STATESBORO - Former Georgia Southern All-American and professional player Kevin Whitley has been announced as the assistant head coach and cornerbacks coach for new head coach Clay Helton and the Eagle defense. Whitley will enter his fourth season as the cornerbacks coach for the Eagles after spending the previous decade as a highly successful high school coach in the Atlanta area. He was promoted to interim head coach of the Eagles for the final eight games of the 2021 season and was retained on staff by Helton.

"There are important qualities we look for when hiring individuals to our coaching staff," Helton said. "They must have high character, the ability to develop our players both on and off the field, show care and concern for our student-athletes, hold them accountable to our standards and recruit at the highest level. Having the chance to watch the final three weeks of the season, I saw Kevin Whitley display each of these characteristics while leading our football team. With this in mind, we are proud to name Coach Whitley our assistant head coach and cornerbacks coach for the upcoming season. Being a Georgia native, a former Georgia Southern player, and having tremendous success as a coach both at the high school and college level in the state of Georgia, no one has better recruiting ties to our state. Coach Whitley is the example of what a Georgia Southern Eagle should be."

"My family and I are excited about the opportunity that Coach Helton has given us," Whitley said. "Being a part of eagle nation is an unbelievable experience and we look forward to future success."

In 2020, Derrick Canteen tied for the FBS lead with six interceptions to earn Freshman All-America and first-team all-conference honors. In all, the cornerbacks combined for 122 tackles, eight interceptions and 20 pass breakups as the Eagles finished first in the country in total interceptions. In 2021, Whitley's group had five different starters go down for the season or miss significant time due to the injury.

While new to the college coaching scene in 2019, Whitley brought a strong coaching resume to Statesboro as well as a familiarity to the Georgia Southern program. His senior-heavy group of Kindle Vildor, Monquavion Brinson and Jessie Liptrot combined for three interceptions and 22 pass breakups. Vildor was named a first-team all-conference selection and was taken in the fifth round of the NFL Draft while Brinson set a new conference record for career passes defended and a new school record for career pass breakups.

Most recently, Whitley compiled a 99-28 overall record with five region titles over 10 years at Stockbridge High School, four of which were in a row from 2014-2017. Stockbridge had never won a playoff game prior to his arrival. In his final four seasons at SHS, he posted a combined 49-5 record (.907) with three regional titles and 18 all-state players.

Prior to his decade at Stockbridge, Whitley coached at Creekside High for six seasons and led the Seminoles to three 10-win seasons. He posted an overall record of 52-16 with 10 all-state players, most notably Eric Berry, who was a two-time unanimous All-American at the University of Tennessee and was named to the NFL's Pro Bowl five times and first-team All-Pro three times.

Over 80 of his players continued on to play in college, including former GS safety Kenderick Duncan Jr. He also coached Ken Webster, a seventh-round pick of the New England Patriots in 2019, as well as future professional players Terrance Parks, Channing Crowder, Efrem Hill, Joshua Holsey, Travis Harris, Sean Dillard and Rokevious Watkins.

He began his head coaching career at North Springs High, where he coached for two seasons. In 18 seasons as a high school head coach in Georgia, he compiled a record of 160-55 (.744), winning seven region championships. He coached five players named to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution Super 11, 39 players named all-state and he himself was named a region coach of the year eight times.

Whitley participated in the prestigious Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship in 2018 with the Seattle Seahawks. As part of the Walsh Fellowship, he was immersed with the Seahawks' coaching staff for two weeks during offseason training activities and mandatory minicamp.

A native of Decatur, Georgia, Whitley earned honorable mention All-America honors for GS in 1991 after posting 48 tackles, two interceptions and six pass breakups. Whitley was a four-year starter, helping lead the Eagles to two national championships.

He went on to play professionally for four years, signing a free agent contract in the NFL with the New England Patriots and later in the CFL for the Toronto Argonauts as a defensive back where he intercepted two passes in three seasons. He was named the Rookie of the Year for the Argonauts in 1993.

Whitley graduated from Georgia Southern in 1993 with a degree in business administration with an emphasis in marketing and his Master's in business education from West Georgia in 2000. He earned an educational specialist certification in leadership from Nova Southeastern in 2009.

Whitley and his wife, Star, have a daughter, Camryn, and a son, Avery.