St. Louis Battlehawks head coach Anthony Becht is interested in becoming the head coach at the University of South Florida after coach Alex Golesh departed for the Auburn Tigers according to the X account TBone Nation.
Anthony Becht is 48 years old and is from Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania. He has been the head coach of the St. Louis Battlehawks since 2023. He is 22-8 in St. Louis, leading the team to two playoff appearances.
In 2025, the Battlehawks finished 8-2, but lost to the D.C. Defenders in the XFL Conference Championship game. St. Louis averaged 23.1 points per game, 289.8 yards per game, 145.6 passing yards per game, 144.2 rushing yards per game, 23 touchdowns, and allowed 22 sacks.
In college, Becht spent four seasons at West Virginia (1996-99) with 77 catches for 1,091 yards and 11 touchdowns in 38 games for the Mountaineers. He was named a two-time Second Team All-Big East.
In addition, Becht received the John Russell Award and was named the Mountaineer’s Most Valuable Player in 1999. He was inducted into the West Virginia University Sports Hall of Fame in 2024.
The New York Jets drafted Becht in the first round (27th pick) of the 2000 NFL Draft. Becht was named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team in 2000. He also played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, St. Louis Rams, Arizona Cardinals, and the Kansas City Chiefs. In 11 seasons, Becht made 188 catches for 1,537 yards, 21 touchdowns, and eight tackles (6 solos, 2 assists) in 167 games.
After his playing career ended in 2011, he became a college football analyst for ESPN and hosted the New York Jets pregame show before being promoted to their radio color analyst in 2024. Becht would also coach Tight Ends in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl before taking the same position with the San Diego Fleet of the Alliance of American Football in 2018. After the AAF folded, he was named the St. Louis Battlehawks head coach on April 22, 2022.
