Blog Article
Trent Dilfer Has A 7-17 Record At UAB. Here’s Why His $3.6 Million Buyout Won’t Save His Job In 2025
Here’s what nobody wants to say out loud.
Trent Dilfer is coaching for his job at UAB. And based on two years of evidence, he’s going to lose it. The numbers don’t lie. A 7-17 record. A .292 winning percentage. Zero road wins in 24 months. And a hot seat rating of 0.715 that has him ranked as the fifth most endangered coach in college football.
This isn’t speculation.
This is math.
The Problem With Hiring Names Instead Of Coaches
Athletic Director Mark Ingram made a classic mistake in 2022.
He got starstruck. Instead of promoting interim coach Bryant Vincent—who had just led UAB to a 7-6 record—Ingram chased the shiny object. He wanted the former NFL quarterback. The Super Bowl winner. The ESPN analyst with name recognition.
“I’m not hiring a high school football coach,” Ingram said at the time. “I’m hiring the number six overall pick in the NFL draft.”
Wrong.
You were hiring a high school football coach who happened to be a former NFL player. And there’s a massive difference between those two things. The irony? Bryant Vincent—the guy Ingram passed over—is now coaching Louisiana Monroe to potential bowl eligibility. Meanwhile, Dilfer’s UAB team got obliterated 32-6 by Vincent’s Warhawks to open the 2024 season.
That’s not just bad luck.
That’s institutional malpractice.
When The Numbers Tell The Whole Story
Here’s how badly things have collapsed under Dilfer.
2023 to 2024 regression:
- Passing accuracy: 71.7% → 63.7% (catastrophic)
- Total offense: 450 yards/game → 392.5 yards/game
- Rushing: 161.1 yards/game → 130.9 yards/game
- Turnovers per game: 1.7 → 2.1
You don’t accidentally get worse at this many things. This is a systematic failure. The defense was even more brutal. UAB allowed 212.9 rushing yards per game in 2024—among the worst in the country. They gave up 34.2 points per game and finished 120th in scoring defense.
Six different opponents ran for more than 190 yards against them.
That’s not a personnel problem. That’s a coaching problem.
The Hail Mary
Dilfer knows he’s drowning.
So he’s throwing everything at the wall. New defensive coordinator Steve Russ brings legitimate credibility—two Super Bowl rings and six years of NFL coaching experience. The entire defensive staff was rebuilt with over 40 years of combined NFL experience.
Through the transfer portal, 19 players left, but 13+ new faces arrived:
- Quarterback Ryder Burton from West Virginia
- Running back Jevon Jackson from UTEP
- Wide receiver Kaleb Brown from Iowa
When you flip half your roster in one offseason, you’re not building a program.
You’re admitting the previous two years were a complete waste of time.
The Tone-Deaf Moments That Define Him
But here’s what shows you who Trent Dilfer is as a coach.
After a September loss, he dismissed criticism by saying, “It’s not like this is freakin’ Alabama.” Think about that for a second. Your job is to build excitement around your program. Your job is to sell hope to your fanbase. And instead, you’re publicly lowering expectations and making excuses.
Even worse? On a UAB-produced podcast, Dilfer promoted Louisville’s volleyball program—where his daughter played—over UAB’s volleyball team. At the same time, his own Athletic Director tried to defend UAB’s program on the same podcast.
That’s not just tone-deaf.
That’s sabotage.
The Math On His Future
Oddsmakers set UAB’s win total at 4.5 games for 2025.
The under is favored. Most national previews have UAB finishing 13th out of 14 teams in the AAC. The schedule includes Tennessee, Memphis, Army, and Navy—teams that will expose every weakness.
To reach bowl eligibility, UAB needs to double its 2024 win total. Based on two years of evidence, that’s not happening. The financial reality makes it worse. UAB owes Dilfer $3.6 million if they fire him after 2025, dropping to $2.4 million after the season.
But keeping a failing coach to save money is how programs die.
Why This Matters Beyond UAB
This is a cautionary tale about the modern college football hiring process.
UAB had a program with momentum. Bill Clark had built something special before health issues forced his resignation. Bowl games. Competitive teams. Hope. Dilfer inherited a functional program and systematically destroyed it through inexperience and poor judgment.
The lesson?
- Past playing success doesn’t translate to coaching success
- Name recognition doesn’t win games
- When you hire someone for the wrong reasons, you get predictable results
The Verdict
Trent Dilfer will coach the 2025 season at UAB.
But he won’t coach the 2026 season. The comprehensive staff changes and roster overhaul might buy him a few extra wins. But fundamentally, nothing has changed. He’s still the same coach who has never won a road game in college football.
Athletic Director Mark Ingram will eventually have to admit his mistake.
The question isn’t if—it’s when. UAB fans deserve better than watching their program become a cautionary tale. They deserve better than a coach who publicly diminishes their school while collecting a $1.3 million salary.
The 2025 season will be Trent Dilfer’s last at UAB.
Everyone knows it, including him.
The clock isn’t just ticking. It’s about to expire.
