St. Louis Battlehawks’ head coach Ricky Proehl is defining the culture for the team heading into the 2026 campaign.
Training camp is a time for UFL teams to go in deep preparation mode and serves as an opportunity for veteran and rookie players to connect with one another.
Among the newest faces to the Battlehawks’ roster is a revamped, young linebacker room that will transform the defense.
“[Defense is] running to the football, it’s finishing on every play,” Proehl said during a recent preseason press conference. “You see the linebackers just flying around the ball. It’s exciting to watch in practice.”
Abraham Beauplan, Tariq Carpenter, and Michael Barrett comprise some of the linebacker squadron, and that position is expected to provide a new level of talent to the Battlehawks’ defense this season.
“I’m excited for the St. Louis fans to see these guys and how physical they are, and how fast they are, and how they play the game.”
The final linebacker room is going to be one of the hardest positions for Proehl to decide on, with final rosters slated to be announced in the coming days.
He is making sure that the Battlehawks’ final roster is reflective of the culture he hopes to bring to the team.
“There’s several components that come into play when it comes down to making cuts,” Proehl said. “It’s how well are they prepared physically, but also how well they are prepared mentally.”
He emphasized that final roster cuts aren’t just about how player is as an athlete, but how their personality aligns with what he wants to accomplish as a team.
“[Each player] has to have those three components – the mental game, they have to be prepared physically to play, and then also buy into the culture [by] being a great teammate.”
With roster cuts looming, there’s one roster position without any clear answers. It’s the one position group that has fans eagerly waiting for updates on – a position group that has caused a lot of speculation amongst Battlehawks fans in recent months.
That position is the quarterback position, and with less than two weeks before the season, the QB1 battle is down to Brandon Silvers and Harrison Frost, according to Proehl – two quarterbacks with different experience levels.
Silvers has been on the Battlehawks’ roster since 2024 as an added depth piece but has quickly stepped up to the plate as an emerging candidate for QB1.
Silvers’ experience and leadership is crucial to the team’s success, Proehl said.
Frost was a UDFA with the Seattle Sea Dragons in 2023 before serving as a backup quarterback for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League, where he remained until getting signed with the Battlehawks in February. Now he’s in line for a potential starting spot.
“[I’ve liked] their leadership, them being familiar with this offense […] and their confidence […] and their ability to compete without having conflict,” Proehl said. “They’ve both been really supportive of each other.”
The Battlehawks kick off their season at home against the reigning UFL champion D.C. Defenders on March 28, and there is a good amount of excitement over the team kicking off their season at home.
For Proehl, the game is going to serve as a “measuring stick” to evaluate where the team is at, but playing in front of a home crowd will give the team an advantage.
“[The Defenders are] well-coached, they’re one of the best teams in this league and they play physical, they play smart,” Proehl said.
Having veteran players like Hakeem Butler and Travis Feeney helps with maintaining composure during a game against a rival like D.C.
“They’ve experienced the D.C. Defenders and how good this football team,” Proehl said. “This game is a game of emotions… it can get chippy, and it’s something we’ve got to be able to control.”
He’s even committed to making sure the new players, especially those coming straight from college, have the opportunity to perform at their best.
“What we really preach in our meeting rooms – to our players – is consistency,” Proehl said. “You’re going to have highs and lows throughout the course of a football season, but it’s what you do through those highs and lows… is what defines who you are as a person, in your character, in your work ethic.”
He emphasized that the team needs to play smart and be physical and to not let distractions get in the way.
“We got to play disciplined football and that’s what I think that [the] veteran leadership keeps everybody poised under those circumstances,” Proehl said.
The Battlehawks play their first game of the season against the D.C. Defenders on Saturday, March 28 at 11 AM CT, streaming live on ESPN.
