Cam Gardner joined Charleston Southern in the spring of 2026 as the team's running backs coach. He came to CSU after a one-year stint at Drake where he was the team's running backs coach which won the 2025 Pioneer League champions who advanced to the FCS Playoffs.
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Gardner joined the offensive staff at Drake in February 2025 and worked with the Bulldogs for one season where he coached the running backs and returners. At the end of the season, Drake finished with the top rushing offense in the Pioneer League and the #18 in the nation.
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At Drake, he coached Nick Herman, one of the highest profile backs in the nation. Herman earned a spot on the Freshman All-American Team, was a finalist for the Jerry Rice Award and was selected First-Team All-Pioneer League. He finished the year with 144 carries for 1034 yards and six touchdowns. His yards per carry average of 7.13 topped the league and was fourth in the nation while his rushing total also led the league and was a top 20 mark in FCS.
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Prior to that, he worked at Montana State during the 2024 season as an offensive analyst and with the wide receivers. The team won the Big Sky conference and finished as the national runners-up, playing in the championship game.
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Gardner began his playing career at the University of Utah in the summer of 2019, being a two-year member of the program before transferring to Montana State for the 2021 season. He was a wide receiver and returner at each institution. He completed his Bachelor of Science in Social Science from California State University, Chico.
Coaching Experience:
2026-Present: Charleston Southern University (Running Backs)
2025: Drake University (Running Backs)
2024: Montana State University (Offensive Analyst - Wide Receivers)
