First-year UL-Monroe Warhawks head coach Bryant Vincent guided the program to its highest win total since 2019. Can he repeat that feat in 2025?
Bryant Vincent Excels in Year 1
In college football, certain jobs and programs feel like they sit much closer to the Arctic than the rest of FBS. For the entirety of its FBS history, UL-Monroe reminded many of an outpost. During its 38-season run, the program enjoyed just a single winning season, going 8-5 in 2012.
The university tried Heisman winners (John David Crow) and sons of legends (Terry Bowden) to coach the team. In Vincent, ULM selected someone with experience in a myriad of systems.
With that hope, Vincent led the Warhawks to a 5-7 record. Finishing with their best record in a dozen years and attempting to change the culture earned him an A grade from College Sports Network.
Vincent headed into 2024 with a reasonable expectation, wanting his team to compete. While that may seem trite and tiring, understand that many still view the program as uncharted territory. Behind LSU, Tulane, Louisiana, and Louisiana Tech, Vincent set a bar by showing up to play hard.
Players coasting and gathering up enough positive film to jump in the portal do remain in the realm of things that actually happened. Vincent, through all reports, stayed engaged and focused on developing a quality team. Even after dropping their final six games, Vincent’s charges fought tooth and nail against the likes of Marshall and Texas State.
With the 117th-ranked scoring offense, the Warhawks dropped 21 points per game. The team displayed flashes of moving the ball, winning five of their first six games. Vincent preached a level of field discipline that the team readily bought into.
ULM averaged 43.3 yards per game (23rd in FBS). In other words, the group did not shoot themselves in the foot with boneheaded plays.
Meanwhile, on defense, Louisiana-Monroe allowed the 30th fewest plays from scrimmage of 20 yards or more. As a result, the defense could occasionally get off the field.
All went well for Vincent during the first half of the season. With a chance to win a sixth game to gain bowl eligibility, ULM led Marshall into the fourth quarter before surrendering the lead and game.
Vincent builds the offense around freshman running back Ahmad Hardy. Hardy repaid the coach’s faith by leading the Sun Belt in rushing yards (1,351) and touchdowns (thirteen). With eight 100-yard games and scoring in 10 games, Hardy stood as the centerpiece.
At the conclusion of the season, Hardy jumped in the portal and landed at Missouri. Expecting and understanding this aspect of the game, Vincent chose to bolster the position group with volume. ULM added three running backs.
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As Vincent continues to build the UL-Monroe football program into a better team, tempering expectations helps. They won’t walk into Baton Rouge and handle the Tigers on a Saturday night, nor will they run over Tulane. However, that will not deter him from elevating the team, culture and program.
Winning in Monroe, Louisiana, looks different than in most places. By staying close in conference play and landing enough three-star prospects to develop, Vincent hopes to bring the Warhawks up to respectability.
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