Looking At The San Antonio Brahmas 2025 Coaching Staff | Wade Phillips
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Looking At The San Antonio Brahmas 2025 Coaching Staff

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The San Antonio Brahmas have gotten their UFL staff set for the upcoming season – and not surprisingly, it’s going to be a very similar scene in San Antonio this year.

This Brahmas team is hungry after a Championship appearance resulted in being shut out by Birmingham. San Antonio was one of the top coached teams in the entire UFL a season ago, and will now look to build upon that momentum as we head towards year two in the UFL. Let’s take a look at who’s on this staff, and what Brahmas fans can expect this upcoming season.

Wade Phillips | Head Coach

Wade Phillips is back in action for a second season as the Head Coach of the San Antonio Brahmas. Wade was actually a last second addition to San Antonio prior to the merger going through, as Hines Ward stepped away. Phillips had originally been told he wasn’t coming back, as the XFL’s Houston Roughnecks were dissolved and replaced by the USFL’s Houston Gamblers.

This turned out to be a fantastic piece of news for the Brahmas, as Wade and his staff led the team to a Championship berth. Phillips’ Roughnecks and Brahmas both boasted 7-3 regular season records the past two years.

Phillips has an extensive NFL coaching career, which began in 1976 with the Houston Oilers. He had opportunities with the New Orleans Saints, Philadelphia Eagles, and others. His first head coaching job came in Denver, but he lasted only a couple of years from 1993-1994.

Wade served as the Buffalo Bills head coach from 1998-2000, which included a playoff run in 1999. The last time he was a head coach in the NFL was from 2007-2010, with the Dallas Cowboys. Since then, his most notable moment came during the 2016 super bowl, as his defense shut down Cam Newton and the Panthers’ offense.

Now, Wade is back in action for another stint in the spring scene, ready to bring his charm and wit back to the UFL’s sidelines.

A.J. Smith | Offensive Coordinator

The man, the myth, the legend – A.J. Smith returns for another season of spring football in the UFL. Austin James has been, undoubtedly, one of the brightest up and coming coaches in spring football.

A.J. Smith has become famous for his “air raid” offense, which has been on display the past couple of seasons in spring ball. Smith saw his Roughnecks run through the XFL North Division in the regular season, despite having to utilize multiple QB’s that year.

In the UFL, Smith worked with almost an entirely new roster, and also had to deal with a major injury to his starting QB in Chase Garbers. This didn’t phase A.J. much at all, though, as the Brahmas continued to find ways to win. Smith’s creativity was featured once again, utilizing the double forward pass for a score.

With new offensive weapons coming to the roster this year, expect even more dynamic playmaking out of A.J.’s offense.

Will Reed | Defensive Coordinator

Will Reed was quietly one of the top free agent additions to any coaching staff in the UFL. Reed took over for Brian Stewart, who left for Middle Tennessee prior to the merger taking place. Wade Phillips decided to bring Reed in, someone who he had worked with back in Dallas many years ago.

Reed’s defense ended up being the top unit in the entire UFL, producing at literally every level. They allowed the least amount of points per game (15.3), and yards per game (256.7). Not to mention, they led the league in sacks. Will’s defensive squad was on fire all year long, and the work he did simply didn’t get enough attention.

Will also has quite a bit of experience at the collegiate level. He served as the Assistant Head Coach & Defensive Coordinator at Trinity Valley Community College for several years, and also held the same title at Southern Arkansas University.

Payton Pardee | Wide Receivers/Special Teams

Here’s a fun fact – Payton Pardee is the grandson of Jack Pardee, who coached the USFL’s Houston Gamblers back in 1984. Pardee spent the 2023 XFL season with Wade Phillips in Houston, coaching some of the top wideouts in the league (i.e. Deontay Burnett, Jontre Kirklin, etc.).

Payton’s wide receivers in San Antonio were on point yet again, as the Brahmas produced offensively all year long. In addition, he managed some rough waters on special teams; dealing with a season ending injury to starting kicker, Donald De La Haye.

