Colts name 2026 Tony Dungy Fellow and Harriet P. Irsay Fellows

The Indianapolis Colts announced the 2026 recipients of two internal fellowship programs designed to grow coaching and football-operation talent. The team named Shea Pitts as the Tony Dungy Fellow, and selected Isabel Diaz and Nadine Nurasyid as the Harriet P. Irsay Fellows for the 2026 season. The fellowships are part of a broader pipeline initiative the organization has used to develop candidates while they gain NFL experience.

Pitts, the Tony Dungy Fellow, will assist the Colts defense in 2026. According to the Colts, his most recent coaching role was as a defensive graduate assistant at UCLA from 2023 to 2026. The team also noted that Pitts previously held Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship experiences with both the Green Bay Packers (2025) and the Kansas City Chiefs (2024), and that he participated in rookie mini-camp with the Tennessee Titans in 2023. As a player, Pitts appeared in 42 career games at UCLA, playing linebacker and defensive back across the 2017-22 seasons, and finished with 25 tackles, two tackles for loss, two sacks, and one forced fumble, while earning recognition on the Pac-12 All-Academic Team multiple times.

Diaz will be one of the Harriet P. Irsay Fellows, and the Colts said she will continue assisting with special teams. The organization described Diaz as the inaugural Harriet P. Irsay Fellow in 2023, and it said she will build on that experience as she returns for the 2026 season. The Colts also referenced Diaz’s involvement with the Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship program during the 2022 offseason and training camp with the Washington Commanders, along with repeated participation in the NFL Women’s Forum at the NFL Scouting Combine. Her pre-NFL background, as outlined by the team, included roles at Oklahoma State and work as a videographer and undergraduate assistant within the program’s defensive operations.

Nuracyid rounds out the 2026 Harriet P. Irsay Fellows group. The Colts reported that she will assist with the defensive backs. The team’s announcement highlighted her coaching experience in Europe, listing multiple seasons in the European League of Football and German leagues, including work with the Stuttgart Surge, Munich Cowboys, and Straubing Spiders. The Colts’ description emphasized her multi-year coaching record as she transitions into the fellowship track with an NFL role focused on the defensive backfield.

In addition to naming the recipients, the Colts’ related fellowship descriptions help clarify what these positions are designed to accomplish. The Tony Dungy Fellowship program is described by the team as a multi-year opportunity for coaching candidates to gain experience as they progress in their careers, and it is named in honor of Pro Football Hall of Famer Tony Dungy, whose Colts legacy is tied to winning a Super Bowl with Indianapolis. The Harriet P. Irsay Fellowship for Women in Football, also described by the Colts as a multi-year program, is designed to increase access to high-potential candidates who can contribute in football operations or coaching roles.

For the Colts, the practical impact is straightforward, even if the on-field effects will develop over time. The defensive assistance work associated with the Tony Dungy Fellow, plus the special-teams and defensive-backs support from the Harriet P. Irsay Fellows, places these additions within the team’s day-to-day football-building process for 2026. The fellowships also report an organizational emphasis on structured staff development, using the NFL experience to accelerate candidates’ growth and diversify coaching and operations pathways.