Key Points:
- UFL, Under Armour, and NCMFC announce an expanded partnership for the 2024 season to support minority football coaches.
- Eight high school coaches selected for professional development opportunities with UFL teams.
- Coaches will attend the UFL’s training camp in Arlington, Texas, and assist during the 2024 season.
Expanded Partnership Announced
The United Football League (UFL) and Under Armour revealed today their expanded partnership with the National Coalition of Minority Football Coaches (NCMFC). This collaboration aims to foster growth opportunities for minority coaches. According to Russ Brandon, UFL’s president, the program offers unparalleled professional coaching access.
“We are proud to work with Under Armour and the NCMFC to expand our partnership for the 2024 season,” said Russ Brandon, president and CEO of the UFL. “The program is a tremendous growth opportunity for these coaches, and we are deeply committed to creating opportunities and providing unparalleled access to professional coaching at the highest level.”
Program Details
Following a successful pilot with the XFL in 2023, the partnership will include all eight UFL markets for the 2024 season. It will feature eight high school coaches with a minimum of three years of experience. Selection criteria include proximity to UFL markets and the potential for professional growth.
Training and Season Engagement
Beginning March 7, selected coaches will join the UFL’s training camp in Arlington, Texas. They will assist with team meetings, practices, and address team needs. Throughout the 2024 season, coaches will also support five home games, engaging in sideline assistance and key projects.
Coaches and Opportunities
The initiative will highlight coaches like Nkere “Scoop” Reed and Jason Winchell, among others, providing them a platform to advance their careers. This partnership not only offers a significant step for minority coaches but also aims to enhance diversity, equity, and inclusion in football.
For further details on the partnership and the selected coaches, visit ncmfc.com.
The 2024 High School Coaches:
Arlington Renegades: Nkere “Scoop” Reed, Highland Park High School
● As he heads into his 21st year of coaching football, basketball and track, Reed looks forward to continuing to learn on all levels and aspires to move to a professional level of coaching. In 2018, he participated in the Bill Walsh Fellowship, serving as a coaching intern with the Buffalo Bills.
Birmingham Stallions: Jason Winchell, Norcross High School
● With a passion for player development and a commitment to excellence, Winchell’s impact on and off the field continues to inspire. He brings over a decade of coaching experience to the high school football field. Serving as the offensive play caller, his team boasted an average of 32 points per game, and under his guidance, the 2023 team clinched the regional championship.
Additionally, he coached a first-team all-county running back and spearheaded a running back group that maintained zero turnovers. Winchell has also been instrumental in securing several Power 5 scholarship offers for his athletes.
D.C. Defenders: Eric Allie, Our Lady of Good Counsel High School
● After 10 years of coaching youth football, Allie felt he needed a new challenge in his coaching career and decided to make the jump to coaching high school. In 2010, Allie was offered a position as the freshman RB coach at Our Lady of Good Counsel. After 6 years, Coach Allie was promoted to varsity RB coach where he coached former Lions RB Mo Ibrahim.
Coach Allie has always channeled the skills he learned in the military into his coaching style. Leadership, preparation, and accountability are major pieces of his coaching philosophy. Last summer, Coach Allie participated in the NY Jets Bill Walsh Diversity Fellowship.
Houston Roughnecks: Yusef Johnson, Lutheran South Academy
● Even during a 27-year career in space exploration, Johnson has always found time to coach football, the sport he loves, and provided so much to him.
Currently, he’s the lead mission planner for the Artemis IV mission, which will deliver the I-HAB module to the Lunar Gateway space station, as well as perform a lunar landing mission. Johnson aspires to advance his coaching opportunities beyond the high school level.
Memphis Showboats: Rodney Saulsberry Sr., Whitehaven High School
● Saulsberry has won several state championships as a head coach at his alma mater, Whitehaven High School. Under his leadership, he has led his team to a 185-53 record in 19 seasons, reestablishing the program as a playoff fixture. He has been named AFCA High School Coach of the Year and Influential Coach of the Year.
Michigan Panthers: Marcus Green, Cornerstone Lincoln-King High School
● Green started the football program that he is currently coaching and strives to improve as a former D1 football player and first-time head coach. A promising D-Tackle, he was set to join the line at Penn State University until doctors discovered a benign pituitary brain tumor, which would cut his athletic career short.
Still, Green pursued a career in sports, even if it meant using his skill set off the field. After receiving his bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism from Penn State, he worked at ESPN, ABC News and the former Chicago-based digital college sports network, Campus Insiders.
San Antonio Brahmas: Matthew Bullock, San Antonio Veterans Memorial
● Bullock is a special education teacher at San Antonio Veterans Memorial, the head powerlifting coach, and assistant football coach working with inside linebackers and the defensive line. Like the high expectations Bullock sets forth in his student-athletes, he is always looking for opportunities to develop as a coach.
St. Louis Battlehawks: Kenneth Boyer, Christian Brothers College High School
● Boyer moved back to St. Louis in anticipation of the birth of his first child, a baby girl in 2024, and took an assistant coaching position at Christian Brothers College High School. There, serving as assistant wide receivers/tight ends coach, his team carved their way to a third-straight Class 6 championship game appearance.
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