When former Ravens quarterback Chris Redman got an offer to coach the United Football League's Louisville Kings, he knew it was too good to pass up. It's in his hometown where he also played his college ball.
But when Redman went about assembling his coaching staff, he went back to different roots.
Redman has a Ravens-heavy coaching staff featuring four former teammates who were on the Super Bowl XXXV-winning team. The band is back together, and it's trying to make another title run, this time wearing headsets instead of helmets.
Redman, who spent four years in Baltimore (2000-2003), is the Kings' head coach. Former Ravens linebacker Jamie Sharper is the defensive coordinator, former Ravens cornerback Chris McAlister is the defensive backs coach, former Ravens quarterback Tony Banks is the wide receivers coach, and former Ravens linebacker Brad Jackson is the linebackers coach.
"We are having a ball, man. It feels like I'm back in the locker room again," Redman said on "The Lounge" podcast. "Once you play and bleed and sweat with somebody, you trust them. They're doing an incredible job."
The Louisville Kings will face off against the defending-champion D.C. Defenders Saturday at 3 p.m. at Audi Field in Washington, D.C. The game will be broadcast on ESPN/ABC.
After starting 0-3, the Kings won six of their last seven regular-season games, including two victories over the Defenders. The Kings beat the St. Louis Battlehawks, 29-20, in last week's playoff semifinals.
Redman didn't always know he wanted to be a head coach, but his coaching career started hot with his son's high school team at Louisville Christian Academy, where he led the team to three state titles in four years.
The UFL announced it was launching an expansion team in Louisville last October and gave Redman a ring. He was hired last December. While putting together a franchise from scratch isn't easy, it has been rewarding, Redman said.
"This opportunity came up to coach for a professional team in my home city of Louisville. I was like, 'Absolutely, man,'" Redman said. "It's kind of my calling. I knew I would like [coaching]. I didn't know I would like it this much. It has been an incredible year."
After eight seasons as an NFL quarterback, Redman retired in 2011. He spent four years in Baltimore (2000-2003), in which he served as a backup to Elvis Grbac, won the starting job for the first six games of 2002, then backed up first-round pick Kyle Boller in 2003.
Redman once lit up the Cleveland Browns in a 26-21 victory, and he gained fan adoration for defying NFL uniform rules by wearing Johnny Unitas-inspired black high-top cleats to honor the Baltimore Colts legend days after his passing. Redman was originally fined $5,000. Both Redman and Unitas played for the University of Louisville's football team.
Redman won the Johnny Unitas Award after his senior college season, and the two had a close relationship.
"That was something I'll never forget," Redman said of wearing the cleats. "That's a guy (Unitas) that I do want to be like. He was a special human being that I'll never forget."
Redman bounced around for a couple years after his time in Baltimore ended, then latched on with the Atlanta Falcons and extended his NFL career for another five years.
He said he played some of his best ball in Atlanta, in a system that fit him better. Redman was accustomed to a shotgun-heavy offense coming out of college, and the Ravens rarely ran that during his time in Baltimore.
"Timing is everything in the NFL," Redman said. "I was blessed to play until I was 35 years old. That's a long time in the NFL. I had an incredible career. It's never the exact career for most guys that you really hoped it would be.
"But Baltimore was a very fun time. I enjoyed the city and enjoyed everything about it. Being part of the Super Bowl was amazing and I'll never forget it."
