With season kickoff in less than a week, two of the eight UFL teams have just had their foundations rocked with the announcement of their head coaches’ departures.
Reggie Barlow, who has been the head coach of the D.C. Defenders in both the XFL and the now merged UFL, has announced that he will be leaving the team and league to take the head coach position at Tennessee State University. The 2023 XFL Head Coach of the Year who leaves behind a 13-7 record with the team, and will be followed by his quarterback coach Shannon Harris, who was named as their interim head coach. Their first game is on March 30th, 2025 against the three-time reigning champion Birmingham Stallions so they will have just under a week to acclimate to their new coaching style.
The Defenders will not be alone in their struggle to keep a head coach, though, because the Memphis Showboats Head Coach Ken Whisenhunt is also stepping away from the team as well. This is a bit more jarring and damaging when you consider that he was doing the roles of not just head coach, but also as their offensive coordinator. Although the exact reasonings are not known, Whisenhunt is stepping away due to personal reasons. He will now be followed by the Showboats O-Line coach Jim Turner. While the Showboats have the same timeline as the Defenders to get used to their new coaching regiment, the Showboats are not in the same position as far as team strength. With last year being the first year for the team in the UFL, they presented an unimpressive 2-8 record to finish their season. While it is not an omen of things to come, the Showboats will really need to show strength in the face of adversity to put the league on notice going into 2025.
The UFL kicks off their season this weekend with a full slate of games.
