University of Northern Colorado football defensive coordinator Preston Hadley watches practice on the UNC campus in Greeley on Wednesday, March 27, 2024. (Jim Ridebom/Staff Photographer)
Preston Hadley, currently the second-year defensive coordinator for the Northern Colorado Football Team, filled out an application last fall to join the National Football League's Tampa Bay Buccaneers' new coaching academy.
Hadley then completed an ex parte video interview and analysis of the footage. And he almost forgot about the process until a few weeks ago.
Hadley received an email informing him of his admission to the academy, which will be held during Tampa Bay's rookie minicamp in Tampa from May 6-12. Hadley, 36 and a former Brigham Young cornerback, was one of 25 finalists selected from more than 1,500 applicants, according to the Buccaneers.
Hadley was a bit surprised when she received her acceptance email in February.
“It's been so long that it hasn't really entered my mind,” he said. “It’s very exciting and quite nerve-wracking, but also exciting at the same time.”
The Buccaneers say the academy is the “first of its kind” program in the NFL. It is designed to give coaches entry into the National Football League.
The team wants to provide a way for those looking for “the very opportunity to get their foot in the door to the National Football League, regardless of their background or status,” Community Public Relations Manager Hannah Drodick said in an email. said.
Droddik said the 25 finalists were selected based on a review process by the football staff and the team's human resources department. This academy was open to anyone with he three or more years of coaching or work experience in a high school, college, or semi-professional level soccer program.
Applicants who met that criteria proceeded to a video test where they broke down a video to explain their coaching style.
Hadley said he heard about the program through a man named Duane Buzbee, a former member of BYU's football staff and athletic department.
Busby encouraged Hadley to become a coach near the end of Hadley's senior season at BYU in 2012. Hadley said Busby continues to be a resource and mentor to him. Hadley is currently in his 11th year as a coach, with all of his experience at the collegiate level.
After he finished playing for the Cougars, he spent two years as a graduate assistant at BYU. He then attended Santa Ana College, a junior college in Santa Ana, Calif., where he took on various roles, including coaching cornerbacks and returning teams and, in 2015, as a recruiter for about $700 a month.
Hadley attended Weber State University for two years before returning to BYU in 2018.
Hadley said the Buccaneers' new program is a “great thing” for coaching. Hadley said “there are a lot of really good coaches” at different levels of competition, including high school, small colleges and even overseas, but they don't have the opportunity to put their names and skills on a higher level stage. He said there wasn't.
Hadley said coaching, like many other jobs, is about networking. He estimated that there were probably thousands of coaches more qualified than him when he was on the Cougars' staff.
“A lot of times you get promoted because of who you know,” he said. “I had a great opportunity to coach at BYU as a really young coach. And a big part of that was because I played there and had a strong bond there and I just happened to be a good fit for what they were looking for at the time. I think that's why.”
Five of the 25 members of the academy will be selected to participate in the Buccaneers' Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship during training camp and preseason later this year. The fellowship is a career tool aimed at increasing the number of full-time minority coaches in the NFL, according to the program's webpage.
Walsh was the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers for 10 years and won three Super Bowls. Walsh, who passed away in 2007, was known as an innovator of the offense known as the West Coast Offense, which was once widely used in the NFL. West Coast's offense started with short passes and continued to look for big play opportunities down the field.
Mr. Hadley said he had applied for the Walsh Scholarship many times in the past, but had “no luck.” He said he initially thought the coaching academy was similar to the Walsh Fellowship.
Droddick wrote in an email that the selection for the Walsh Fellowship will be made in the same way that Academy finalists are selected.
Hadley, who is Black, believes athletics and sports in general are ahead of the curve when it comes to inclusivity and diversity. He doesn't want to downplay the importance of race, he says. But he added that he also considers another factor: being a good coach.
“I think that's what sports offers to society, which is a melting pot of people,” Hadley said, adding that he thinks there is diversity in the NFL. “And I think for me, it's just about being a good coach. And I think no matter what your race is, all that matters is being a good coach and doing the best you can and being honest.”
During the coaching academy, the 25 finalists will be immersed in a rookie minicamp and participate in panel discussions with soccer staff and front office personnel. Drosdyk said the finalists will be on the field for every practice of the week and will have unprecedented access to coaches and staff. Academy training also includes media training that covers interview tips and tricks.
Hadley was interested in the academy because it was an NFL program.
“Many players end their careers without ever getting the chance to step foot,” he said. “As far as players and coaches, you're going to be facing some of the best players in the world at that level. I think I've already done something in my life, but I'm going to do the same thing at the highest and most competitive level. I think it's pretty, pretty special to have the opportunity to do that.”
