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Brian Blackmon’s second season as UCF’s tight end coach and special teams coordinator in 2022 was highlighted by the selection of long snapper Alex Ward as a Patrick Mannelly Award finalist for the second consecutive season—and the emergence of rookie placekicker Colton Boomer, Australian punter Mitch McCarthy and rookie punt returner Xavier Townsend.
In addition, veteran tight end Alec Holler excelled at the tight end slot, finishing with 22 receptions for 276 yards and doing yeoman’s work as a blocker. His lone touchdown reception in 2022 was the game-winner with 20 seconds left as the Knights came from behind to defeat South Florida in the regular-season finale.
Boomer took over the top field-goal kicking role early in 2022 and ended up connecting on 14 of his 15 attempts. He led the American Athletic Conference in field-goal percentage (eighth nationally at .933) and ranked fifth in the conference at field goals per game (1.17). Pro Football Focus named him a third-team All-AAC pick.
Meanwhile, McCarthy claimed the number-one punting job a few weeks into the 2022 season and finished with a 43.3-yard average.
In the return game in 2022, freshman Townsend finished 16th nationally (third in the AAC) in punt returns at 9.3 yards each. The Knights also blocked three punts and returned two of those for scores.
Blackmon’s initial season at UCF saw Ward win third-team All-America honors (Phil Steele) and the emergence of Holler, a former Knights walk-on.
One of three finalists for the Mannelly Award as the top long snapper in college football in both 2021 and 2022, Ward also was a first-team All-AAC pick by Phil Steele in 2021. He played in the Senior Bowl after the 2022 season and was the lone long snapper invited to the 2023 NFL Combine.
Holler moved into the 2021 starting lineup at midseason and caught 19 passes overall for 192 yards, including TD receptions versus Temple (two) and Boise State. Those 19 receptions marked the most by a UCF tight end since Michael Colubiale’s 21 in 2018.
On the special teams side in 2021, punter Andrew Osteen (he averaged 41.1 yards per kick) had 30 of his 71 attempts end with fair catches and another 18 downed inside the 20—while Daniel Obarski produced touchbacks on 38 of 75 kickoffs.
Blackmon, a former member of Gus Malzahn’s Auburn football staff and one of the most successful and respected high school coaches in the state of Alabama, rejoined Malzahn at UCF on Feb. 21, 2021. He is in his third year on the Knights’ staff in 2023.
Blackmon in 2020 concluded his third season on the Troy football staff. He added the role of special teams coordinator prior to the 2019 season after coaching Troy's tight ends and S-backs in 2018. Blackmon also coached the Trojan running backs in 2019 and then in 2020 worked exclusively with special teams. He joined the Troy staff following one season as an offensive analyst under Malzahn at Auburn after a 21-year career at Opelika (Alabama) High School.
In 2020, Troy finished 19th in punt-return defense (2.91 yards each), led the Sun Belt Conference (ranking 28th nationally) in net punting at 40.63 and blocked three kicks. Punter Jack Martin was a first-team All-Sun Belt pick as he led the country with his 45.8 net punting average--while his 46.1 per-punt average was sixth nationally. Martin allowed just four returns on his punts for a combined seven yards, while having no touchbacks and 52% fair catches.
In one season coaching the running backs in 2019 Blackmon was dealt one of the most difficult hands in the country as Troy lost Sun Belt Preseason Offensive Player of the Year B.J. Smith and two other running backs in week two to injury. He mentored Smith's replacement, DK Billingsley, toward a season where he rushed for 901 yards and 10 TDs.
Troy was once again one of the top special teams units in the country in 2019, ranking 17th in opponent kickoff return yards while limiting returns to just a 17.85-yard average. The Trojans finished the season ranked number one in the country according to ESPN's special teams efficiency rating.
Blackmon also assisted with the Trojan special teams in 2018 as Troy finished fourth nationally in net punting. Tyler Sumpter set the school record by averaging 45.1 yards per punt (11th nationally), and the Trojans were ninth in the country averaging 25.0 yards per kickoff return. Sumpter finished one field goal shy of setting the school record with 18 makes on the year, and Troy was one of just 24 teams nationally to not allow a blocked kick.
Blackmon's first season at Troy in 2018 resulted in a 10-3 overall record, a victory at Nebraska and the Trojans' third straight bowl victory (42-32 over Buffalo in the Dollar General Bowl in Mobile). Smith turned in the fourth-best rushing season in school history with 1,186 yards (second in the Sun Belt) behind the blocking of Troy's tight ends and S-backs.
