After the initial firing DeShaun Foster after week three, the UCLA Bruins were not done with reshaping their coaching staff for the remainder of the season. The Bruins announced that Offensive Coordinator Tino Sunseri and the team will be mutually parting ways Jerry Neuheisel (son of Arizona Hotshots HC Rick Neuheisel) now calling plays. With Neuheisel being a first-time coordinator Showboats OC Noel Mazzone is joining UCLA as an analyst.
With the recent news of the Showboats moving from the Memphis market, and the current fluidity of the UFL, Mazzone now looks to brings over 40 years of experience for his second tenure with the Bruins. Mazzone returns to college after six seasons away. He’s spent two out of the last four years with the New Orleans Breakers, and Memphis Showboats of the USFL/UFL before joining UCLA. It’s worth noting Mazzone was in line to be the Offensive Coordinator for the Pittsburgh Maulers before the team ceased operations in 2024.
Mazzone is one of several coaches to join the college ranks after week one of the college football season. Donnie Abraham (ETSU), Jay Hayes (Arkansas), and now Mazzone (UCLA) have all been hired mid-season as teams begin firing and retooling their staff. The Showboats went 2-8 last year and end their tenure of three seasons with a 9-21 record.