The program was consistently ranked in the top 25 in many statistical categories during his tenure.
Anthony also spent two seasons at Wingate University in North Carolina (2011-12), one as the assistant defensive backs coach (2011) and one as the running backs coach and special teams coordinator (2012).
Earlier in his career, Anthony worked with the Eastern Kentucky Drillers (2011) of the United Indoor Football League, Roxbury Latin High School (2009-10) in Massachusetts, and his alma mater, the University of Virginia (2005), as an offensive quality control coach.
Anthony played for three seasons in the American Indoor Football Association and the United Indoor Football League, representing the Ogden Knights, Yakima Valley Warriors, and Eastern Kentucky Drillers.
Anthony graduated from the University of Virginia in 2005.
