The United Football League (UFL) kicks off its inaugural season on March 30, and several coaches are returning from their respective XFL and USFL teams.
Former NFL tight end Anthony Becht will return for a second season as the St. Louis Battlehawks’ head coach. What is his background?
Anthony Becht Returns as Battlehawks’ Head Coach
A former Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end, Becht served as a tight ends coach with the San Diego Fleet in 2018 and as a volunteer coach at Wiregrass Ranch High School.
Becht approached the XFL with aspirations of being a head coach when the league rebooted in 2022, knowing it was a long shot.
“I was not on their radar,” Becht said. “But, to anyone in life, be determined in what you want to do.”
The 12-year NFL veteran had never held a head coaching job but has plenty of experience in the professional football world.
“Twelve years in the league, five organizations, seven different head coaches with two firings in between,” Becht said. “I learned a lot of good and bad from the coaches I’ve been around.”
Becht was selected by the Jets with a traded draft pick from Tampa Bay. As a rookie in 2000, Becht played in 14 games, missing two due to an ankle sprain. He was a starter for 10 games and totaled 16 receptions for 144 yards and two touchdowns on the season.
He played five seasons with the Jets before joining the Buccaneers. He also spent time with the Rams, Cardinals, and Chiefs. From 2000-2010, he played in 152 straight games, trailing only Brett Favre and Peyton Manning in that span.
He was announced as the head coach of the Battlehawks on April 13, 2022.
In the 2023 XFL season, Becht posted a 7-3 record, which was the most wins amongst rookie head coaches and tied for the second-best overall record in the league.
Last season, the Battlehawks shattered an XFL and professional spring football league attendance record by packing more than 38,000 fans in their home opener. The team helped more than a dozen players earn NFL tryouts.
Battlehawks quarterback AJ McCarron will also return for his second season with the team after spending time with the Cincinnati Bengals.
“This is his second year, and I think he learned a lot from being a first-time head coach,” McCarron said of Becht. “He played the game a long time at the highest level, but he’s a player-friendly coach. He takes care of guys and listens to guys. He’s an awesome coach to play for.”
This season, McCarron feels confident in his squad as they head into the inaugural season of the UFL.
“The one thing that I’ve seen this year is we have a lot of juice every day in practice,” Becht said. “To me, that’s a good happy balance, but when we work, we work … Guys feel good, guys feel energized. I mean, I was really excited about how the juice was every day in practice.”
The Battlehawks travel to Detroit to meet the Michigan Panthers on Saturday, March 30, 2024, at 4:00 p.m. ET on FOX.
KEEP READING: What Is the UFL?
Pining for more football? We’ve got you covered on all things UFL, including the top 20 players, player salaries, and much more.
