The rivalry continues! Today, we play the Dallas Renegades. Just another reason to fuel the competition between Houston and Dallas. Let’s take a look at who exactly we are playing against, and what we can expect for today’s game. 

Head Coach

The Dallas Renegades are led by Rick Neuheisel. A former UCLA quarterback and USFL player during their first run, Neuheisel brings experience not only in professional spring football, but NFL coaching experience as well. 

He was a college head coach at Colorado, Washington, and UCLA with multiple bowl game appearances as part of his resume. During his time in the NFL, he was the Baltimore Ravens QB Coach and Offensive Coordinator from 2005-2011. Lastly, he was the head coach for the Arizona Hotshots in 2019 where he went 5-3 in the only season. 

Quarterback

Austin Reed will be the starter for the game, a bit of surprise for many since Perez was the starter for the past two seasons, and has previously led the Renegades to a spring football championship. Reed is 26 years old coming out of Western Kentucky where he went 16-10 during his two years there. He spent time with the Chicago Bears before being waived and joining the UFL. 

Reed’s biggest strength seems to be his ability to maneuver around in the pocket, which gives him that extra second to make a decisive throw. Though primarily a pocket-passer, he does possess mobility giving coaches the option to run effective play action and QB draws, just like he did during his time at Western Kentucky.  

Defense

The defense is linebacker driven, so expect Donald Payne and Kalen DeLoach to be the focal point on this side of the ball. 

The defense is led by Mike Gillhamer, who brings 15 years of NFL coaching experience and experience coaching in the XFL and AAF. Gillhamer is not new to spring football, so playing against his defense with his wealth of knowledge and experience will be no easy task. 

Familiar Faces

Here’s a name Houstonians might remember. Xavier Sua’Filo. That’s right, the former first round pick of the Houston Texas back in the 2014 NFL Draft. He is no longer a player in the NFL, but is now the Renegades Offensive Line coach. Though his time in Houston wasn’t the most memorable for us, let’s see how he does coaching up our opponents offensive line.