In Blackmon's lone season with the Tigers and Malzahn in 2017, Auburn's offense ranked in the top 30 nationally in total offense, rushing, pass efficiency and scoring as the Tigers won the Southeastern Conference West Division and played in the SEC Championship Game. Running back Kerryon Johnson was named the SEC Offensive Player of the Year and Auburn finished the season with a Peach Bowl appearance against UCF after knocking off a pair of No. 1 teams--Georgia and Alabama--over the regular season's final three weeks.
Blackmon served as head coach of the Opelika High School football program in his final eight seasons (2009-16) at the school, while also serving as the athletics director during the same time period before leaving for Auburn in February 2017.
Opelika advanced to a pair of Alabama 6A state championship games (2012 and 2016), and the Bulldogs compiled a 69-25 record during Blackmon's tenure. He was honored as 6A Coach of the Year in 2012 by the Alabama Sports Writers Association, the Alabama Football Coaches Association, the Opelika-Auburn News, Columbus SportsVision and AL.com.
The Bulldogs won three consecutive region championships and advanced to the playoffs in seven of his eight seasons as head coach. Blackmon left Opelika as the third-winningest coach in the then-99-year history of the high school.
He has served as president of the Alabama High School Athletic Directors and Coaches Association and on the advisory, Hall of Fame, reclassification and all-star selection committees of the Alabama High School Athletic Association. Additionally, he served on the high school task force of USA Football and as a district board member of the Alabama Football Coaches Association.
Blackmon spent his first 13 years at Opelika as the offensive coordinator under legendary head coach Spence McCracken. He also served as assistant athletics director from 2001-08 and coached the soccer, wrestling and golf teams at Opelika. He was named the Alabama Assistant Coach of the Year following the 2004 season and was a consistent figure on the coaching staffs of the Alabama-Mississippi and North-South all-star games.
A graduate of Robert E. Lee High School in Montgomery, Alabama, Blackmon was part of the 1991 state champion football team and was inducted into the school's hall of fame in 2017. Blackmon played one season at North Alabama before transferring to Troy to complete his studies.
Blackmon earned his bachelor's degree in accounting from Troy in 1996 and a master's degree in business education from Auburn in 1998. He and his wife Kellie have two children--Cade, a quarterback at Samford, and Carlyle.
COACHING EXPERIENCE
Brian Blackmon’s second season as UCF’s tight end coach and special teams coordinator in 2022 was highlighted by the selection of long snapper Alex Ward as a Patrick Mannelly Award finalist for the second consecutive season—and the emergence of rookie placekicker Colton Boomer, Australian punter Mitch McCarthy and rookie punt returner Xavier Townsend.
In addition, veteran tight end Alec Holler excelled at the tight end slot, finishing with 22 receptions for 276 yards and doing yeoman’s work as a blocker. His lone touchdown reception in 2022 was the game-winner with 20 seconds left as the Knights came from behind to defeat South Florida in the regular-season finale.
Boomer took over the top field-goal kicking role early in 2022 and ended up connecting on 14 of his 15 attempts. He led the American Athletic Conference in field-goal percentage (eighth nationally at .933) and ranked fifth in the conference at field goals per game (1.17). Pro Football Focus named him a third-team All-AAC pick.
Meanwhile, McCarthy claimed the number-one punting job a few weeks into the 2022 season and finished with a 43.3-yard average.
In the return game in 2022, freshman Townsend finished 16th nationally (third in the AAC) in punt returns at 9.3 yards each. The Knights also blocked three punts and returned two of those for scores.
Blackmon’s initial season at UCF saw Ward win third-team All-America honors (Phil Steele) and the emergence of Holler, a former Knights walk-on.
One of three finalists for the Mannelly Award as the top long snapper in college football in both 2021 and 2022, Ward also was a first-team All-AAC pick by Phil Steele in 2021. He played in the Senior Bowl after the 2022 season and was the lone long snapper invited to the 2023 NFL Combine.
Holler moved into the 2021 starting lineup at midseason and caught 19 passes overall for 192 yards, including TD receptions versus Temple (two) and Boise State. Those 19 receptions marked the most by a UCF tight end since Michael Colubiale’s 21 in 2018.
On the special teams side in 2021, punter Andrew Osteen (he averaged 41.1 yards per kick) had 30 of his 71 attempts end with fair catches and another 18 downed inside the 20—while Daniel Obarski produced touchbacks on 38 of 75 kickoffs.
Blackmon, a former member of Gus Malzahn’s Auburn football staff and one of the most successful and respected high school coaches in the state of Alabama, rejoined Malzahn at UCF on Feb. 21, 2021. He is in his third year on the Knights’ staff in 2023.
Blackmon in 2020 concluded his third season on the Troy football staff. He added the role of special teams coordinator prior to the 2019 season after coaching Troy's tight ends and S-backs in 2018. Blackmon also coached the Trojan running backs in 2019 and then in 2020 worked exclusively with special teams. He joined the Troy staff following one season as an offensive analyst under Malzahn at Auburn after a 21-year career at Opelika (Alabama) High School.
