The beginning of 2026 UFL training camps brought about the announcement of full coaching staffs for each team on Monday. Here are those staffs, along with first impressions on each.
Birmingham Stallions
Head Coach: A.J. McCarron
Offensive Coordinator: Tyler Siskey
Running Backs: Todd Watson
Receivers/Tight Ends: Cody Latimer
Offensive Line: Mike Goff
Defensive Coordinator: Kevin Sherrer
Defensive Line: Damion Square
Linebackers: Daric Riley
Defensive Backs: Travis Pearson
McCarron put together a staff with a lot of ties to the state of Alabama, including Siskey, Watson, Sherrer, Square, Riley and Pearson It should be no surprise given McCarron's own relationship and name recognition there through his play at the University of Alabama. Siskey, an outside-the-box hire, was at Bama when McCarron was there and is more known today as a podcast co-host. Both Siskey and McCarron have offensive backgrounds, but neither have called plays anywhere near this level so it will be interesting to see how that process plays out. Latimer helped out with San Antonio last year when they found themselves in a coaching crisis. Riley is the only holdover from the Skip Holtz era, now in his fourth season coaching linebackers for the team. It's a solid mix of experience and youth on the staff. Expect a lot of influence from the Nick Saban era of UA.
Columbus Aviators
Head Coach: Ted Ginn Jr.
Offensive Coordinator: Todd Haley
Running Backs/Tight Ends: Bob Saunders
Receivers: Jordan Overton
Offensive Line: Ronnie Vinklarek
Defensive Coordinator: Captain Munnerlyn
Defensive Line: Curtis Terry Sr.
Linebackers/Special Teams: Larry Grant
Defensive Backs: Rasul Spain
The dichotomy in Ginn's coordinators is striking, with Haley, a longtime coach at the NFL level and multi-time offensive boss, teaming with Munnerlyn, whose only coaching experience has been at the high school level. Saunders coached in the original UFL as well as XFL 2020 with the Defenders and in the USFL in 2022 and 2023. He also coached under Haley with the Cleveland Browns in 2018 and was Haley's coordinator with the Tampa Bay Bandits in 2022. Grant, a noted special teamer in the NFL, and Ginn's paths crossed at Ohio State. Vinklarek was also with the XFL in 2020 and resigned as head coach of the San Antonio Toros of the new Continental Football League to take this job. Spain has a relationship with Ginn, helping him coach at Ginn's football camps. Terry is an Ohio native and another former Buckeye on staff.
Dallas Renegades
Head Coach: Rick Neuheisel
Offensive Coordinator: Noel Mazzone
Running Backs/Special Teams: Chris Reinart
Tight Ends/Special Teams: Scott Spurrier
Offensive Line: Xavier Su'a-Filo
Defensive Coordinator: Mike Gillhamer
Defensive Line: Brian Baker
Inside Linebackers: Tim Hundley
Outside Linebackers: Kevin Wolthausen
Dallas features a unique coaching set-up: Two coaches for special teams and two coaches for linebackers, but none for defensive backs. Gillhamer's background is as a defensive backs coach in college and the NFL, so he may end up leading that group as well. Mazzone stepped in early in the season for Memphis last year calling plays for that team when Ken Whisenhunt left. They had to install a brand-new offense in a short amount of time, an experience that will help Mazzone do the same here with the UFL's relatively short training camp. Baker joins Mazzone in moving over from the Showboats. Spurrier, son of legendary college coach Steve Spurrier, has coached on the Renegades for all five seasons the team has existed. Hundley was Neuheisel's defensive coordinator when the two were at the University of Washington at the turn of the century. Hundley, Gillhamer and Reinart were also on Neuheisel's staff in the AAF with the Arizona Hotshots in 2019. This is a much more experienced group of coaches than maybe any other in the league, no surprise for a veteran of the coaching wars in Neuheisel. Su'a-Filo is the only one making his first foray into coaching.
D.C. Defenders
Head coach: Shannon Harris
Offensive Coordinator: Fred Kaiss
Quarterbacks: David Johnson
Receivers: Andre Simmons
Offensive Line: Brian Braswell
Defensive Coordinator: Blake Williams
Linebackers/Special Teams: Jerod Kruse
Defensive Backs: Vernon Dean
Just like D.C.'s roster features more holdovers than any other heading into 2026, so too do does their coaching staff. If Kaiss were in the NFL, he'd be the third-longest-tenured offensive coordinator in that league as he now enters his fourth year leading that side of the ball for D.C. He'll also likely coach the running backs again. Braswell was a late addition last year, coming in for the departed Cody Crill, who left in March for the college ranks. Braswell came from nearby University of Maryland and was OL coach for the St. Louis Battlehawks in 2020. Williams returns to head the defense after taking over for his father early last year. Kruse is the only new face, though he coached with Harris at Tennessee State last year. Each team is allotted eight assistants, so there is one more open spot, perhaps for a defensive line coach if Williams doesn't also handle that (maybe his dad Gregg will return - he was one of several coaches fired by former Defenders boss Reggie Barlow at Tennessee State in January). Like Kaiss, Dean is in his fourth year with D.C.
