The United States Football league return is set to kickoff in April. USFL brought back 8 teams from their past. The plan is to have all 8 teams play all their games the first season in one location. The new league does not want to have a work stoppage due to Covid. In 2020, the Pandemic hit and wiped out the XFL season which was approaching the halfway point of the season. The location is Alabama in the city of Birmingham. One team out of the 8 teams coming back are the Birmingham Stallions who will play all home games in the first season. The league is still without any players. Which will be coming. The ball is rolling & things are getting done as every team now has a head coach officially in the return of the USFL. Some interesting choices were made. I will say I was surprised to see no Steve Spurrier in this go around. Some of the choices made for these teams definitely have some NFL flavoring and pedigree. Half of them have basically coached in the college game. Even though each team has no players yet. We will rank all the coaches for each USFL team from worst to first just by merit and hunch. When each team does draft its, roster the worst guy we think now could be the team with the most victories at the end of the season. Plus, it is what you do with this opportunity.

#8.KIRBY WILSON – AGE 60 (PITTSBURGH MAULERS)

Kirby Wilson I have at number 8 because he was never a head coach. Wilson is the only new head coach in the USFL that has never been a head coach at any level.

RESUME: 25 seasons in the NFL as an assistant. Last job was as a Running Back’s coach in 2019-20 seasons with Raiders. Wilson has been a running back’s coach for 7 other teams in his coaching career. Wilson has been a part of two Superbowl winning teams. Wilson was a part of the 1993 WAC conference Champions.

WHAT I LIKE: Wilson played in the Canadian Football League (CFL). That experience alone could make Wilson be able to relate to guys that don’t make the NFL and play in leagues like the USFL. As Running Back coach, he probably had some great teaching moments with backs on the bubble that are trying to make the NFL roster. Improving one flaw could be a difference. Being an assistant coach all those years in the NFL can help Wilson because he is in the same boat as his players. Players trying to get to the NFL to get their dream while Wilson wants to keep his dream job as being the head coach.

How will Kirby Wilson do running the entire show for the first time? Wilson may have soaked in all the knowledge of head coaches or other assistants throughout the years he’s been with and turn himself into a great coach. Maulers were not very good the first go around in the USFL. Sometimes certain franchises’ bad play sticks around even though this is decades later. Hope not because this is a coach you root for. This is his dream job right now. Besides, Maulers have one of the coolest logos in the entire league.

#7. TODD HALEY – AGE 54 (TAMPA BAY BANDITS)

I have Todd Haley at number 7 because this guy is a blowhard. I don’t see him being a good fit for younger players buying what he is selling.

RESUME: NFL Experience. Head Coach for the Kansas City Chiefs for three seasons. Record of (19-26) regular season. One post-season appearance (0-1) Mostly an offensive coordinator throughout his coaching career with the Browns, Steelers, and helped the Arizona Cardinals reach the Superbowl.

WHAT I LIKE: Bandits could have a solid offense. If Todd Haley gets the right guys he knows that can help his scheme, Tampa Bay could be scoring a lot of points.

Todd Haley has wore out his welcome most of the time during his coaching in the NFL. Haley only lasted three seasons in Kansas City, Haley probably did not even play out the full contract there. I think many players will be rubbed the wrong way by his coaching style. You know he will be extra salty because he’s the higher authority & it’s his show. Arrogance !!!

#6. LARRY FEDORA – AGE 59 (NEW ORLEANS BREAKERS)

I have Larry Fedora at number six because he has not coached since 2018. That can be for many reasons. Backpacking in Europe. Nobody wants your services. Trying to find himself. Family matters.

RESUME: Eleven seasons as a college coach. Larry Fedora was head coach at two schools: Southern Mississippi and North Carolina. Collegiate head coach record of (79-62) while going (3-5) in bowl games. Won Conference USA 2011, Won Conference USA East Division 2011, ACC Coastal Division in 2015

WHAT I LIKE: Coaching college over a decade means Larry Fedora can relate to younger players. How many stars has Fedoras coached? The USFL will be filled with undrafted younger players looking to play a few more seasons of football. Coached at Southern Mississippi which is close to New Orleans so knows the lay of the land in the south.

From the numbers it seems Larry Fedora can be successful in regular season but bowl games not so much. Will that trend follow him to the USFL if he gets his team to the playoffs?

#5.KEVIN SUMLIN – AGE 57 (HOUSTON GAMBLERS)

I have Kevin Sumlin at number 5 as this will be his first job doing professional football. Sumlin could be a guy at the number 4 spot in these rankings as well. I think this job and he are made for each other.

RESUME: Kevin Sumlin has done well in the college ranks with big football schools. Sumlin’s head coach jobs over his career took him to Texas A&M, University of Houston, and Arizona. Sumlin’s record in college is (95-63) during regular season and (4-3) in the bowl games. SEC coach of the year in 2012. 2X Conference USA coach of the year.

WHAT I LIKE: Familiar with Texas. Even though first season all the games will be played in Alabama, I like that he coached two college schools in Texas and takes a pro job in Houston. SEC coach of the year is impressive. Winning those honors is no slouch job.

Kevin Sumlin is the type of coach that is going to seize this moment as head coach of the Gamblers. Reading about him and his pedigree tell me he will be highly motivated and have great results.

