Alabama A&M has hired Sam Shade as its head football coach, the school announced Sunday.
Shade, the former Alabama and NFL defensive back, spent the last three seasons as head coach at Miles College in Fairfield. He led the Golden Bears to an 18-15 record, including a 10-3 mark, conference championship and NCAA Division II playoff berth this past season.
“This is a new and exciting time to bring Coach Sam Shade to the Hill,” Alabama A&M athletics director Paul A. Bryant said. “He brings a wealth of knowledge and proven success to a program ready to thrive. His vast resources in the state and impeccable relationships with his team made him the perfect candidate for Alabama A&M University.”
Shade takes over at Alabama A&M for Connell Maynor, who was fired earlier this month after posting a 40-32 record in seven seasons. The Bulldogs finished 6-6 in 2024.
A Birmingham native, Shade was an All-SEC safety at Alabama in the early 1990s and a starter on the Crimson Tide’s 1992 national championship team. He later played eight seasons in the NFL with Cincinnati and Washington.
Shade has coached on the college level as an assistant at Samford (2009-15) and Georgia State (2017) and in the NFL with the Cleveland Browns (2018). He was head coach at Pinson Valley High School in 2020-21, leading the Indians to a state championship in his first season.