In 2020, Troy finished 19th in punt-return defense (2.91 yards each), led the Sun Belt Conference (ranking 28th nationally) in net punting at 40.63 and blocked three kicks. Punter Jack Martin was a first-team All-Sun Belt pick as he led the country with his 45.8 net punting average--while his 46.1 per-punt average was sixth nationally. Martin allowed just four returns on his punts for a combined seven yards, while having no touchbacks and 52% fair catches.
In one season coaching the running backs in 2019 Blackmon was dealt one of the most difficult hands in the country as Troy lost Sun Belt Preseason Offensive Player of the Year B.J. Smith and two other running backs in week two to injury. He mentored Smith's replacement, DK Billingsley, toward a season where he rushed for 901 yards and 10 TDs.
Troy was once again one of the top special teams units in the country in 2019, ranking 17th in opponent kickoff return yards while limiting returns to just a 17.85-yard average. The Trojans finished the season ranked number one in the country according to ESPN's special teams efficiency rating.
Blackmon also assisted with the Trojan special teams in 2018 as Troy finished fourth nationally in net punting. Tyler Sumpter set the school record by averaging 45.1 yards per punt (11th nationally), and the Trojans were ninth in the country averaging 25.0 yards per kickoff return. Sumpter finished one field goal shy of setting the school record with 18 makes on the year, and Troy was one of just 24 teams nationally to not allow a blocked kick.
Blackmon's first season at Troy in 2018 resulted in a 10-3 overall record, a victory at Nebraska and the Trojans' third straight bowl victory (42-32 over Buffalo in the Dollar General Bowl in Mobile). Smith turned in the fourth-best rushing season in school history with 1,186 yards (second in the Sun Belt) behind the blocking of Troy's tight ends and S-backs.
In Blackmon's lone season with the Tigers and Malzahn in 2017, Auburn's offense ranked in the top 30 nationally in total offense, rushing, pass efficiency and scoring as the Tigers won the Southeastern Conference West Division and played in the SEC Championship Game. Running back Kerryon Johnson was named the SEC Offensive Player of the Year and Auburn finished the season with a Peach Bowl appearance against UCF after knocking off a pair of No. 1 teams--Georgia and Alabama--over the regular season's final three weeks.
Blackmon served as head coach of the Opelika High School football program in his final eight seasons (2009-16) at the school, while also serving as the athletics director during the same time period before leaving for Auburn in February 2017.
Opelika advanced to a pair of Alabama 6A state championship games (2012 and 2016), and the Bulldogs compiled a 69-25 record during Blackmon's tenure. He was honored as 6A Coach of the Year in 2012 by the Alabama Sports Writers Association, the Alabama Football Coaches Association, the Opelika-Auburn News, Columbus SportsVision and AL.com.
The Bulldogs won three consecutive region championships and advanced to the playoffs in seven of his eight seasons as head coach. Blackmon left Opelika as the third-winningest coach in the then-99-year history of the high school.
He has served as president of the Alabama High School Athletic Directors and Coaches Association and on the advisory, Hall of Fame, reclassification and all-star selection committees of the Alabama High School Athletic Association. Additionally, he served on the high school task force of USA Football and as a district board member of the Alabama Football Coaches Association.
Blackmon spent his first 13 years at Opelika as the offensive coordinator under legendary head coach Spence McCracken. He also served as assistant athletics director from 2001-08 and coached the soccer, wrestling and golf teams at Opelika. He was named the Alabama Assistant Coach of the Year following the 2004 season and was a consistent figure on the coaching staffs of the Alabama-Mississippi and North-South all-star games.
A graduate of Robert E. Lee High School in Montgomery, Alabama, Blackmon was part of the 1991 state champion football team and was inducted into the school's hall of fame in 2017. Blackmon played one season at North Alabama before transferring to Troy to complete his studies.
Blackmon earned his bachelor's degree in accounting from Troy in 1996 and a master's degree in business education from Auburn in 1998. He and his wife Kellie have two children--Cade, a quarterback at Samford, and Carlyle.
COACHING EXPERIENCE
| 1996-2008 | Opelika (Alabama) High School | Offensive Coordinator |
| 2009-16 | Opelika (Alabama) High School | Head Coach |
| 2017 | Auburn | Offensive Analyst |
| 2018 | Troy | Tight Ends/S-Backs |
| 2019 | Troy | Running Backs/Special Teams Coordinator |
| 2020 | Troy | Special Teams Coordinator |
| 2021-pres. | UCF | Special Teams Coordinator/Tight Ends |