Bob Stoops is returning in Arlington; Wade Phillips, one of the great defensive architects the NFL ever saw, will roam the sidelines in San Antonio; and Skip Holtz will try to bring another title to Birmingham.
These were just three of the coaches announced Wednesday as part of the new United Football League’s coaching staffs, as the spring league’s kickoff date is coming very quickly: March 30.
The Birmingham Stallions and Arlington Renegades will meet each other at Choctaw Stadium in Arlington that day, and Holtz – of course, the son of legendary college coach Lou Holtz – will lead the Stallions, headed up by General Manager Zach Potter. Chris Boniol, longtime kicker for the Dallas Cowboys, is the special teams/ tight ends coach, and Corey Chamblin is the secondary coach. John Chavis, famous for his time in the Southeastern Conference (particularly at Tennessee under Phil Fulmer) is the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach. David DeGuglielmo is the offensive line coach and Bill Johnson, defensive line. Phillip Montgomery is the co-offensive coordinator/running backs coach and tight ends coach along with Boniol, and Daric Riley is the assistant secondary coach.
On the other sideline will be Stoops, the former national-title winner at Oklahoma. Rick Mueller is the General Manager of the Renegades, and joining Stoops on that staff will be Reggie Davis, as tight ends/ running backs coach; defensive coordinator Jay Hayes; offensive line coach Jonathan Himebauch; offensive coordinator / quarterbacks and wide receivers coach Chuck Long; quality control coach Matt McMillen (not Matt Millen); defensive backs coach Marvin Sanders; linebackers coach Bill Sheridan; and quality control / special teams coach Scott Spurrier (yes, Spurrier).
The D.C. Defenders will be coached by Reggie Barlow, with Von Hutchins as their general manager. Vern Dean is the Defenders’ defensive backs coach; Fred Kaiss their offensive coordinator; Sean Anderson the wide receivers coach; Russ Ehrenfeld the O-line coach; Deion Harris, linebackers coach; Shannon Harris, quarterbacks coach; Jeremy Watkins, defensive line coach; and Gregg Williams – yes, THAT Gregg Williams – is the defensive coordinator.
For the Houston Roughnecks, C.J. Johnson is head coach, under the direction of General Manager Lionel Vital. Garret Chachere, special teams / running backs coach; Bob Connelly, offensive line coach; Kwahn Drake, defensive line coach; Jordan Higgins, quality control coach; Brett Maxie, defensive backs coach; Eric Price, offensive coordinator / quarterbacks; Zach Shagi, assistant secondary; and Chris Wilson, defensive coordinator / linebackers coach.
The Memphis Showboats are coached by John DeFilippo, under the direction of Dennis Polian. Kirk Doll is the special teams / running backs coach. Former Pittsburgh Steeler Carnell Lake is the defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach, and he’s joined by Doug Martin, offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach; Paul Pasqualoni, linebackers coach; Steven Thompson, assistant linebackers coach; Jim Turner, run game coordinator and offensive line coach; and T.J. Vernieri, tight ends coach.
Mike Nolan, former San Francisco 49ers head coach, is the head coach of the Michigan Panthers, whose General Manager is Steve Kazor. Collin Bauer is the defensive coordinator and defensive line coach, and he’s joined by Marcel Bellefeuille, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach; Jaron Fairman, special teams and wide receivers coach; Tim Holt, O-line coach; Brock Marion, defensive backs coach; Jordan Pavlisin, running backs coach; Christian Runza, linebackers coach; and tight ends coach Gary Watkins.
Anthony Becht is head coach of the St. Louis Battlehawks, led by General Manager Dave Boller. Donnie Abraham is the defensive coordinator, and he’s joined on the staff by secondary coach Martin Bayless, running backs and special teams coach Kyle Caskey, linebackers coach Chris Claiborne, defensive line coach La’Roi Glover, offensive coordinator Bruce Gradkowski, O-line coach Gino Gradkowski, and wide receivers coach Phil McGeoghan.
And Wade Phillips, the former Dallas Cowboys head coach and the son of the legendary “Bum” Phillips, leads the Brahmas. Marc Lillibridge is their general manager. Will Reed is the defensive coordinator, A.J. Smith the offensive coordinator, and joining them on the staff are Chris Achuff, the defensive line coach; Derrick Berry, the linebackers coach; Andre Gurode, the offensive line coach; Payton Pardee, the wide receivers / special teams coach; and Marvin Williams, running backs coach.
