Myles Russ enters his second season as head coach of the Keiser football program. He was named head coach of the Seahawks on January 29, 2024. Russ became the second coach in Keiser history after serving six seasons as the assistant head coach, running backs coach, and recruiting coordinator.
The Russ File
- Posted a record on 12-1 in first season with the Seahawks
- Earned the first AFCA NAIA Coach of the Year honor is his career (2024)
- Becomes the second Keiser coach to earn the nation's top honor (Doug Socha - 2023)
- Selected as a AFCA 35 Under 35 Coaches Leadership Institute participant (2024)
- Was named the AFCA Region 1 Coach of the Year for the first time in his career (2024)
- Named the Sun Conference Coach of the Year for the first time
- Led Keiser to its third straight National Championship Game appearance in 2024
- Guided Keiser to its sixth consecutive berth in the NAIA Football Championship Series in 2024
- Keiser claimed its third straight Sun Conference title in 2024, going a perfect 6-0 in league action this season
- The conference crown was the third Sun Conference title for KU and the program's sixth straight league title (2019, 2020, and 2021 MSC Sun Division Champions)
- With the perfect 6-0 league record in 2024, Keiser has now registered five perfect seasons in conference action (2019, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024)
- The Seahawks remain perfect in Sun Conference action all-time (19-0)
- Coached 16 All-Sun Conference Honorees, including the SUN Special Teams Player of the Year (Refeno Vangates), the SUN Defensive Player of the Year (Tai Lologo), and the SUN Offensive Lineman of the Year (Jude Guerrier)
- Produced one AFCA All-American (Andrew Burnette) and three AP All-Americans (Bam Brima, Justin Carcel, and Jude Guerrier)
- Coached Tai Lologo to the Cliff Harris Award (top small college defensive player in the country) in 2024
2024
- Finished the year with a 12-1 record (6-0 SUN)
- Led Keiser to the team's third straight Sun Conference title, going a perfect 6-0 in league action
- Ranked No. 1 in the nation during the entire season
- Coached 16 All-Sun Conference Honorees, including the SUN Special Teams Player of the Year (Refeno Vangates), the SUN Defensive Player of the Year (Tai Lologo), and the SUN Offensive Lineman of the Year (Jude Guerrier)
- Produced one AFCA All-American (Andrew Burnette) and three AP All-Americans (Bam Brima, Justin Carcel, and Jude Guerrier)
- Coached Tai Lologo to the Cliff Harris Award (top small college defensive player in the country)
- Offensively, Keiser recorded 2,804 yards (No. 2 all-time at Keiser) on the ground with 33 rushing touchdowns (No. 3 all-time at Keiser)
- The Seahawk's passing game tallied 3,321 yards (school record) with 31 passing touchdowns (school record)
- The 6,125 yards of total offense the Seahawks produced in 2024 was a school record
- Keiser set the school record for total yards with 607 versus Pikeville (Ky.) (11/30)
- Keiser's offense averaged 37.7 points per game (No. 23 in the NAIA)
- Defensively, the Seahawks allowed 21.5 points per contest (No. 31 in the NAIA)
From the Beginning (2018-2023)
- Finished his sixth year as a member of the Seahawks football staff in 2023
- Served as the assistant head coach and recruiting coordinator
- Primarily worked with the running backs
- Helped the Seahawks to a record of 55-15 overall and 33-3 in conference games
- Assisted Keiser to five NAIA Playoff appearances, winning the National Championship in 2023
- Part of back-to-back undefeated regular seasons in 2019 and 2020 and five consecutive conference championships - Sun Conference Championship in 2022 and 2023, and the Mid-South Sun Division Championships in 2019, 2020, and 2021
- Coached three different running backs to six all-conference honors
- Seahawk running backs were named all-Americans five times
- Keiser rushed for a combined 14,585 yards under Russ
- Coached the all-time leader in rushing yards by a running back from a collegiate team from the state of Florida (Marques Burgess - 4,872 yards)
- The Seahawks rushed for a total of 174 touchdowns in the first six seasons
- The 2023 season saw the Seahawks rush for a school-record 3,169 yards and produce a program-best 47 rushing touchdowns.
Pre-Keiser
Prior to coming to Keiser, Russ spent five seasons at his alma mater Robert Morris as the head running backs coach. He was then selected for the Bill Walsh Minority Internship for the NFL, working with the Buffalo Bills.
Playing Career
Russ accumulated 4,271 career rushing yards which still stands as a Robert Morris career record. Russ carried the ball 818 times in his career, losing just one fumble in the process. Russ also punched in 22 touchdowns for his career and averaged 100 yards rushing per game during his career.
Russ was a 2010 preseason All-American, NEC Player of the Year, and NEC All-Conference member. He is also a Hall of Fame member.
Personal
Russ received his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management at Robert Morris in 2011 and went on to complete his Master of Science in Instructional Leadership in 2014. Russ and his wife, Alexandrea, have two daughters, Averie and Audrie.
Coaching Career
2024-2025 – Keiser – Head Coach
2019-2023 – Keiser – Assistant Head Coach, Running Backs Coach, and Recruiting Coordinator
2017-2018 – Keiser – Running Backs Coach, and Recruiting Coordinator
2012-2015 – Robert Morris – Running Backs
Playing Career
2007-2010 – Robert Morris – Running Back
(2010 NEC Offensive Player of the Year, RMU’s all-time leading rusher – 4.271)
Myles Russ Year-by-Year
| Year |
Overall |
Conference |
Postseason |
| 2024 |
12-1 |
6-0 |
NAIA National Champ Game |
| Total |
12-1 |
6-0 |
Overall FCS Record: 3-1 |
