Jalen Kitna Commits to Trent Dilfer, UAB After Plea Deal in Child Pornography Case
Dec 30, 2023
GAINESVILLE, FL - OCTOBER 02: Florida Gators quarterback Jalen Kitna (11) looks to pass the ball during a college football game against the Eastern Washington Eagles on October 2, 2022 at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium at Florida Field in Gainesville, Florida. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Former Florida Gators quarterback Jalen Kitna will join Trent Dilfer and the UAB Blazers in 2024 after reaching a plea deal in his child pornography case, according to ESPN's Alex Scarborough.
"I acknowledge that I made naive decisions that I deeply regret and have since learned from," Kitna said in a statement to ESPN. "As a result, I took responsibility by pleading no-contest to second-degree misdemeanor disorderly conduct charges related to those decisions."
He added: "However, I firmly believe that UAB is the perfect fit for me. I consider myself fortunate to be in Birmingham, surrounded by an incredible support system, having found a church family, and being able to take advantage of the numerous resources offered by the university."
Dilfer also said in a statement to ESPN that the program did "extensive due diligence" when reviewing Kitna's application and interest in suiting up for the football program:
"Initial headlines can be hard to get past, even if they don't hold up to the scrutiny of the legal process over time. UAB and the Department of Athletics have performed extensive due diligence, and I have personally looked at the facts of this case and the thorough investigation, and I've had candid conversations with Jalen and his parents. I firmly believe Jalen learned valuable lessons and will carry himself well and show great character as a member of our community. Otherwise, he would not be at UAB."
Kitna was dismissed from Florida's football program after being arrested on five felony child pornography charges in November 2022. He was accused of sharing images of young girls being sexually abused on social media and investigators also found photos of underage girls in the shower on his phone.
As part of a plea deal, Kitna pleaded guilty in July to two counts of disorderly conduct. In exchange, he had his child pornography charges dropped and did not have to register as a sex offender.
Kitna was also ordered to serve six months' probation as part of the plea deal. He entered the transfer portal in July after agreeing to the deal.
Kitna, the son of former NFL quarterback Jon Kitna, initially committed to Florida as a three-star prospect out of high school. He was the team's backup before being dismissed and threw for 181 yards and one touchdown during his time in Florida.
In his first season as head coach of the Blazers in 2023, Dilfer led the program to a 4-8 record.
DeWayne McBride NFL Draft 2023: Scouting Report for UAB RB
Feb 22, 2023
SHREVEPORT, LOUISIANA - DECEMBER 18: DeWayne McBride #22 of the UAB Blazers runs the ball in the second half against the BYU Cougars during the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl at Independence Stadium on December 18, 2021 in Shreveport, Louisiana. The Blazers defeated the Cougars 31-28. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
HEIGHT: 5'11"
WEIGHT: 215
HAND: TBD
ARM: TBD
WINGSPAN: TBD
40-YARD DASH: TBD
3-CONE: TBD
SHUTTLE: TBD
VERTICAL: TBD
BROAD: TBD
POSITIVES
— Great size for the position. Thick, filled-out frame that can handle a full workload.
— Great strength and contact balance. Bounces off tacklers with relative ease; fights through clutter.
— Unrelenting demeanor as a runner. Aggressive, never gives up and always falls forward.
— Excels at turning hits in the backfield into neutral or positive gains.
— Functional lateral ability for his size. Can work parallel to the line of scrimmage.
— Above-average vision as a zone runner. Knows when to jam his foot in the ground and go.
NEGATIVES
— Long speed is average. Not slow, but not a major home run threat at the NFL level.
— Quickness and agility are below average. Won't make many people miss in space.
— Rarely asked to pass-protect and tended to struggle when he did.
— Almost never asked to catch passes. Caught five passes in two seasons.
— Rushing experience is limited to almost exclusively zone runs. Will have to adjust to new schemes in the NFL.
NOTES
—DOB: July 8, 2001
— 3-star recruit in 2020
— Over 200 carries in each of the last two seasons
— 2021 second-team All-Conference USA; 2022 first-team All-Conference USA
OVERALL
DeWayne McBride is a dream for zone-based offenses looking for mid-round production.
At 6'0" and 215 pounds, McBride's muscled-up build is perfect for handling a full NFL workload. He is a tough, violent runner who only gets better the more clutter and chaos there is. He's nimble enough at the line of scrimmage to handle those scenarios, but more than that, he has the demeanor and balance to consistently fight for yardage. It's extremely difficult to get him down behind the line of scrimmage, and he's always fighting and falling forward for extra yards, making him the type of runner who is great for keeping an offense on schedule.
