Kevin Sumlin, Todd Haley, Mike Riley, Bart Andrus Announced as USFL Head Coaches
January 6, 2022
The USFL revealed the hiring of its first four head coaches on Thursday: Kevin Sumlin, Todd Haley, Mike Riley and Bart Andrus. The league is scheduled to begin play this spring.
"Today is a monumental day for the new USFL as we hit the 100 days to kickoff mark," USFL president Brian Woods said in a statement, per ESPN.
Woods continued, "To attract Mike Riley and Todd Haley, two former NFL head coaches, Bart Andrus, a former head coach in NFL Europe and CFL, plus an experienced college head coach in Kevin Sumlin, to the USFL, speaks to the quality of the league we're building."
The USFL will begin its season on April 16 and will run through mid-June. The league will feature eight teams playing a 10-game schedule.
Sumlin, a former head coach at the University of Houston, will coach the Houston Gamblers. Sumlin also coached at Texas A&M and most recently at Arizona. He was fired after going 0-5 in the 2020 season.
Haley will coach the Tampa Bay Bandits. The former head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs also spent time as offensive coordinator for the Arizona Cardinals, Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers.
Riley will be at the helm of the New Jersey Generals. He coached the Los Angeles Chargers from 1999-2001 and had stints at the collegiate level with Oregon State and Nebraska. Riley also had positions with the AAF and XFL.
Andrus will be in charge of the Philadelphia Stars. He's had coaching stops in the CFL, UFL and NFL Europe.
One more name has emerged as a possible coach, as Fox Sports' Bruce Feldman reported that former Auburn head coach Gene Chizik is a candidate to lead the Birmingham Stallions. Feldman stated that there is a mutual interest, "but nothing has been finalized."
Each USFL team's roster will consist of 38 players and a seven-player practice squad. The league will hold a player selection meeting from Feb. 22-23, and training camps will begin on March 21.