Roundup: Tuesday, January 7th
A recruiting update, the departure of a long-time football staffer, and the 1,500th game in men's basketball history.
TODAY IN UAB HISTORY
Today’s men’s basketball game marks the 1,500th in program history, a milestone you can read more about here.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
In the aforementioned game, the Blazers (8-7, 1-1) will host the Tulane Green Wave (8-7, 2-0). Read the full preview here.
LAST NIGHT IN AAC BASKETBALL
On the men’s side:
South Florida demolished Wichita State on the road by a score of 91-72. Phenom point guard Jayden Reid shined, but Cincinnati transfer Jamille Reynolds stole the show, scoring a game-high 22 points. Having beaten East Carolina on New Year’s Eve, the Bulls are now 2-0 in conference play, tying them with Rice, Tulane, and Memphis at the top of the league. Wichita State is 0-2, having lost to USF and Temple.
There will be no AAC action on the women’s side until Wednesday.
FOOTBALL
UAB scored one new public commitment yesterday, picking up Dodge City CC (JUCO) offensive lineman Deivi Martinez.
6’5”, 315 lbs — two years of eligibility remaining
The Grand Rapids, Michigan native announced his decision in a social media post on Monday afternoon. It seems he graduated high school in 2020 before spending time at multiple community colleges, one being Ellsworth CC, the same institution UAB linebacker Michael Moore once attended. Martinez transferred to Dodge City prior to the 2024 season. He spent the year playing right tackle but played guard during his time at Ellsworth.
Martinez is the seventh publicly announced member of UAB’s incoming transfer class, joining Kaleb Brown, Evan McCray, Antonio Ferguson, Jamichael Rogers, Peyton Floyd, and Josh Baka. Judging by Trent Dilfer’s Twitter feed, UAB has picked up at least seven players over the past two days, but only the identities of Baka and Martinez have been officially revealed.
At the very least, the Blazers continue to pursue Stony Brook wide receiver Jayce Freeman, Alabama State safety Dasheen Jackson, and Old Dominion edge rusher Amorie Morrison, all of whom took official visits over the weekend.
In other UAB football news:
Confirmed upcoming visitors include:
Western Kentucky linebacker Kylan Guidry (1/7-1/8)
Southern (FCS) defensive tackle Jelani Davis (1/7-1/8)
Washington State safety Jackson Lataimua (1/8)
Nicholls State (FCS) linebacker Eli Ennis (exact date unknown)
Alabama State defensive lineman Jakeem Fletcher, a UAB target who took an official visit to Birmingham on Sunday, committed to Western Kentucky yesterday.
Footballscoop’s Doug Samuels is reporting that longtime UAB running backs coach Hindley Brigham is expected to take the same position under Bryant Vincent at ULM.
Brigham, a Birmingham native and Mountain Brook High School alumnus, played running back at Baylor and Furman from 1999-2003. He rushed for 2,034 yards over two seasons at the latter school.
Brigham joined Bill Clark’s staff as an analyst in 2016 and was promoted to running backs coach before the following season.
Brigham coached Spencer Brown, Jermaine Brown, Jr., and Dewayne McBride, the three most prolific running backs in program history.
Brigham will become one of 15 ULM staffers with UAB connections.
On the subject of McBride: the former Conference USA Offensive Player of the Year was signed by the UFL’s Memphis Showboats yesterday.
McBride was drafted by the Vikings during the seventh round of the 2023 NFL Draft, but he never appeared in a regular season game for Minnesota and was released in August 2024.
UAB kickoff specialist Noah Grant has followed former UAB special teams coordinator/secondary coach Kenneth Gilstrap to FIU.
In his sole season with the Blazers, Grant, a former Memphis/Arkansas State transfer, recorded 33 touchbacks and 69 kickoffs for 4,135 yards, averaging 59.9 yards per kickoff.