REESE’S SENIOR BOWL ANNOUNCES STAFF CHANGES
New director of football ops, content coordinator, and NFL scouts added to preeminent college all-star game
Mobile, AL – The Reese’s Senior Bowl, the first stage of the pre-draft process that showcased 40 percent of the entire 2022 NFL draft class, including 45 of the top 100 players, is excited to announce numerous staff changes in preparation for the 74th annual game that kicks off at 1:30 p.m. CT at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Alabama on Saturday February 4, 2023.
Matt Kelly, who has spent the past three years in various scouting roles at the Senior Bowl, has been hired as the game’s new director of football operations, replacing Michael Coe, who accepted an area scout role with the Carolina Panthers in May. “Matt Kelly will have a big impact to our overall operation, not just on the football side but with everything we do in the Mobile community,” says Reese’s Senior Bowl Executive Director Jim Nagy.
Another new hire to the game’s full-time staff is Johnny Williams, who was added as creative content coordinator. “Johnny Williams brings a unique football background as a Power Five player (at Duke University) to the creative side of our team. He not only understands the game, but he is also skilled at bringing it to life through his artistic talents.”
In addition to Coe, three members of last year’s scouting team were also hired this offseason by NFL clubs—Andy Dengler (Senior National Scout, Las Vegas Raiders), Mark Ellenz (Area Scout, Tampa Bay Buccaneers), and Chris Watts (Area Scout, Pittsburgh Steelers).
“Part of the reason we construct our staff the way we do is to give proven talented scouts a chance to stay connected to the game,” says Nagy. “The hope is that some of them will get opportunities to get back into the league after spending time with us and thankfully that happened this year for Andy, Mark, and Chris. All three will be huge assets moving forward for their respective organizations.”
The veteran scouting staff assembled for the 2023 game cycle, which has a collective 160 years of NFL front office, coaching, and playing experience, will consist of Brad Jackson, Frantzy Jourdain, Walter Juliff, Bobby Macedo, T.J. McCreight, Chris Prescott, Paul Roell, Brock Sunderland, and Brian Zeches. In addition, Kalija Lipscomb, a 2020 Senior Bowl alum, and Chris Smith have been added as in-house scouting assistants.
“We believe in our process and are excited about this scouting staff,” says Nagy. “This group is incredibly well-connected, both around the league and across college football, and we are confident the collective professional experience will allow us to assemble the best possible rosters for the 32 NFL clubs to evaluate.”
FULL-TIME STAFF ADDITIONS
- Director of Football Operations Matt Kelly- In his new role as director of football operations, Kelly’s primary duties will include coordination of all scouting activities (database management, game scheduling, scout logistics), player travel, uniforms (Nike), game week team interviews, and communication with NFL member clubs. Kelly brings great institutional knowledge of the Senior Bowl to his current position after spending two years (2019-’20) as an in-house scouting assistant in Mobile and as the game’s Mid-Atlantic area scout last year. Prior to his Senior Bowl experience, Kelly interned for the Philadelphia Eagles and worked in player personnel at the University of Georgia. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from the United States Air Force Academy and a master’s in Sports Administration from Ohio University.
- Creative Content Coordinator Johnny Williams- Williams returns to the Senior Bowl after serving as a scouting assistant in 2015, albeit this time in a much different role on the creative/social media side of the operation. The former four-year letterwinner (wide receiver/cornerback) and visual arts major at Duke University brings over 10 years of graphic design, photography, and videography experience to his new role as creative content coordinator. While working as a self-employed freelancer, Williams handled projects for national entities such as Nike, Eastbay, and Overtime. His work was also featured on NFL Network and The Golf Channel. Williams and his wife, Victoria, have one son, Price (4), and they reside in Mobile.
2023 REESE’S SENIOR BOWL SCOUTING STAFF
- Brad Jackson- Jackson, a 1998 Senior Bowl alum as a player and two-time participant of Senior Bowl Scout School initiative, played six years in the NFL with the Baltimore Ravens and Carolina Panthers. He started five games at linebacker during the 2001 NFL season for the historic Ravens defense that helped defeat the New York Giants in Super Bowl XXXV. He was a two-sport athlete at the University of Cincinnati where he lettered in both football and basketball. He finished his career as the third-leading tackler in Bearcats history and was selected in the third round (No. 79 overall) of the 1998 NFL draft by the Miami Dolphins. Jackson has participated in the Bill Walsh Minority Coaching Fellowship Program with the Indianapolis Colts (2007) and the Atlanta Falcons (2010). He has also worked extensively in the Baltimore area media since retiring.
- Frantzy Jourdain- Jourdain has spent the past 19 years in the NFL scouting community, working in both area scout and national scout capacities for the New England Patriots, Houston Texans, and Denver Broncos. His longest tenure came with the Patriots, where he was part of five Super Bowls and three Lombardi Trophy winning teams. Jourdain was widely credited with finding Super Bowl XLIX hero Malcolm Butler for the Patriots when he was coming out of college at Division II program West Alabama. Prior to getting into scouting, Jourdain spent the 2002 season as the secondary coach and special teams coordinator for Duquesne University and three seasons (1999-2001) coaching at Southern Durham (N.C.) High School.
