With the team's 2026 Training Camp beginning next week, today the Tampa Bay Buccaneers announced the five fellows from the 2026 Buccaneers National Coaching Academy, presented by ReliaQuest, set to return to Tampa to work alongside the team's coaching staff throughout camp. Micah Brown, Taj Darby, Shevin Smith Jr., Mi-ah Watkins and Austin Westbrook will return to represent the 2026 class.
The five coaches took part in an immersive weeklong academy this past May, participating in team meetings and on-field coaching sessions throughout rookie minicamp. While in Tampa, they participated in masterclass sessions featuring Super Bowl Champion head coaches Bruce Arians and Tony Dungy, Pro Football Hall of Famer Ronde Barber, Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles and general manager Jason Licht.
"For coaches attempting to break into the professional ranks, the key is getting access and having an opportunity to work alongside an NFL coaching staff," said Bowles. "We have been able to find some very good coaches through our work with the Buccaneers National Coaching Academy these past three years, and we have another strong class of returning fellows this year who will gain great experience at this upcoming training camp. I'm looking forward to playing a part in helping them advance in their career journeys."
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers National Coaching Academy is open to individuals with at least three years of coaching or football program experience at the high school, collegiate, or semi-professional level who are driven to take the next step toward the NFL. The Glazer family, owners of the Buccaneers, created the Academy as part of their longstanding commitment to helping develop leaders both on and off the field.
A Tampa native, Brown currently works as the Defensive Backs Coach and Assistant Special Teams Coordinator at Bishop's University in Lennoxville, Quebec, where he also serves as a Professor of Sports Analytics and Biomechanics. In addition, he is a Sports Tech founder and owns a football-specific training and athletic development facility, working to provide athletes with expanded opportunities on and off the field. Prior to beginning his coaching career, he enjoyed a playing career spanning over a decade, with stints in the Canadian Football League, Arena Football, and Europe. He also represented the U.S. National Team, winning a gold medal. Brown is a graduate of Blake High School.
With nearly two decades of experience, Darby began his coaching career in 2009 at his alma mater, North Central High School in Indianapolis, Indiana. From there, he worked at the high school level until he was offered his current role as the Secondary Coach at Austin College in Sherman, Texas.
Born in Tampa and the son of a former Buccaneer, Smith played collegiately at Baylor, winning a Big 12 Championship in 2021 before beginning his coaching career there as a student assistant. He would go on to serve as a graduate assistant at Nebraska before moving on to his current role as the Co-Defensive & Special Teams Coordinator & Cornerbacks Coach at Bemidji State University in Bemidji, Minnesota.
Watkins currently serves as an Assistant Sports Scientist at the University of Nebraska, working with Olympic sports and basketball. A former track athlete at Howard University, Watkins initially planned to pursue physical therapy but pivoted to sports science, leading her to internships at the University of Maryland and UConn before landing her current position in Lincoln in July 2024.
Rounding out this year's fellows, Westbrook played collegiately at Faulkner University before beginning his coaching career at Fort Scott Community College. He later coached at the high school level in Birmingham before pursuing his master's degree in kinesiology from Northern Illinois, where he also worked as a graduate assistant. Westbrook would go on to take another high school job before earning his first stint at the FBS level with Missouri State, working with the secondary and player development. He now serves as an Assistant Defensive Backs Coach at Coastal Carolina University, entering his first season this fall.
