In January 2026, Dr. Wayne A. I. Frederick, interim president and president emeritus of Howard University, and Kery Davis, vice president and director of athletics, appointed Ted White (B.A.‘98) as the university’s 38th football head coach.
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One of the most decorated student-athletes in Howard University and Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) history, White returns to The Mecca with two decades of collegiate and professional coaching experience and a deep understanding of what it means to lead at Howard. White arrives in Washington, D.C., with a reputation as a strong recruiter, culture builder, and mentor. He is known for emphasizing accountability, academic achievement, and competitive excellence while preparing student athletes for life beyond football.
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In 2025, he was an offensive assistant at the University of Maryland and quarterbacks coach at UCLA during the 2024 campaign. UCLA saw solid play with starter Ethan Garbers throwing for 2,727 yards and 16 touchdowns while taking home UCLA's first-ever Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year honor following his 383-yard, five-TD performance at Rutgers (Oct. 19). Backup Justyn Martin also stood out with a 22-for-30, 167-yard outing on the road at nationally-ranked Penn State when called into duty due to an injury to Garbers. At the end of the season, Garbers ranked top-five in the Big Ten Conference in completions per game (21.3, fourth), passing yards per game (247.9, fifth) and total offense per game (260.3, fourth). Garbers was voted the team's Offensive MVP at the program's postseason banquet. Overall, UCLA ranked No. 48 nationally, and No. 8 in the Big Ten, in passing offense at 242.2 yards per game.Â
Before a stint as an offensive assistant and quarterbacks coach with the NFL’s Houston Texans (2022), White was an offensive quality control coach at Maryland during the 2021 season. He helped in the development of Terrapin quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa, who was awarded All-Big Ten honorable mention status after logging single-season program records for passing yards (3,860), completions (328), completion percentage (69.2%) and 300-yard passing games (seven).
White also spent 2020 in the Washington metropolitan area, coaching quarterbacks for the XFL’s D.C. Defenders during their pandemic-shortened campaign.
During the first of White’s two seasons as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Prairie View A&M. In 2018, Jalen Morton starred under center and piled up a single-season school record of 3,218 total offense yards (2,344 passing and 874 rushing). He also established a single-game program record with 255 rushing yards – while scoring four touchdowns on the ground – at Arkansas at Pine Bluff, a record had stood since 1953.
White was associate head coach, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Arkansas at Pine Bluff for two seasons (2016 & 2017), moving to interim head coach during the latter part of that tenure. The Golden Lions saw their scoring offense rise 7.4 points per game from 2016 to 2017.
White was associate head coach, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Howard (2011-15). In 2014, Howard led the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) in total offense (384.8 yards per game) and first downs per game (22.0) while ranking third in rushing offense (189.3 yards per game) and passing offense (200.3 yards per game). The 2013 Bison also paced the MEAC in total offense (403.9 yards per game), along with third-down conversions (47.6%) and fourth-down conversions (68%). At the helm of that offense was MEAC Offensive Player of the Year Greg McGhee, who led the league in total offense (3,275 yards).
In 2012, Howard’s 7-4 record represented its first winning season since 2004. White helped the 2011 group to five wins in his return to the Washington, D.C. campus, surpassing the program’s total of four victories achieved across the previous three years combined. McGhee was selected MEAC Rookie of the Year that season after finishing third in the conference with a total offense rate of 198.5 yards per game.
White also guided a standout freshman in 2010, aiding Dray Joseph in his Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Offensive Rookie of the Year performance while co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Southern.
White got his start in coaching when he headed up the quarterbacks and wide receivers rooms at Texas Southern (2006-08). He also interned for the NFL’s Oakland Raiders (2015), Minnesota Vikings (2012 & 2014) and Atlanta Falcons (2007 & 2008) and was a guest coach for the CFL’s Edmonton Eskimos (2010), Saskatchewan Roughriders (2010) and Winnipeg Bluebombers (2008).
White finished his playing career with the CFL’s Montreal Alouettes, passing for 2,568 yards and 20 touchdowns (2003-05). His also had stints with NFL Europe’s Barcelona Dragons (2002) and Frankfurt Galaxy (2000). White’s NFL experience consisted of stops with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers organizations.
White’s playing career at Howard remains one of the most accomplished in MEAC history. He set conference career records for passing yards (9,808), passing touchdowns (92), and completions, earning first-team Division I-AA All-America honors twice and being named MEAC Player of the Year and Black College Football Player of the Year in 1996. His impact helped define an era of Bison football excellence.
White was born in Baton Rouge, La. and played football and basketball at Glen Oaks High School.
WHITE'S COACHING EXPERIENCE
2006-08 – Quarterbacks/Wide Receivers, Texas Southern
2010 – Co-Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks, Southern
2011-15 – Associate Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks, Howard
2016, 2017 – Associate Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks, Arkansas at Pine Bluff
2017 – Interim Head Coach, Arkansas at Pine Bluff
2018, 2019 – Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks, Prairie View A&M
2020 – Quarterbacks, D.C. Defenders
2021 – Offensive Quality Control, Maryland
2022 – Offensive Assistant/Quarterbacks, Houston Texans
2024 – Quarterbacks, UCLA
2025 - Offensive Assistant, Maryland
2026 - Head Coach, Howard
