UAB's Trent Dilfer explains 'It’s not like this is freaking Alabama' postgame comments

Trent Dilfer went viral for his comments about Alabama during his postgame press conference Saturday, following UAB’s loss to Navy.

The Blazers’ head coach was taking a question when he heard his grandson talking in the back. Dilfer seemingly referred to the lack of press in the room so he wanted to have his grandson on stage next to him and said: “He can come up. It’s like two of them. It’s not like this is freaking Alabama. Let’s go. Come on bud. You can come up here. Go ahead.”

On Monday, Dilfer was asked about those comments, trying to clarify what he meant by “not like this is freaking Alabama.” The exchange in its entirety is below.

Reporter: “Trent during the post game presser, you quoted, ‘this is not freaking Alabama.’ What would you say to UAB fans who may have perceived this as something that you didn’t mean to say? Or could you just elaborate on what you meant to say?” 

Dilfer: “Were you there?”

Reporter: “I was not there.” 

Dilfer: “There’s my answer. There were two people there. Okay, my grandson wanted to come up, and I heard like little stirring. I said, there’s two people here. This isn’t freaking Alabama’s press conference. My grandson can come up.”

Reporter: “But you are aware of this program’s history?”

Dilfer: “I am very aware of this program’s history.”

UAB’s history features a 3-3 bowl record, three division titles and two Conference USA titles. The Blazers’ program was actually terminated in 2014 but eventually reinstated and resumed play in 2017.

Dilfer is in the middle of his second season as the UAB head coach, but the team dropped to 1-3 on the season following a 41-18 loss to undefeated Navy. The Blazers went 4-8 in 2023, his first year on the job.

Dilfer was a highly successful high school coach at Lipscomb Academy (Tenn.), going 44-10 from 2019-22. He won two high school national championships before taking over UAB last season.

With Tulane on the horizon, Dilfer said his team is making “big strides.”

“The one that is not going to happen under my leadership is the skies are going to be gray, and everything sucks in life because you lose a football game,” Dilfer said. “I do believe we’re making big strides. I thought the response of our players yesterday, watching film and getting out to practice, was phenomenal.

“We talked about how there’s a journey to becoming a champion, and you don’t always get what you want right away. I think that’s a life lesson too.”