UAB expected to hire interim coach Alex Mortensen to full-time job
Mortensen took over for Trent Dilfer midway through the season
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UAB is working to finalize a deal to make former offensive coordinator and interim coach Alex Mortensen the team's next full-time head coach, CBS Sports' John Talty reports.
Mortensen, 40, took over as the Blazers' interim coach halfway through the 2025 season following the firing of Trent Dilfer. In his debut, Mortensen and UAB upset then-No. 22 Memphis; overall, the Blazers went 2-4 under Mortensen and finished the season 4-8.
Mortensen is the son of longtime ESPN NFL reporter and analyst Chris Mortensen, who died in 2023.
Alex Mortensen started his collegiate playing career at Arkansas in 2004 and 2005, transferred to FCS-level Samford and then returned to the Razorbacks for the 2008 season. He began his coaching career in 2012 and quickly ascended the ranks, becoming an Alabama graduate assistant and then analyst. Dilfer hired Mortensen as his offensive coordinator at the end of the 2022 season. Since 2023, the Blazers rank third in the American Conference in passing yards per game (272) and sixth in total yards per game (415.6).
Mortensen faces an uphill battle. The Blazers are just 11-25 (7-17 in conference play) since joining the American Conference from the Conference USA, and they have not made a bowl in any of those three seasons.
