Former Alabama QB A.J. McCarron ends Lt. Gov. bid to become head coach of UFL's Birmingham Stallions

A.J. McCarron's political career appears to have officially lasted two months. Now begins his spring football coaching career.

The former Alabama quarterback announced Wednesday he is ending his campaign to become lieutenant governor of Alabama, mentioning that "football is calling my name is once again." That job was revealed Thursday, when McCarron was announced as the new head coach of the United Football League's Birmingham Stallions. 

It will be the first coaching job he's ever had.

McCarron officially announced his campaign for lieutenant governor in October, creating the possibility of a former Auburn head coach — current U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville — as governor and a former Crimson Tide quarterback as lieutenant governor.

McCarron specifically cited the assassination of Charlie Kirk as a reason for running for political office and reportedly registered to vote for the first time three days before unveiling his campaign.

Around the time of his announcement, a poll found McCarron to be sitting in second place with 14% of the vote in the Republican primary, behind only current secretary of state Wes Allen (26%). It was a significantly fractured race (by comparison, Tuberville led the governor primary race with 63% of the vote), where McCarron's name recognition should have been a significant boon.

He was also hosting an Alabama football podcast throughout all this. 

Greg Fiume/UFL via Getty Images

Now, with much of his political activity wiped from his social media feeds, McCarron is embarking on a coaching career. He helped lead Alabama to back-to-back BCS national championships in 2011 and 2012 and spent seven years in the NFL, mostly as a back-up. He posted 1,192 passing yards, 6 touchdowns and 3 interceptions in 19 career appearances (4 starts).

More recently, he spent two seasons as the starting quarterback of the UFL's St. Louis Battlehawks, reaching the XFL conference final. We'll see if any of that experience helps him navigate the professional coaching process.

McCarron will be taking over a Stallions team that won three straight championships in the USFL and UFL from 2022-2024, but fell short of a four-peat with a loss to the Michigan Panthers in the playoffs. Head coach Skip Holtz announced he was leaving the team earlier this week, opening up the spot for McCarron.