Becht ‘building a resume’ with Battlehawks success

St. Louis Battlehawks head coach Anthony Becht looks on during a recent game in St. Louis.

Tony Capobianco ~ tcapobianco@semoball.com

The St. Louis Battlehawks (6-2) are one step closer to fulfilling the UFL prophecy of playing in the championship game that they’re hosting on June 16. They are set to play the San Antonio Brahmas (6-2) — who just so happens to be their Week 10 matchup — in the XFL Conference Championship Game.

The next step is to finish the regular season in a position to host the playoff game. With the Brahmas taking on the 8-0 Birmingham Stallions and Battlehawks facing the 1-7 Arlington Renegades on Saturday, May 25. This matter might be secured before the rematch, which would be in the league’s best interest.

If this lines up properly, all eyes will be on Battlehawks head coach Anthony Becht. The UFL (and XFL before them) have introduced a heavy amount of transparency into the game broadcasts and that means how the head coach conducts his business and conveys his message is now seen by all.

While many players on the Battlehawks look worthy of the NFL, Becht looks like the figure who has the most potential for a future in the fall game either in the NFL or college football.

“There is a vision for me,” Becht said.

Becht has played in the NFL as a tight end for 12 years with five different teams including the St. Louis Rams. He also carved out a broadcasting career with ESPN and did radio coverage with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New York Jets, two teams he used to play for.

It’s that broadcasting background that has made Becht the Battlehawks’ best spokesman. He has used the podium during press conferences to thank the fans and encourage them to pack The Dome at America’s Center in a way that has the team setting spring attendance records and averaging 31-32,000 fans a game in a league where everyone else is struggling to attract 1,500.

However, as a coach, spring football is all he knows. Becht was a tight ends coach with the San Diego Fleet under former Rams head coach Mike Martz in 2019. The team played eight games before the Alliance of American Football folded before the end of the season.

The Battlehawks is his first job as a head coach and the team has been a winner ever since. A UFL championship in his second season would have him on many teams’ shortlists after the fall plays out and the many vacancies open up.

“I got to build my resume faster,” Becht said. “Winning is important and winning a championship is what you have to do. If you're a first-time head coach last year, you have to show those quick qualities of growth and recruiting and leadership.”

Becht has also put together a coaching staff that includes former NFL players who played during the same time as him. Donnie Abraham, the defensive coordinator, has been a cornerback in the NFL from 1996-2004. Bruce Gradkowski was a quarterback and Becht’s teammate with the Buccaneers back in 2006. His brother, Gino Gradkowski, was a lineman on the Baltimore Ravens’ last Super Bowl-winning team in 2012. La’Roi Glover, another former Ram, has spent over a decade in the NFL as a defensive lineman and also has experience at that level as a coach.

“I have really good staff and they all deserve to be in places that they aren't right now,” Becht said. “But man, I love that we can be together and grow this thing.”

These next two weeks will be challenging for Becht and the Battlehawks. St. Louis is taking on an “improving” Renegades team in spoiler mode with backup quarterback Manny Wilkins, and there will still be questions about the health of AJ McCarron’s ankle when they host the Brahmas next week with home-field advantage in the playoffs at stake.

These next three to four weeks can make or break Becht’s viability as a coaching candidate in the fall.

“I have to put some proof on the paper and I think all that does is talking,” Becht said. “I have a few things at hand that I have to continue to work and do to show the validity that that is a possibility.”