Skip to main content
Join

Trent Dilfer hot seat: UAB announces head coach will return in 2025

ns_headshot_2024-clearby:Nick Schultz•12/03/24•

NickSchultz_7

UAB HC Trent Dilfer
© Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

Trent Dilfer will return as UAB head coach in 2025, athletics director Mark Ingram announced Tuesday. He has a 7-17 record across two seasons with the Blazers, and questions swirled about his future with the program.

Dilfer – a 14-year NFL veteran and former ESPN analyst – spent three years as the head coach at Nashville (Tenn.) Lipscomb Academy before taking over at UAB in 2022. The Blazers had a rough go this year, finishing 3-9 in a season that included a six-game losing streak.

CLICK HERE to go to PrizePicks and use code ON3 to receive a guaranteed $50 once you play $5 in lineups!

Dilfer’s buyout sits at around $3.6 million, On3’s Pete Nakos previously reported. However, he’s staying put in Birmingham. Ingram cited NIL and the transfer portal as factors that make a coaching change difficult.

“The last two seasons have been disappointing, but Coach Dilfer has learned a great deal and has a plan for the future,” Ingram wrote, in part. “NIL and the transfer portal make this perhaps the most challenging time in college football history. But I have seen Coach Dilfer’s dedication and believe that his football IQ, commitment to UAB, passion for the game, love for student athletes and relentless work ethic will pay off in the near future. For those reasons, Coach Dilfer will continue to be our head coach in 2025.”

Save $30 on your first month of Fubo by CLICKING HERE NOW!

For a limited time, you can get your first month of Fubo for as low as $49.99. Stream ESPN, ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC and 200+ top channels of live TV and sports without cable. (Participating plans only. Taxes and fees may apply.)

Trent Dilfer also released a statement on the decision to bring him back for another year. Like Ingram, he also cited UAB’s record over the last two years and promised better results moving forward.

“Our fans deserve better than the win-loss record we’ve given them the last two years, but I have worked extremely hard and learned a lot, and I am confident in the clearer picture I have regarding what needs to happen for UAB Football to win,” Dilfer said. “I am committed to doing what it takes to win.

“We need to do some things differently, and I have a plan to get our program where it needs to be. I have talked extensively with AD Ingram and appreciate his support of UAB Football. I also appreciate the significant investments and support our program receives from the institution, as well as commitments our leadership has made to increasing support.”