Houston Gamblers
Head Coach: Kevin Sumlin
Offensive Coordinator: Eric Price
Running Backs: K.C. Gundy
Receivers: Tyron Carrier
Offensive Line: Tim Holt
Defensive Coordinator: Marvin Sanders
Special Teams/Linebackers: Grant Dickerson
Safeties: Ted Bolin
Price double-dipped last year as offensive coordinator of the Roughnecks in the spring, then in the fall joined the University of Montana as an analyst. The familiarity Price will already have with several Houston offensive players, including QB Nolan Henderson, will help ease the transition to an otherwise brand-new staff. Holt had success building and maintaining a winning offensive line for the Michigan Panthers over the last three seasons. Like Price, Sanders is a coordinator well-versed in spring football, from the Bob Stoops tree with the Renegades. Though he was not listed on the coaches roster, stories on Bolin's 2025 hiring by Lock Haven cite him working for the Renegades (and Sanders) last season, where he "coached the linebackers and helped with roster maintenance and development." Dickerson was at the University of Maryland when Sumlin was there as Assistant Head Coach. Look for the team to add a defensive line coach somewhere along the way with an extra spot open on staff. Somewhat interestingly, Sumlin's coaches are all new from his 2022 stint as Gamblers head coach.
Louisville Kings
Head Coach: Chris Redman
Offensive Coordinator: Steve Logan
Receivers: Tony Banks
Tight Ends: Jeff Jagodzinski
Offensive Line: Breno Giacomini
Defensive Coordinator: Jamie Sharper
Linebackers: Brad Jackson
Defensive Backs: Chris McAlister
Louisville doesn't have a position coach for the defensive line, running backs, special teams or quarterbacks, yet they have just one spot left for a hire. Redman or Logan could handle QBs; with it being Redman's first head coaching job, the less on his plate, the better. It's a championship staff as Redman brought in former Baltimore Ravens Super Bowl-winning teammates in Banks, Sharper, Jackson and McAlister, many of whom are coaching at this level for the first time. Banks, a former QB, is coaching receivers. Sharper has played and coached under elite defensive minds like Ray Rhodes, Marvin Lewis, Mike Nolan and Gregg Williams. It will be interesting to see what influences he most leans on as he calls defenses for the first time. Jagodzinski and Logan are the old hats and their experience will be needed on an otherwise novice staff.
Orlando Storm
Head Coach: Anthony Becht
Co-Offensive Coordinator/Receivers: Colin Thompson
Co-Offensive Coordinator/Offensive Line: Marc Colombo
Quarterbacks: Jordan Kitna
Running Backs: Art Valero
Defensive Coordinator: Donnie Abraham
Defensive Line: La'Roi Glover
Linebackers: Mike Phair
Orlando's coaching staff was thrown for a loop just before camp began when offensive coordinator Kyle Caskey was hired by the Minnesota Vikings. Thompson and Colombo will now share coordinator duties though it's unclear who will call plays on game day. It's nothing new for Becht, who lost offensive coordinator Bruce Gradkowski to the NFL around the same time last year. Just as he brought over several players from St. Louis, four of Becht's coaches have been with the Battlehawks in recent years. Valero returns after a year away, as he coached RBs in 2023. Kitna is the son of former NFL QB Jon Kitna, getting his coaching start. Phair is a longtime NFL defensive assistant who comes to Orlando from a head coaching stint in Japan. Thompson, a former tight end, played for the Tampa Bay Vipers in the XFL in 2020, and hung up his cleats for good after a shot with the Vikings in 2023.
St. Louis Battlehawks
Head Coach: Ricky Proehl
Offensive Coordinator: A.J. Smith
Running Backs: John Estes
Receivers: Austin Proehl
Offensive Line/Tight Ends: Todd Washington
Defensive Coordinator: Corey Chamblin
Defensive Line: Jeff Zgonina
Linebackers: Will Reed
Special Teams: Frank Gansz Jr.
The only team with a dedicated special teams coach, Gansz Jr. is a second-generation ST coordinator and has coached in college and at various pro levels over the years. Smith was hired to lead the offense and has been a staple of spring football for the last half-decade. Ricky coached his son on the Battlehawks in 2023 and now Austin joins him on staff as a position coach. Estes coached with Smith on the Roughnecks in 2023. Zgonina and Washington have both coached in the NFL. Reed was the DC of the San Antonio Brahmas the last two years, with mixed results. He'll reunite with former Brahmas Jordan Williams and Tariq Carpenter at the position. Chamblin coordinated one of the top defenses in the league last year for Birmingham. This is an impressive staff that Proehl has put together for his first time as head coach.