UAB Football Promotes Lyle Henley to Assistant Head Coach

By Steve Irvine

BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA - February 11, 2025

UAB Football Director of Sports Performance Lyle Henley will become the program’s assistant head coach for the 2025 season, according to a UAB press release on Tuesday.

Henley has led the UAB football strength and conditioning program since 2016 and will also continue in that role. He played an integral role in creating the culture of a program that wo two Conference USA championships, three C-USA division championships and three bowl games.

“Lyle has stayed true to the legacy of UAB Football, and we have one of the best strength and conditioning coaches in the country,” UAB head coach Trent Dilfer said in the release. “As I looked at how we flip this thing around, Lyle having more of a leadership role was a no-brainer.”

UAB won 57 games since the return to the field in 2017 but the Blazers struggled to a 7-17 record the past two seasons. Dilfer overhauled his defensive staff, bringing in new defensive coordinator Steve Russ and three more defensive assistants. One of the assistant coaches he replaced was linebacker coach Kenwick Thompson, who served as the assistant head coach last season.

Henley, who is regarded as one of the top strength coaches in the country, has coached nearly 100 players who signed NFL contracts during his time at UAB and when he owned the Athlete Factory in Spanish Fort from 2005-15. He was also part of the Spanish Fort High program that won four state championships.

Henley played linebacker and tight end at Louisiana Tech from 1994-99 and began his coaching career at the University of Alabama.