SALT LAKE CITY — Two careers that total nearly 70 years of football experience at various levels will finally intertwine professionally at Rice-Eccles Stadium this week in the Alliance of American Football.

But while Salt Lake Stallions coach Dennis Erickson and Orlando Apollos skipper Steve Spurrier have deep connections to the sport — and the state of Florida, with Spurrier’s ties to Florida and Erickson’s ties to Miami — the two have never crossed path on a football field.

Just mark it down as another “first” for the expansion season of the developmental spring league known as “the AAF.”

“Denny was at Miami a lot of the years I was at Florida, and we were actually pretty good buddies — and still are good buddies,” said the 73-year-old Spurrier, who coached the Gators from 1990 to 2001. “We tried to team up against (Florida State). Neither one of us, obviously, wanted to lose to FSU, and he didn’t lose much to them. I think they beat me more than they beat him.

“Denny is an excellent coach and does a super job with that team.”

That’s just one matchup that makes the Apollos’ visit to the Stallions (1-2) so interesting. The other is the undefeated Orlando squad visiting Utah for a 6 p.m. MT primetime slot Saturday on the NFL Network to highlight Week 4 of the Alliance.

“Hopefully, we can play better against Salt Lake,” Spurrier said in response to his team’s 21-17 victory over the Memphis Express last week to stay undefeated. “The Stallions lost a couple of close ones early, then they beat an Arizona team that was undefeated. They’re a solid, good team and if we’re going to beat them, we’ve got to play well.”

While Erickson and Spurrier will face each other on the field football field for the first time in the duo’s collective coaching career, the two have been among the best of friends for years.

The two golf together almost every year, and Erickson has hosted Spurrier and his wife, Jerri, at his home in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, for fishing trips.

“He’s probably one of my closest friends in this business,” Erickson said after practice this week in Herriman. “But I’ve never coached against him.”

The Stallions even added to the connections Thursday, when they officially announced Ron Zook as the team's new special teams coordinator and defensive secondary coach. Zook, 64, was a defensive assistant at Florida from 1991-95, then returned to Gainesville as head coach of the Gators from 2002-04.

One of the fun parts of the league is roaming the sidelines to see a Who’s Who of football’s best minds, according to former BYU tight end Tanner Balderree.

“It’s guys who have a lot of history and legends in coaching. You look across the entire league, and there are guys like this every week,” he added. “It’s an honor to go against these great coaches and these great football minds, and to know that we are playing at a high level.”

Erickson coached at Miami from 1989-94, winning two national titles during his time in South Florida. But he never got a crack at Spurrier’s Gator team, either by choice or by accident.

“We played Florida State, but didn’t play Florida,” Erickson said. “This is the first time, and he’s one of the greatest. It will be fun to compete against them.”

First win

Stallions get first win in franchise history

Josh Woodrum threw for 178 yards and a touchdown to lead Salt Lake to a 23-15 win over the Arizona Hotshots for the team’s first victory in franchise history.

Part of what makes the Apollos arguably the best team in the Alliance of American Football is their quarterback play — something that isn’t new to followers of Spurrier’s innovative offenses.

Garrett Gilbert, who finished his collegiate career at Southern Methodist before spending four years in the NFL with the Rams, Patriots, Lions, Raiders and Panthers, leads a prolific passing game with 827 yards and five touchdowns in the first three weeks of the season.

That includes a 14-of-28 performance for 207 yards and a score in last week’s win over Memphis. And Gilbert certainly has the Stallions’ interest as they look to protect home-field advantage in front of their newfound fans.

“He’s one of the better quarterbacks in our league, and he can really throw it,” Erickson said. “They’ve also got a lot of skill at receiver. When you have Florida (allocating players to your professional team), you’ll have skill.”

That goes for the defense, too.

“They’re super athletic. They’re a great team; we respect them,” Balderree said. “We need to go in there respecting and acknowledging what they can do, but also have the confidence that we can out-scheme and out-play them, if we play our best.”

Orlando Apollos (3-0) at Salt Lake Stallions (1-2)

Saturday at Rice-Eccles Stadium

Time: 6 p.m. MT

TV: NFL Network

Radio: ESPN 700

Streaming: aaf.com

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