As the UFL goes into week four, one former head coach has found his way back onto the sidelines this fall. Per multiple sources, and outlets, former Memphis Showboats and New Orleans Breakers Head Coach John DeFilippo has been hired as an Analyst at the University of Kansas specifically working with Quarterbacks.
DeFilippo had spent the 2025 season out of football, before stepping into his new role. In 2023, he served as the Head Coach of the New Orleans Breakers, working with McLeod Bethel-Thompson enroute to a 7-3 season and playoff berth. DeFilippo would take over the Showboats franchise upon the transition to the UFL from the XFL-USFL merger in 2024 in which the team would go 2-8.
DeFilippo has been in the coaching ranks since 2000 serving as a Graduate Assistant with Fordham University. Since then, he's worked with serval different universities and NFL teams including earning a Super Bowl ring with the Philadelphia Eagles as their Quarterbacks coach.
DeFilippo will join a Kansas team that went 5-7 in 2025, under 5th year head coach Lance Leipold. He'll be assisting Jim Zebrowski, whose son Zack currently plays for the Edmonton Elks of the CFL. The Jayhawks will enter 2026, without starter Jalon Daniels who has declared for the NFL draft, and are projected to start Chase Jenkins a transfer from Rice.