The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Football
- Title:
- Running Backs
- Phone:
- 975-9536
Updated August 2026
UAB Head Football Coach Alex Mortensen named Hindley Brigham the Blazers' running backs coach prior to the start of fall camp in 2026. Brigham returned to Birmingham after spending the 2025 season at ULM, where he served as assistant head coach and running backs coach.
Brigham enters his 11th season on the UAB coaching staff in 2026 and his 10th coaching the Blazers' running backs. He previously spent nine seasons leading the position group from 2017-24 before one season at ULM.
In his one season with the Warhawks, Brigham helped orchestrate a ground attack that featured a 100-yard rusher in four of 12 games. Zach Palmer-Smith and Braylon McReynolds each rushed for more than 650 yards in 2025.
Brigham has played an instrumental role in helping craft one of the nation's best rushing attacks during his time in Birmingham. Since the 2017 season, he has coached Spencer Brown (2017-20), DeWayne McBride (2020-22) and Jermaine Brown Jr. (2019-23) to record-setting careers.
Those three players are the only running backs in school history to eclipse 3,000 career rushing yards. Brown ranks first with 4,011 yards, followed by McBride (3,542) and Brown Jr. (3,078), with each rewriting the UAB record book during their careers.
Brigham guided Jermaine Brown Jr. to the school record in career all-purpose yards (5,026). In addition to the all-purpose yardage record, Brown Jr. finished his career ranked first in receptions by a running back (95), second in receiving yards by a running back (789), third in rushing yards (3,078), fourth in rushing touchdowns (30) and fourth in 100-yard rushing games (11).
As a senior in 2023, Brown Jr. rushed for 803 yards and 12 touchdowns while adding 41 receptions for 416 yards and returning 15 kickoffs for 331 yards. He totaled 1,550 all-purpose yards, and his average of 129.2 all-purpose yards per game led the American Conference.
In 2022, McBride authored the most decorated single season by a running back in program history, setting school records for rushing yards (1,713), rushing yards per game (155.7), rushing touchdowns (19), yards per carry (7.35), 100-yard rushing games (10), 200-yard rushing games (3) and points scored (114). He also established the single-game rushing record with 272 yards against Louisiana Tech in the regular-season finale.
Despite playing just 11 games, McBride led the nation in rushing and earned five All-America honors, highlighted by Walter Camp Second Team All-America recognition. He was also named Conference USA Offensive Player of the Year.
McBride finished his UAB career with 3,523 rushing yards and 36 touchdowns, both ranking second in program history. He remains the school's career leader in rushing yards per game (117.4) and yards per carry (7.3).
The Blazers finished eighth nationally in rushing offense in 2022, averaging a school-record 235.6 rushing yards per game and setting a program record with 3,063 rushing yards.
Along with McBride's standout campaign, Brigham also guided Jermaine Brown Jr. to a career-best 948 rushing yards and eight touchdowns. Brown Jr. recorded five 100-yard rushing performances in 2022, forming one of the nation's most productive backfield tandems alongside McBride.
Spencer Brown (2017-20), who currently plays for the Toronto Argonauts, finished his career as UAB's all-time leading rusher with 4,011 yards. He also holds school records for rushing touchdowns (41), total touchdowns (42) and 100-yard rushing games (19).
Brown earned FWAA Freshman All-America honors and Conference USA Freshman of the Year recognition in 2017 after rushing for 1,329 yards and 10 touchdowns. In 2018, Brigham coached Brown to 1,227 rushing yards and what was then a school-record 16 rushing touchdowns. Brown also established single-season school records for total touchdowns (17) and points scored (102), marks that stood until 2022.
Brown became UAB's career rushing leader as a junior before averaging 111.1 rushing yards per game during the shortened 2020 season, finishing with 889 yards in eight games.
Brown also became the first player in Conference USA history to earn Conference USA Championship Game MVP honors twice, rushing for 156 yards in the 2018 title game and 149 yards in the 2020 championship victory.
The Blazers didn't miss a beat following Brown's graduation, as McBride rushed for 1,371 yards and 13 touchdowns in 2021. His rushing total ranks third in school history for a single season, while his 13 rushing touchdowns are tied for second. McBride also averaged 6.72 yards per carry, the fifth-best mark nationally.
Brigham was named UAB's running backs coach in May 2017 after serving as the Blazers' offensive analyst during the previous season.
A standout running back at Mountain Brook High School, Brigham began his collegiate playing career at Baylor, where he earned Second Team Academic All-Big 12 honors following his sophomore season. He transferred to Furman and established himself as one of the program's top running backs from 2002-03.
Brigham led the Paladins in rushing in both 2002 and 2003, including a 1,042-yard, five-touchdown senior campaign. He was a team captain in 2003 and earned Second Team All-Southern Conference honors.
He also received Furman's John Bagwell Offensive Back Award following the 2003 season. Brigham finished his career with nine 100-yard rushing games and ranks 11th in school history with 2,034 rushing yards. He capped his collegiate career with 145 rushing yards and a touchdown in a 63-21 victory over Chattanooga.
In 2007, Brigham coached running backs at Birmingham-Southern under head coach Joey Jones, helping the Panthers rush for 1,833 yards and 16 touchdowns during the program's return to football following a 68-year hiatus.
From 2010-11, Brigham taught English at Cornerstone Schools of Alabama while also coaching soccer and basketball. He returned to his alma mater, Mountain Brook High School, in 2012 as the Spartans' running backs coach.
Brigham graduated from Furman in 2003 with a degree in political science and earned a second degree in English from the University of Montevallo in 2015.
Brigham and his wife, Erin, have two children, daughter Dot and son Tuff.
