College Veteran Larry Fedora to Guide New Orleans Breakers Former Super Bowl Head Coach Jeff Fisher Will Lead Michigan Panthers
LOS ANGELES, JANUARY 27, 2022 — The United States Football League (USFL) announced filling its final two head coach positions today. Veteran college coach Larry Fedora will serve as head coach of the New Orleans Breakers, and long-time NFL head coach Jeff Fisher will lead the Michigan Panthers.
Fisher spent 22 seasons as an NFL head coach with two franchises, leading the Tennessee Titans to Super Bowl XXXIV, while Fedora has 32 years of experience as a college coach, 11 at the head coach level. They complete the USFL’s roster of head coaches joining Bart Andrus (Philadelphia Stars), Todd Haley (Tampa Bay Bandits), Skip Holtz (Birmingham Stallions), Mike Riley (New Jersey Generals), Kevin Sumlin (Houston Gamblers) and Kirby Wilson (Pittsburgh Maulers).
“Today is another huge day in the evolution and development of the new USFL as we welcome Larry and Jeff to the fold,” said Brian Woods, USFL President, Football Operations. “We now have eight unbelievably qualified head coaches leading USFL teams. They’re all looking forward to putting together staffs, evaluating talent, and planning the player selection strategies they’ll need to build championship-caliber football teams. The anticipation is growing as we reach each major milestone on the road to kick-off in April.”
Yesterday, the USFL made several significant announcements. First, the league announced that it reached agreements with the Birmingham Jefferson Civic Center Authority and the Birmingham Park and Recreation Board to play all 2022 regular-season games in Birmingham, Alabama. The league will play its games at Protective Stadium and a number of games at historic Legion Field. The USFL’s agreements also provide team practice and training facilities, office space, event staff, and other amenities to operate the league from Birmingham.
The USFL also revealed that the first game of the season comes Saturday, April 16 (7:30 PM ET) at Protective Stadium and features the New Jersey Generals against the Birmingham Stallions. It will be televised live on NBC and FOX, making it the first scheduled sports competition to air at the same time on two competitive broadcast networks since Super Bowl I aired on NBC and CBS, January 15, 1967.
Lastly, the league unveiled tickets for the inaugural game between the Generals and Stallions on sale at Ticketmaster.com. Tickets, all general admission, are $10 for adults, and kids under the age of 15 are free, with a limit of three (3) per ticketed adult. The league will announce its full schedule and details regarding the availability of tickets for the remainder of the season shortly.
See below for thumbnail biographies for Fedora and Fisher.
About the USFL
The United States Football League (USFL) is a new, independent football league controlled by FOX Sports through USFL HoldCo, LLC, a new business entity, and it is not associated or affiliated with the USFL of the 1980s or its owners. The USFL will launch this April with eight teams split into two divisions: the Birmingham Stallions, Houston Gamblers, New Orleans Breakers, and Tampa Bay Bandits in the South Division; and the Michigan Panthers, Pittsburgh Maulers, New Jersey Generals, and Philadelphia Stars in the North Division. Each team will play a 10-game schedule, followed by semifinals between the top two teams in each division and a championship game between division winners. The USFL will hold a player selection meeting in mid-February, and training camps will open on March 21. Each USFL team will carry a 38-man active roster plus a seven-man practice squad, and players will receive base compensation in addition to being eligible for victory bonuses. NBC Sports and FOX Sports are the league’s official media partners, committed to carrying all 43 regular- and postseason games on NBC, FOX, FS1, USA Network, or Peacock. Brian Woods, a USFL co-founder, serves as President, Football Operations, and former Dallas Cowboys standout and long-time NFL on FOX game analyst Daryl Johnston is Executive Vice President, Football Operations. Former NFL Vice President of Officiating and FOX Sports’ NFL and college football rules analyst Mike Pereira is Head of Officiating, and FOX Sports’ Edward Hartman, serves as Executive Vice President, Business Operations. For more information, visit http://USFL2.com and follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
