There was no in between to the Trent Dilfer era at UAB. Either they were going to win the American and Dilfer would be off to a Power 4 job, or Interstate 65 would be shut down for hours due to the flaming wreck on the UAB campus.
We know which way Dilfer thought it would go. It went the other way.
What was the high point? There wasn't one. I guess one could say a 35-6 win over North Carolina A&T in the opener, but that's almost more insulting. Dilfer never won consecutive games. He went 5-14 in AAC play, and 6-21 vs. the FBS. This was everything Dilfer's critics said it would be.
What was the low point? "It's not like this is freakin' Alabama." UAB fans know, Coach. They know. UAB fans live in the shadow of 61,320 hours a year, and they don't need their own head coach to remind them of that. Asked to clarify a couple days later, Dilfer pointed out that only two reporters covered the game in which he said that statement, and rested his case. And to prove that wasn't a one-off mistake, Dilfer praised Louisville's volleyball program over UAB's, in a podcast with UAB's athletics director. “Like if you want to play big time college volleyball go to Louisville,” Dilfer said. “You’ll have the best experience ever there. They’re great people. They’re great coaches," Dilfer said.
“Or UAB," AD Mark Ingram interjected.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “You’re right. … I will say this, they’re pulling from different (recruiting) buckets, Mark.”
Those comments, when combined with the results on the field, explained the Dilfer era in a nutshell. He wasn't qualified to lead a football program he viewed himself better than.
What did Dilfer get right? Dilfer took a lot of grief for elevating Alex Mortensen from his analyst position (at freakin' Alabama) to offensive coordinator, but offense is a shining star compared to UAB's defense.
What did Dilfer get wrong? "So yeah, it's one thing as a fan to say 'Why aren't they playing Mint? Why are they a four-down team?' Well, we all love Mint. I'd love to play that defense. I can't afford that defense. What we can afford is a four-down structure of eight or nine twitchy, explosive get-off guys that can slice-and-dice, create havoc in the backfield, create negative plays. Are we going to hold up like a brick wall in the run game? No. We're not build to hold up like a brick wall in the run game, so you've got to stop the run in different ways," Dilfer said back in May.
What UAB couldn't afford to do was not stop the run at all. They're 13th of 14 in the AAC in rushing defense. UAB may not have the budget to field the nation's 9th-best yards per play defense, as they did in 2019, or the nation's 6th-best defense, as they did in 2020, or even the 51st-best defense, as they did in 2022. But they deserve better than the nation's 129th best defense, where they rank today.
What did UAB get right? The school ended the run after 30 games and not 35.
What did UAB get wrong? “I’m not hiring a high school football coach," Ingram said back in the winter of 2022. "I’m hiring the No. 6 overall pick in the NFL Draft, a guy who’s had 14 years playing quarterback at the highest level. I’m hiring a guy that’s a Pro Bowler, who was the starting quarterback on a Super Bowl team and spent nine years with ESPN doing analytics, commentary and draft coverage."
Dilfer never threw a pass for UAB. He didn't do draft analysis for UAB, either. He went 44-10 as the head coach at Lipscomb Academy in Tennessee -- I'm no expert, but I think I'm safe in assuming Lipscomb had an overwhelming talent advantage over nearly all of its opponents. None of that translated into the skill set required to lead the UAB football program.
Where does Dilfer go from here? NFL analysis for some online venture, or back into high school football coaching. Or both. But he'll never be a major college head coach again, at least not in this chapter of his life.
Where does UAB go from here? UAB voluntarily killed its own football program, brought it back, and then got better. It opened a new stadium in 2021. It plays in the most college football-mad metro area in the world. If the bridge is burned with Bryant Vincent, there are a dozen coaches who could win at UAB. Maybe two dozen. But this is crucial, UAB leadership: they're all working in college football right now.