McBride's vision and ability to work the horizontal stretch on zone runs is nice, too. He's no Christian McCaffrey, but he knows when to slam his foot in the ground, make the cut and trudge ahead with no hesitation. It's rare that he makes a wrong move and gets himself caught up behind his own blockers. McBride rarely got chances to show that vision on non-zone concepts, which makes his evaluation a bit incomplete, but showing good vision on the plays he was asked to execute is encouraging.
Unfortunately, McBride's explosive play potential and third-down skills are lacking. His breakaway speed is nothing to write home about. He accelerates to his top speed quickly, which helps for breaking the line of scrimmage, but his top speed is fine and nothing more.
As a third-down back, McBride showed close to nothing in college. UAB seldom asked him to pass-protect or catch passes, and he didn't look too comfortable in those limited instances. He may develop those skills in the NFL, but that's a huge assumption for a senior who couldn't do any of those things at the Group of Five level.
McBride can provide good bruiser-style play in a zone scheme right away. The size, physicality and vision are all there. He's a one-dimensional player right now, though. He will have a huge learning curve when it comes to NFL run scheme diversity and third-down play, and he's not much of a threat to rip off long touchdowns. McBride would be best served in a split backfield where he can be the heavy enforcer type to complement a smaller, quicker third-down back.
Trent Dilfer, Former NFL QB and Super Bowl Champion, Named UAB Head Coach
Nov 30, 2022
Trent Dilfer
The University of Alabama at Birmingham named former NFL
quarterback Trent Dilfer its new head football coach on Wednesday.
The move comes as little surprise, as ESPN's Pete Thamel reported Tuesday
night that UAB and Dilfer were "expected to come to terms in the upcoming
days."
It would be Dilfer's first coaching job
at the collegiate level after spending the past four years leading
the Lipscomb Academy high school team.
Lipscomb is aiming to win its second
straight Tennessee state championship Thursday, and John Brice of Football Scoop reported Dilfer has
maintained a "laser focus" on that. However, he added the Blazers are "optimistic" about their chances of reaching an agreement after
the title game.
The school's record across the longtime
quarterback's coaching tenure stands at 38-8.
Dilfer was a first-round pick of the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 1994 NFL draft. He also made stops with
the Baltimore Ravens, Seattle Seahawks, Cleveland Browns and San
Francisco 49ers during a 13-year pro career.
He earned a Pro Bowl selection with the
Bucs in 1997 and captured a Super Bowl title with the Ravens in 2000 with plenty of help from one of the greatest defenses in NFL history.
As well as coaching, the 50-year-old California native
has worked as a football analyst for the NFL Network, ESPN and Fox Sports
following his playing days. He's also mentored top quarterback prospects with the Elite 11 camp.
If hired by UAB, Dilfer will be tasked
with continuing the progress started by Bill Clark, who guided the program to a 49-26 record across six years before retiring ahead of the
2022 season.
The Blazers have posted a 6-6 mark this
year under interim head coach Bryant Vincent. They'll face Miami
(Ohio) in the Bahamas Bowl on Dec. 16 looking to clinch their sixth
straight winning season.
Dylan Hopkins, UAB Upset No. 13 BYU to Win 2021 Independence Bowl
Dec 19, 2021
UAB running back DeWayne McBride (22) breaks free for a touchdown run during the first half of the Independence Bowl NCAA college football game against BYU in Shreveport, La., Saturday, Dec. 18, 2021. (AP Photo/Matthew Hinton)
Dreary weather in Louisiana couldn't bring down the UAB Blazers, who defeated No. 13 BYU 31-28 on Saturday to win the 2021 Independence Bowl.
Heavy rain in the Shreveport area briefly delayed kickoff, but it cleared up as the game kept going.
Both starting running backs dominated on the ground. DeWayne McBride racked up 183 yards and one touchdown on 28 carries. Tyler Allgeier carried the ball 27 times for 192 yards and three scores in the loss.
Trea Shropshire scored the game-winning touchdown for UAB with 6:17 remaining in the fourth quarter. He caught a 14-yard pass from Dylan Hopkins in the end zone after BYU took a 28-24 on its previous possession.
BYU came into the bowl game riding a five-game winning streak. The offense was averaging 48.5 points in its final four games of the regular season.
Notable Game Stats
Dylan Hopkins, QB (UAB): 19-of-23, 189 yards, 3 TD, INT
This turned out to be a back-and-forth high-scoring affair. UAB's scoring outburst was especially surprising because it only ranked 59th in the nation in points per game during the regular season.
The Blazers looked like they were going to dominate right out of the gate.
After both teams traded punts on their first possession, UAB scored touchdowns on consecutive drives to go up 14-0 at the end of the first quarter.
McBride scored the second one on a 64-yard run. He showed no lingering effects from the ankle injury suffered in the regular-season finale against UTEP that kept him out for the entire second half.