#4. SKIP HOLTZ AGE – 57 (BIRMINGHAM STALLIONS)

I have Skip Holtz at number 4 because coaching is in his blood. Skip’s father is the legendary head coach, Lou Holtz. The experience that Skip Holtz has working for his father on the sidelines all those years. Then branching out on his own mean he has seen and done it at the collegiate ranks.

RESUME: Skip Holtz was on his father’s staff at Notre Dame and South Carolina. Skip Holtz was recently fired in 2021 from Louisiana Tech. Skip Holtz had head coaching stops at South Florida, East Carolina, and UCONN. Skip Holtz has the most games under his belt as a college coach taking on a USFL job. Skip Holtz’s college football record as head coach stands at (152-121) with 12 bowl games where he went (8-4). Won 2 Conference USA Championships. Conference USA Coach of the year in 2016.

WHAT I LIKE: Butt load of experience with younger players is what Skip Holtz brings to the table. Over 200 games under his belt as head coach should help in a new league that is not established in the first season. This with everyone else in the same boat.

Skip Holtz will have the home crowd with him every game in his first season since all the games will be played in Birmingham. Chalk up a new experience for Holtz. Could Holtz use this job as a stepping stone to the NFL or bounce back into the college game at a bigger university?

#3.BART ANDRUS – AGE 63 (PHILADELPHIA STARS)

I picked Bart Andrus number three because the majority of the games he was head coach in, were leagues like the USFL. Andrus’ success came from NFL’s Europe league. It’s a developmental league for the National Football League.

RESUME: Bart Andrus also was a head coach in the CFL. Andrus’ record up in Canada was (40-54). NFL Europe is where Andrus took his teams to two World Bowls, winning one & losing one. It was 2005 when Andrus was coach of the year for the NFLEL and won the World Bowl in the same year. Andrus has some college coaching as well. In Junior College, Andrus had (2-8) record as head coach. Above Junior College Football, Andrus had a (6-4) record.

WHAT I LIKE: Bart Andrus will know how to develop young players and he will have to do that in the USFL. I think Andrus’ biggest thing he will have going for him is the knack of knowing which players in the draft he can develop. Andrus should still have ties to certain NFL people and connections back in the CFL, that will help him construct a pretty good team.

I can see the Stars getting better as the game goes on. This is true in any Spring league because your team has to find its chemistry. Look for Andrus’ younger personnel to improve their game later in the season when players take to his teachings and buy in on his coaching.

#2.JEFF FISHER – AGE 63 (MICHIGAN PANTHERS)

Jeff Fisher by far is the biggest name on this list of new coaches in the NFL. Fisher has merits as a player and a coach. As a player, Fisher played for the 1985 Chicago Bears. Fisher has also coached a team all the way to the Superbowl.

RESUME: Jeff Fisher by far has the most games coached by anyone hired for the return of the USFL. Fisher coached for 22 seasons in the NFL and racked a regular season record of (173-165-1). Fisher started his head coaching duties in Houston for the Oilers. Fisher was the head coach of the Oilers when they became the Titans in Nashville as the team moved there. Fisher won the AFC Championship and got the Titans to the Superbowl in 1999 only to lose in a close one with the Rams. Fisher then coached the Rams years later. Fisher finished with a (5-6) post season record.

WHAT I LIKE: Jeff Fisher has not coached a team since 2016. The USFL might be a nice way to get back into coaching for Fisher to scratch the itch. This will not be a pressure cooker like an NFL job, especially the first season. Fisher could be motivated even more having his say as the final decision regarding who to draft and be the architect of his own version what a team should be.

Look for Jeff Fisher team to have that recipe of great defense and a ball control offense. Fisher will find a quarterback that will not make mistakes in turning over the ball. I think players will like to play for Fisher because he has played in the NFL. Some players will be using the USFL as a stepping stone to get into the NFL. Fisher would be the key master to a few.

#1.MIKE RILEY – AGE 68 (NEW JERSEY GENERALS

Mike Riley has Spring football in his blood. The life of Riley has him a jack of all trades in football coaching because he has been everywhere but is a master of none. Riley’s Spring football resume is nothing to sneeze at.

RESUME: Mike Riley’s NFL head coaching was not his bright spot. Riley went (14-35) in the NFL for the San Diego Chargers. Riley did pretty well at the College level and took jobs at some decent sized schools. Oregon State and Nebraska have some great College football history. Riley went (112-99) on the College grid iron of regular season. His record in College Bowl games was (7-3). In the CFL Riley has won two Grey Cups as a head coach with a record of (40-32). Last season Riley was Offensive Coordinator of the Seattle Dragons in the XFL. In 2019 Riley was head coach of the (5-3) San Antonio Commanders of the AAF which was one of the best records in the league before they ran out of money and shut the doors.

WHAT I LIKE: Mike Riley knows the inside and outside of all these other professional football leagues. Riley will have loads of knowledge of all the players that he has coached or seen in the XFL and the AAF over the last two seasons. This might give him the leg up in the draft.

Mike Riley will have an exciting offense in New Jersey. I also think Riley can get his players in a better routine than all the other coaches because he has coached in two Spring leagues the last two seasons. Riley’s team might be quicker to adjust because he knows what to expect and may have players with the same kind of resume.