After leading the D.C. Defenders to the league’s best regular-season record and into the championship game, Reggie Barlow has been chosen as the XFL Coach of the Year for the 2023 season.

A prep standout at Sidney Lanier and a 1,000-yard receiver at Alabama State, Barlow returned to serve as the Hornets’ head coach from 2007 through 2014.

In between, Barlow spent eight seasons in the NFL. He led the league in punt-return yards in 1998 with the Jacksonville Jaguars and was a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when they won the Super Bowl for the 2002 season.

The Defenders won the North Division title with a 9-1 record. D.C. fielded the XFL’s highest-scoring team.

The Defenders opened the playoffs by defeating the Seattle Sea Dragons 37-21 on Sunday.

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D.C. will square off against the Arlington Renegades in the XFL title game at 7 p.m. CDT May 13 at the Alamodome in San Antonio.

The XFL’s coaches and directors of player personnel chose Barlow as the Coach of the Year Award winner. The league announced the award winner on Tuesday.

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.