BYU stormed back in the second quarter with two scores of its own to tie the score at 14.
The Blazers regained the lead before halftime with a nine-play, 78-yard drive that was capped off by Gerrit Prince's 23-yard touchdown catch from Hopkins.
Allgeier tied the score for BYU with a 62-yard touchdown run. The sophomore running back set a new school record for rushing yards in a season in this game.
UAB regained the lead with a field goal on its first possession of the second half.
BYU responded with a 52-yard scoring drive, capped off by Allgeier's touchdown from one yard out. The Cougars took their only lead of the game, 28-24, at that point.
BYU's only turnover of the game came at the worst possible moment. Samson Nacua caught a pass at UAB's 28-yard line, but he lost possession of the ball and Mac McWilliams recovered it.
The Blazers picked up four first downs to run out the final 3:18 of regulation and secure the win. Their nine wins this season are tied for the second-most in program history.
Even though BYU's season ended on a down note, head coach Kalani Sitake has the program trending in the right direction. The Cougars have won at least 10 games in back-to-back seasons for the first time since doing it four times in a row from 2006 to 2009.
Florida Atlantic, Charlotte, North Texas, UTSA, Rice, UAB Accept AAC Invitations
Oct 21, 2021
MEMPHIS, TN - OCTOBER 14: The American Athletic Conference logo on the vest of a chain gang member during the game between the Memphis Tigers and the Navy Midshipmen on October 14, 2021, at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium. (Photo by Chris McDill/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The American Athletic Conference announced Thursday it has accepted six new member schools: UAB, Florida Atlantic, Charlotte, North Texas, Rice and UTSA.
The conference did not confirm when the institutions will leave Conference USA and formally join the nine programs already in the AAC.
Commissioner Mike Aresco said in a statement:
I am extremely pleased to welcome these six outstanding universities to the American Athletic Conference. This is a strategic expansion that accomplishes a number of goals as we take the conference into its second decade. We are adding excellent institutions that are established in major cities and have invested in competing at the highest level. We have enhanced geographical concentration which will especially help the conference's men's and women's basketball and Olympic sports teams.
The realignment dominoes began falling in July when the SEC confirmed it will add Oklahoma and Texas on July 1, 2025, at the latest.
That left the Big 12 in need of a countermove lest it lose ground to its Power Five rivals. The conference snagged BYU, UCF, Cincinnati and Houston to fill out its ranks, which dealt a major blow to the AAC since the latter three were member schools.
The next dominoes to fall could be in Conference USA. The AAC's move could be its death knell because its membership has been nearly halved, so other conferences may smell blood in the water.
Well, there it is.
Conference USA officially loses six of its members. It's not exactly high-major realignment, but nevertheless: pilfering nearly half of a league's inventory amounts to one of the more devastating sideswipes in realignment history. https://t.co/24BmOsH9T0
Yahoo Sports' Pete Thamel reported that Conference USA schools were collecting less than $1 million in annual television revenue. By going to the AAC, that money will at least double and "rise significantly from there," per Thamel.
UCF, Cincinnati and Houston are set to leave the AAC on July 1, 2024, and each pay a $10 million buyout fee. Aresco told ESPN's Heather Dinich in September the timeline could be accelerated pending negotiations about the buyout.
An expedited exit might pave the way for UAB, Charlotte, Florida Atlantic, North Texas, Rice and UTSA to make their AAC arrivals earlier than expected.
That may benefit Conference USA too since Thamel reported each school has to pay an exit fee of around $3 million.
UAB Football Player Allen Merrick Dies at Age 19 After Suffering Gunshot Wound
Aug 14, 2020
Merrick (left) while on a visit to the University of Tennessee in 2019.
UAB freshman linebacker Allen Merrick died Friday after suffering a gunshot wound Thursday in his hometown of Gadsden, Alabama. He was 19.
ESPN's Alex Scarborough reported the news. Gadsden police captain Bobby Jackson told Carol Robinson of AL.com an investigation is ongoing but the preliminary details suggest it was an accidental shooting.
Blazers head coach Bill Clark released a statement earlier Friday prior to news of Merrick's death, per Robinson:
"Please pray for the family of Allen Merrick, a young man who joined our UAB Football Family this season. Allen was visiting home in Gadsden yesterday when he suffered a gunshot wound. He is at UAB Hospital where I've been with Allen's family, but I do not have a condition I can share at this time. I ask that everyone please respect his family's privacy and keep them all in your prayers."
No further details about the shooting were immediately available.
Merrick joined UAB as a 3-star prospect in its 2020 recruiting class after being named the 2019 Gadsden City Defensive Player of the Year.
