10 USFL assistant coaches you should know
By RJ Young
FOX Sports Writer
Coaching staffs for the eight teams in the USFL’s 2022 inaugural season were announced last week, and there are quite a few intriguing names on the list.
Each team has one head coach, six assistant coaches and two team assistants who will serve as quality-control coaches for their respective 45-man rosters.
These coaching staffs boast a wealth of high-level football knowledge, as 25 of the 48 assistant coaches have NFL experience as a player or coach. Each one has a story.
As the USFL's April 16 regular-season kickoff approaches, here are 10 assistants you should know.
Tampa Bay Bandits defensive coordinator Pepper Johnson
Johnson won three Super Bowls as an assistant on New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick’s staff.
Prior to coaching the Pats' defense, Johnson played linebacker on two Super Bowl-winning New York Giants teams for Belichick, his defensive coordinator, and alongside Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker Lawrence Taylor.
He was an All-America selection at Ohio State in 1985.
Tampa Bay Bandits defensive backs coach Carnell Lake
As a player in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ secondary, Lake won AFC Defensive Player of the Year and was named to the All-Pro First Team in 1997. He was named to five Pro Bowl teams and the NFL’s All-Decade Team for the 1990s and was inducted into the Pittsburgh Steelers' Hall of Honor.
Birmingham Stallions defensive coordinator John Chavis
Chavis won the Broyles Award — given to the nation’s top assistant coach — as defensive coordinator on the 2011 LSU Tigers coaching staff. Nineteen of his players at LSU were selected in the NFL Draft — five in the first round — during his six years in Baton Rouge, including Tyrann Mathieu.
The 2011 Bayou Bengals finished with an appearance in the BCS national championship game and a 13-1 record.
Birmingham Stallions defensive line coach Bill Johnson
Johnson won a national title as a graduate assistant on Jimmy Johnson’s staff for the 1987 Miami Hurricanes and another as defensive line coach on Ed Orgeron’s staff for the 2019 LSU Tigers.
He also won a Super Bowl as a member of Sean Payton’s 2009 coaching staff for the New Orleans Saints.
Birmingham Stallions running backs coach Larry Kirksey
Kirksey spent 17 of his 22 years as a football coach working as an assistant in the NFL. In 1995, he was wide receivers coach for George Seifert’s staff on the Super Bowl champion San Francisco 49ers.
As wide receivers coach for the 49ers, his star pupil was Pro Football Hall of Fame receiver Jerry Rice. Rice set then-records for receiving yards (1,848) and receptions (122) in ‘95.
Pittsburgh Panthers offensive line coach Neil Callaway
Callaway served as head coach for the UAB Blazers from 2007 to 2011. Prior to that stint in Birmingham, he coached the offensive line that opened holes for Bo Jackson on Pat Dye’s Auburn staff.
In 1985, Jackson rushed for 1,786 yards and 17 TDs en route to the Heisman Memorial Trophy. The Tigers won four SEC titles, and Callaway coached four All-America offensive linemen at Auburn.
He also helped the Georgia Bulldogs win two SEC titles in six years as an offensive line coach and offensive coordinator on Mark Richt’s staff.
Like New Jersey Generals head coach Mike Riley, Callaway played for Paul "Bear" Bryant at Alabama. As a senior, he led the Tide to a No. 2 final ranking in the Associated Press poll and was voted "Most Outstanding Athlete" on the team as a senior, having played on both the offensive and defensive line and as a linebacker.
New Jersey Generals defensive coordinator Cris Dishman
As a cornerback for the Houston Oilers, Dishman was named 1991 First Team All-Pro and to the ‘91 Pro Bowl team. He played in the NFL for 13 years.
Dishman also played on the same defense at Purdue as Houston Gamblers coach Kevin Sumlin, who played linebacker.
New Jersey Generals defensive line coach Bob Diaco
Diaco was the 2012 Broyles Award winner as defensive coordinator at Notre Dame. His 2012 ND defense allowed just 12.8 points per game, produced Heisman finalist Manti Te’o and finished 12-1 with an appearance in the BCS national championship game.
He also made stops as head coach at UConn, defensive coordinator at Nebraska and outside linebackers coach at Oklahoma. As a player, he was an All-Big Ten performer at Iowa under legendary head coach Hayden Fry.
Houston Gamblers wide receiver coach David Beaty
Beaty was wide receivers coach on Gamblers head coach Kevin Sumlin’s staff at Texas A&M before he became head coach at Kansas.
At A&M, he developed future NFL All-Pro wide out and Super Bowl champion Mike Evans.
Philadelphia Stars offensive quality-control coach Brock Olivo
Olivo served as special-teams coordinator for the Denver Broncos in 2017. As a college running back, he left Missouri as the program’s all-time leading rusher and currently sits fourth on that list (3,026).
RJ Young is a national college football writer and analyst for FOX Sports and the host of the podcast "The No. 1 Ranked Show with RJ Young." Follow him on Twitter at @RJ_Young, and subscribe to "The RJ Young Show" on YouTube. He is not on a StepMill.