Marvin Williams | Offensive Line

Williams also comes back to San Antonio’s staff, ready to work with Phillips for a third season. Marvin will once again be changing roles, taking over as Offensive Line Coach, with Andre Gurode headed to Colorado.

In 2023, Marvin was the Offensive Quality Control coach in Houston, with the Roughnecks. This past year with the Brahmas, Marvin moved to RB coach. Williams played a key role in his running backs seeing outstanding production. John Lovett was one of the UFL’s leading rushers, with 422 yards and five touchdowns in just eight games. Anthony McFarland, when healthy, was arguably the most electric player in the league. Now, Marvin will embrace a new role again – with some big shoes to fill. Gurode’s O-Line was one of the UFL’s best a season ago.

Jesse Thompson | Running Backs

The San Antonio Brahmas have added Jesse Thompson to the coaching staff, to take over the backfield with Marvin’s promotion. Thompson is no stranger to spring football, having plenty of experience in the scene. Jesse was actually a part of the Houston Roughnecks’ undefeated season in 2020, as the Assistant Special Teams Coach and Defensive Quality Control Coach. He was also a part of The Spring League, as a Special Teams Coordinator and RB’s Coach.

Recently, Jesse was hired at Idaho State to serve as ST Coordinator, and Director of Football Operations. His other college experience includes stops at Northern State University, Southern Oregon, Mayville State, Albright College, and Lewis & Clark College. Jesse also has pro stints in Europe, spending time with a few organizations overseas. He’s got plenty of experience at the collegiate and professional level, and will be an excellent addition to the staff in San Antonio.

Chris Achuff | Defensive Line

Chris was an addition by Will Reed, helping fill out the defensive staff. He proved to be an excellent pickup, as the Brahmas led the UFL in sacks, with 32. This defensive line made opposing offenses’ lives hell all year long, and it’s no surprise to see Chris back in San Antonio for this upcoming season.

Chris has been coaching for over two decades, at the collegiate and NFL level. He served as the assistant defensive line coach for the Arizona Cardinals from 2018-2019. Achuff is probably best known for his time spent as the D-Line coach at Baylor, as he was part of that program from 2008-2016. Most recently before the UFL, Achuff was the defensive line coach at Syracuse for three years.

Derrick Berry | Linebackers

Derrick Berry came over to San Antonio as a package deal with Will Reed, from Southern Arkansas University. Berry had been with the school as their linebackers coach for a few seasons, after spending a couple of years with Mayville State University. Berry was another piece of this staff that was integral to their success. Despite dealing with so many injuries at linebacker, Berry’s unit performed quite well – and we saw Tavante Beckett and Jordan Williams tear it up week in and week out.

Josh Jones | Defensive Backs

Returning to coach the defensive backs is Josh Jones, who was a late addition to the staff a year ago, taking over for Morgan Ford. Jones has plenty of experience working with DB’s, having spent years at the collegiate level at South Alabama, Norfolk State University, and Citadel. Jones was responsible for some of the top defensive performances a year ago – with playmakers such as Darius Phillips, Corey Mayfield Jr., BoPete Keyes, and others playing excellent football all year long. With plenty of new faces this year, expect his secondary to be even stronger in 2025.

Marc Lillibridge | General Manager

Marc Lillibridge is quietly one of the top general managers in the pro scene – specifically, in the spring. He’s done tremendous work alongside Wade Phillips in building out this Brahmas roster, as it keeps getting better with each and every season. Marc does the majority of the free agent acquisitions, with Wade taking a step back during the offseasons.

Marc has plenty of pro football experience, most notably serving as a scout with the Green Bay Packers and Kansas City Chiefs for several years. He also served as a Linebackers Coach with the University of Washington in St. Louis for a couple of years before joining the XFL.

Lillibridge has been the guy behind the scenes who’s built two rosters that went 7-3 – and with all of the NFL caliber additions he makes to the team every year, San Antonio should be in a position to make another Championship run.

What are your thoughts on the San Antonio Brahmas coaching staff for 2025? Let us know down in the comments below, or join the conversation on Discord!

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