He's the second member of the Blazers' 2020 class to die during the offseason. Defensive back Jamari "Chop" Smith drowned in May in a Chewacla State Park lake in Alabama.
UAB, a member of Conference USA, is set to open the regular season Sept. 10 against Miami, though the fate of this fall's college football season remains uncertain amid the coronavirus pandemic.
UAB Football Signee Jamari Smith Dies at Age 18
May 28, 2020
A group of footballs waits for warmups prior to an NCAA college football game between North Carolina State and the Ball State in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, Sept. 21, 2019. (AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker)
Lee High School class of 2020 graduate Jamari Smith died from drowning in a lake at Chewacla State Park in Auburn, Alabama, on Wednesday.
"Smith was located underwater in the lake. Advanced life support measures were immediately initiated, and he was rushed to the emergency room of East Alabama Medical Center. Efforts to revive Smith were unsuccessful, and he was pronounced dead in the emergency room at 6:05 p.m.
"[Coroner Bill] Harris said Smith was with friends swimming at the lake when he apparently became tired and went under. 911 was called as the friends attempted to locate Smith."
The 18-year-old starred in basketball and football at Lee High School in Montgomery, Alabama. The basketball team confirmed Smith's death, while others mourned him:
It is with heavy hearts that we must confirm the passing of our beloved Jamari “Chop” Smith @jayy_primo23. We ask for you to pray for his family. We also ask that you give them privacy at this time. Chop we love you always. pic.twitter.com/aYIJlq1ttE
— Percy Julian High School 🏀 (@bball_lee) May 28, 2020
Smith had signed with the University of Alabama at Birmingham to play football in early February:
WR-Jamari “Chop” Smith signs with University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB)!!!! Congrats Jamari we wish you the best of luck!!!! pic.twitter.com/p4feVAuWbm
Later that month, Smith and the Lee Generals captured the school's first state championship by defeating Mountain Brook 40-38. Smith had hit a free throw with 18.2 seconds remaining in regulation to help secure the victory, and he was overcome with emotion afterward:
. @jayy_primo23 overcome with emotions after winning the championship! “I just won my first state championship oh my god!!!” “Mom, I just won my first state championship!!” This is what pure joy looks like!@ALNewsNetwork#LACEUPpic.twitter.com/U3Wt36YR33
No foul play is suspected in Smith's death, per Robinson, though an investigation is underway.
UAB Coach Bill Clark Wins 2018 Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award
Dec 13, 2018
UAB head coach Bill Clark pulls on his headset in the second half of the NCAA Conference USA championship college football game against Middle Tennessee Saturday, Dec. 1, 2018, in Murfreesboro, Tenn. UAB won 27-25. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
UAB head football coach Bill Clark was named the winner of the 2018 Eddie Robinson National Coach of the Year award Thursday.
"I am truly humbled to receive the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award and would like to thank the Football Writers Association of America and the Allstate Sugar Bowl for this prestigious recognition. This honor is the epitome of a team effort and it would not have been possible without the countless hours of the entire staff and the relentless motivation from our student-athletes in striving to make history every day. UAB football would also like to thank the entire city of Birmingham for its tremendous support throughout this journey and making it possible for us to take the field each and every Saturday."
Clark has led the Blazers to a 10-3 record, marking the first time in the program's history as an FBS school that it has won double-digit games in a season.
UAB also beat Middle Tennessee State 27-25 in the Conference USA Championship Game for the program's first C-USA title.
Remarkably, UAB's football program disbanded following the 2014 season and did not return until 2017.
Last season, Clark and the Blazers beat the odds by going 8-5 in their first year back.
Clark has now spent three seasons as head coach at UAB and has compiled a 24-14 record with two bowl appearances.
UAB athletic director Mark Ingram marveled at what Clark has been able to do with the program in such a short amount of time: "It goes without saying how proud everyone at UAB is of Coach Clark and his entire staff. The job they have done is incredible and the team's record speaks for itself. This is a career milestone for Coach Clark, and we are honored for him to receive this prestigious award."
The Blazers will have a chance to pick up their first bowl win Dec. 18 when they face Northern Illinois in the Boca Raton Bowl.
In winning the Eddie Robinson National Coach of the Year award, Clark joins notable recent winners such as Alabama's Nick Saban, Notre Dame's Brian Kelly and last year's winner, Scott Frost, who is now the coach at Nebraska after leading UCF to an undefeated record last season.
Clark will accept his award Jan. 5 at a reception in San Jose, California, two days before the College Football Playoff National Championship.
UAB Blazers Football Is Back from the Dead and Making a Major Statement
Nov 30, 2018
BR Video
After announcing the end of its football program in 2014, the UAB Blazers are back and making a statement. They came back from a two-year hiatus and this season won their first division title. Watch the video above for more about the Blazers' comeback.
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