AJ McCarron spent most of his football life being told to run the offense. Now, he is getting the hang of building a similar Nick Saban-esque offense. Earlier, he was the head coach of the UFL’s Birmingham Stallions. But now, he is getting a brand new project.

The former Alabama QB has been named head coach of the UFL’s new Rhode Island franchise for the 2027 season. That gives him his second head-coaching assignment in the spring league and his first opportunity to lead a team from its creation.

The UFL announced the move pm Wednesday, Sept. 30, as part of a series of coaching changes ahead of its expansion into new markets. AJ McCarron’s move to Rhode Island comes only months after he took over the Birmingham Stallions.

“The UFL’s growth is about more than adding teams – it’s about building football communities that fans can connect with from day one,” UFL President and CEO Russ Brandon said in a statement.

The UFL originally hired him in December 2025 to replace Skip Holtz, who stepped away after four seasons and three consecutive championships. During his brief tenure, he coached 10 games and had a 4-6 record.

But now, the Stallions are moving away from Birmingham from their 47,000-seat Stadium in search of a better game-day atmosphere. With that, the UFL is also adding former Colorado coach Rick Neuheisel as the UFL’s Colorado head coach.

Moreover, the league is also moving former Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin to the UFL’s Dallas team. For AJ McCarron, the Rhode Island job is different.

“AJ, Rick, and Kevin each bring tremendous football experience and a unique connection to the markets they will lead,” Russ Brandon said. “Pairing them with the returning talent from 2026 rosters, we’re giving fans in Rhode Island, Colorado, and Dallas a strong foundation to support as we continue building professional spring football.”

Rhode Island is one of two new UFL markets set to start in 2027, with Colorado joining the league at the same time. Utah and Oklahoma are expected to follow in 2028 as the UFL works toward a 10-team league.

The team will play its home games at Centreville Bank Stadium in Pawtucket. Rhode Island will host its first home game on April 2, 2027, although the opponent has not been announced yet. As for the franchise’s name and colors?

Rhode Island will unveil its name, colors, and branding at an Oct. 18 event at the stadium. That gives McCarron a clean slate. It also brings him back to the kind of football environment he knows better than almost anyone in the spring game.

“This game has given me so much as a player, and now I am ready to give back as a coach,” McCarron said about being a coach after he became the Stallions’ head coach. “

McCarron was Alabama’s starting quarterback from 2011 through 2013 under Nick Saban. He finished his college career with 9,019 passing yards, 77 touchdowns, and only 15 interceptions while completing 66.9% of his passes. No wonder Bama went 36-4 during his three seasons as the starter.

The championships are the part that still defines him. McCarron led Alabama to national titles in the 2011 and 2012 seasons. In the 2012 championship game against Notre Dame, he completed 20 of 28 passes for 264 yards and four touchdowns.

The following year, he threw for a school-record 3,063 yards and 28 touchdowns and finished second in Heisman Trophy voting behind Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston. Beyond those numbers, though, what McCarron values the most are the lessons Saban taught him to become a better coach.

AJ McCarron will aim to mix Nick Saban’s philosophy with his own identity at Rhode Island

When Birmingham entered the 2026 UFL season as one of the teams expected to contend, McCarron immediately pushed back against the attention surrounding his roster. He had seen that movie before as an Alabama quarterback.

“Where I implement this stuff is being process-oriented,” McCarron told AL.com about implementing Saban’s philosophy. “Everything’s about how much, ‘How fast can you create success,’ instead of, ‘Okay, what does it take to create that success?’

“It’s not just a viral video. It’s not just an overnight millionaire. It’s all the long nights and days before.”

That is classic Saban territory. But McCarron did not try to recreate Alabama in Birmingham. He has deliberately separated himself from Saban in one important area: his relationship with players.

“I’m still going to be myself,” McCarron said. He described himself as a player’s coach and said he wanted players to feel comfortable walking into his office, talking about football, or simply talking about life.

The former Alabama QB, though, also brought pieces of that old Crimson Tide network into his first staff. Birmingham hired Tyler Siskey as OC and Kevin Sherrer as defensive coordinator, giving AJ McCarron two coaches with Alabama connections during the Saban era.

Now the franchise is moving to the Northeast, giving McCarron another chance to put what he learned in 2026 to work. He will take the roster he has built to Pawtucket and start over in a new city, trying to bring the same winning mindset he grew up around at Alabama.