Cory Peoples

Title

Assistant Coach - Defensive Passing Game Coordinator/Secondary
Email

cpeoples@gsu.edu
Phone

(404) 413-4120

CORY PEOPLES MIC'D UP

Now in his third season on the Georgia State staff, Cory Peoples has been elevated to secondary coach and defensive passing game coordinator. He will continue to work directly with the cornerbacks while overseeing the entire defensive backfield.

Peoples has helped coach a Georgia State defense that ranks among the national for sacks, tackles for loss and turnovers forced over the last two seasons. In addition to helping lead the Panthers to back-to-back bowl victories, he has tutored two-time All-Sun Belt Conference cornerback Quavian White, who ranks second in school history in interceptions.

In 2021, the Panthers held five teams to one offensive touchdown and set school records with 38 sacks and 93 tackles for loss while forcing 21 turnovers, including 11 interceptions, while in 2020 in Peoples' first season in Atlanta, the Georgia State defense also forced 21 turnovers (in just 10 games) with 10 interceptions.

A former NFL player with more than 10 years of college coaching experience, Peoples came to the Panther program in February 2020 after one season (2018) as the cornerbacks coach at Georgia Southern, where he coached a pair of two-time All-Sun Belt selections.

Peoples is a three-time recipient of the NFL Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship, working with the Philadelphia Eagles (2012) and the Kansas City Chiefs (2015-16).

In 2017, Peoples served as the defensive coordinator at Albany State, where three of his players earned all-conference honors as the Golden Rams allowed fewer than 290 yards of total offense per game.

He also spent one season (2016) coaching the defensive backs at South Carolina State, including two all-conference safeties.

Peoples coached defensive backs at Charleston Southern for two seasons (2014-15), and in his final year there, he helped coach a Buccaneers’ squad that ranked No. 9 in the nation in total defense and No. 4 in passing yards allowed en route to a berth in the FCS playoffs. He had two all-conference defensive backs in both years, including the Big South’s career leader in pass breakups.

His other college coaching stops include St. Augustine (2013), Clark Atlanta (2009-12) and Georgia Military College (2008). He began his coaching career in 2007 as an assistant at W.J. Keenan High School in Columbia, S.C.

Peoples spent two years (2005-06) on the Philadelphia Eagles’ roster and played one season each with the Amsterdam Admirals of NFL Europe and the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League.

A native of Bishopville, S.C., Peoples was an all-state quarterback and defensive back at Bishopville High School. He attended Georgia Military College, where he won the NJCAA National Championship in 2001, and then lettered two years in the secondary at South Carolina.

Peoples earned his bachelor’s degree in retail management from South Carolina in 2005. He is married to the former Keilah Speed and the couple has two sons, Cory Jr. and Lucas, and a daughter, Isabella.