- Walter Juliff- Juliff, who has scouted for 38 years in the National Football League, including the past three seasons as a senior advisor with the Las Vegas Raiders, is one of the most experienced personnel men in professional football. Prior to his time with the Raiders, he served the previous 31 seasons in the Dallas Cowboys personnel department, where he worked under every head coach in franchise history, from Tom Landry to Jason Garrett. Juliff held numerous roles with the Cowboys (southeast area scout, national scout, and assistant director of college and pro scouting) and helped build rosters for 11 NFC East Championships and three Super Bowl winning clubs. He originally broke into the NFL as a combine scout with the Pittsburgh Steelers and prior to that he coached at the college (Angelo State) and high school levels in the state of Texas.
- Bobby Macedo- Macedo spent the last 10 years with the Chicago Bears, initially joining the organization as a scouting assistant in 2012 and eventually elevating to his role as college scouting coordinator from 2015-2021. Prior to the Bears, he spent one season as the running backs coach at Milliken University. He also worked as an undergraduate student assistant at Temple and as a graduate assistant at Indiana University.
- T.J. McCreight- McCreight has held numerous high-ranking scouting roles in his 24 years in the NFL, including the past five years a player personnel executive with the Philadelphia Eagles. He broke into the league with the Baltimore Ravens in 1997 as the east coast area scout and eventually became the team’s national scout his final two years (2003-’04). He also served in key decision-making roles as director of player personnel with the Cleveland Browns (2004-’08), pro personnel director for the Arizona Cardinals (2009-’11), and director of college scouting for the Indianapolis Colts (2012-’16). He played college football at Liberty University.
- Chris Prescott- Prescott has worked the past 19 years in the NFL with Jacksonville Jaguars, New York Jets, and Chicago Bears. He got his start as a scouting intern for the Jaguars in 2002 and spent several years with the club as an area scout. He then spent three years as an area scout with the Jets before landing a promotion as national scout for the Bears. He was a four-year letterman at safety for Western New England University.
- Paul Roell- Roell is a veteran NFL scout with 30 years of league experience, most recently as the assistant college scouting director of the Jacksonville Jaguars from 2013-’20. Prior to his time with the Jaguars, he was a regional scout for seven seasons for the Minnesota Vikings. His longest tenure came from 1991-2005 with the Indianapolis Colts, where he served as an area scout for teams that went to the playoffs under three different head coaches (Ted Marchibroda, Jim Mora, and Tony Dungy).
- Brock Sunderland- Sunderland brings 15 years of professional football experience to the Reese’s Senior Bowl. He broke into the NFL in 2007 with the New York Jets and spent five seasons there in various scouting roles. He left the NFL for the CFL’s Ottawa RedBlacks, where he served as assistant general manager for four seasons. During his time in Ottawa, the RedBlacks made back-to-back Grey Cup appearances and won the CFL Championship in 2016. Most recently, he was the general manager and vice president of football operations for the Edmonton Elks. The Elks made two finals appearances in his four seasons leading the organization.
- Brian Zeches- Zeches is the lone holdover from the 2021 Reese’s Senior Bowl scouting staff. He worked eight seasons in the NFL, including seven as the personnel coordinator/pro scout for the Washington Commanders. In his role with the Commanders, Zeches was responsible for both pro and college sides of the football operation. His other NFL experience came as a scouting assistant with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2012, where he worked with Senior Bowl Executive Director Jim Nagy. His football background also includes two years as running backs coach at Weber State, as well as graduate assistant positions at New Mexico and UTEP. Zeches began his college career at Illinois before transferring Idaho State, where he played quarterback for three years.
- Kalija Lipscomb- Lipscomb was invited to the 2020 Reese’s Senior Bowl after a prolific career at Vanderbilt, where he ranks in top-10 in school history in receptions (fifth), receiving yards (eighth), ad touchdowns (tied for second). He appeared in 48 career games for the Commodores with 25 starts and he led the SEC with 87 receptions as a junior. He signed a free agent contract with the reigning Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs after the 2020 NFL draft and spent time on the practice squad that year with the Chiefs and Green Bay Packers. He was also in training camp in 2021 with the Tennessee Titans. He is a native of New Orleans, LA and helped Jesuit HS to a state championship his sophomore year.
- Chris Smith- Smith joins the Senior Bowl staff fresh off a training camp internship this summer with the Miami Dolphins. He served as assistant director of player personnel last fall at his alma mater Temple University, where he was also a four-year letterman for the Owls under current Carolina Panthers Head Coach Matt Rhule. He originally joined the team as a walk-on and worked his way into being a valuable special teams player over the course of his Temple career. After graduation, Smith’s first job in football was as football operations assistant at the University of Maine in 2019.
Media Contact: Molly Middleton (251) 259-2559 or mmiddleton@seniorbowl.com