UAB Has Promoted Alex Mortensen to Head Coach

By Steve Irvine

BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA - December 4, 2025

UAB is set to put an end to a 53-day coaching search by taking the interim tag away from Alex Mortensen. It will be Mortensen, who spent the past three seasons as the offensive coordinator, taking over the role as the program’s full-time head coach.

The news was first reported by On3 Sports and was confirmed by a source close to the search. UAB officials have not formally announced the move.

Mortensen was hired by Trent Dilfer in 2023 to be the offensive coordinator on Dilfer’s first staff. In his three seasons, the Blazers finished 18th, 58th and 53rd nationally in total offense. In passing yards per game, UAB was 18th, 33rd and 28th over those three seasons.

Mortensen took over as the program’s interim head coach after Trent Dilfer was fired on Oct. 12. He finished 2-4 in the interim head coach with a win over then-22nd ranked Memphis in his first game. The Blazers closed the season by snapping a 17-game road losing streak with a 31-24 triumph at Tulsa. UAB played that game after around 30 players opted out following a stabbing incident inside the UAB Football Operations Building seven days earlier.

UAB athletic director Mark Ingram’s search narrowed down to Mortensen, Presbyterian head coach Steve Englehart and Missouri State head coach Ryan Beard as the finalists earlier this week. Englehart was the only finalist to never coach in a FBS game. Other coaches included in the search included former Florida and Louisiana head coach Billy Napier, Navy offensive coordinator Drew Cronic, Mercer head coach Mike Jacobs, Western Michigan head coach Lance Taylor, Birmingham Stallions head coach Skip Holtz and SMU offensive coordinator Casey Woods.   

Ingram ultimately decided on Mortensen, who will get his first chance at being a full-time head coach. Most of Mortensen’s coaching career came at the University of Alabama under Nick Saban. Mortensen was a graduate assistant at UA from 2014-16 and served as an offensive analyst from 2017-22. He was part of three national championship teams.

It is unclear at this point whether Mortensen will choose to make staff changes in his new role.