Tag: USFL

13 Saints competing in UFL after 2024 super draft

13 ex-New Orleans Saints players are competing after the 2024 UFL super draft, including Emmanuel Butler, Darius Victor, and Abram Smith:

The XFL and USFL merged earlier this year in a much-publicized joining of the two spring leagues, forming the new United Football League (UFL). And quite a few former members of the New Orleans Saints are in the mix with training camp on the horizon.

As part of that reorganization some teams were dissolved, with their players being made available in a multi-phase super draft for the remaining squads. And after all the picks were turned in, a baker’s dozen of former Saints players found themselves either on new teams or surrounded by new teammates.

Here’s the list:

Former Tiger drafted by the Memphis Showboats in the USFL

A former Clemson wide receiver is continuing his career in the USFL.

A former Tiger is getting another chance to play the game he loves at a professional level.

Former Clemson wide receiver Diondre Overton is back in the USFL as he has been selected by the Memphis Showboats in the USFL dispersal draft. A new team for Overton to look to make an impact on.

During Overton’s time with the Tigers from 2016-19, the receiver recorded 52 career receptions for 777 yards and seven touchdowns over 51 games (five starts). In 2022, with the Philadelphia Stars, Overton recorded 200 receiving yards and three touchdowns. In 2023, he recorded 30 catches for 333 yards and two touchdowns.

Overton looks to become a focal point for the Showboats offense in 2024.

XFL and USFL merge to become the UFL, new season begins March 30

We will have to wait to see if any Penn State pklayers will be playing in the newly merged UFL this spring.

Football is about to undergo some big changes in 2024, and that is not limited to just the seismic shifts in college football conference realignment.

This may not be college football related, but the spring football calendar just got a bit more crowded alongside the spring football practices going on at Penn State and across the nation. On Sunday, the XFL and USFL formally announced their anticipated merger and confirmed the new season between the brand new United Football League will kick things off on March 30.

The XFL and USFL have each been professional football leagues serving as a potential path to the NFL for players out of college who didn’t latch on with an NFL roster for one reason or another or players looking to redeem themselves a bit with hopes of making it back to the NFL. A handful of former Penn State players have taken part in each spring football league over the last few years, and we will be sure to keep an eye on the UFL rosters moving forward to see if any former Nittany Lions are to be found in the newly merged league.

You have to love how the league is going to make its debut as week. The champions of each league from last season, the Birmingham Stallions of the USFL and the Arlington Renegades of the XFL, will take center stage in the first game of the year. It’s not quite like a professional wrestling title belt unification match, but we’ll take it!

The Renegades acquired the rights to former Penn State defensive star Grant Haley, most known for his return of a blocked field goal for a touchdown against Ohio State in 2016.

The full list of teams expected to play in the newly rebranded league will be confirmed on Monday during ESPN’s broadcast of College GameDay from the Rose Bowl.

Consider this the professional football equivalent of the Big Ten added four teams from the Pac-12 or the Big 12 picking the scraps of the Pac-12. Maybe Oregon State and Washington State can petition to join the UFL?

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USFL, XFL merge to create United Football League

The XFL and USFL have merged to become the United Football League

The USFL is no more for the second time. The XFL is no more for the third time.

However, there will be a spring league: The United Football League.

The announcement was made by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Dany Garcia on the FOX Sports NFL pregame show.

The first game will be on March 30 of the new league.

The opening game will feature USFL champion Birmingham Stallions against the XFL champion Arlington Renegades.

Former Nebraska quarterback signs with USFL team

A former Nebraska quarterback has announced he is continuing his football career at the professional level.

A former Nebraska quarterback has announced he is continuing his football career at the professional level. Adrian Martinez signed with the Birmingham Stallions of the United States Football League.

Martinez played at Nebraska from 2018-21 before transferring to Kansas State last season. In his Husker career, he went 14-24 as a starter in Lincoln.

For his career, he would throw for 9,391 yards and 49 touchdowns with 30 interceptions. He also ran for 2,847 yards and 44 touchdowns.

He would go undrafted after finishing college but would be invited to the Detroit Lions training camp before being waived. Martinez will join a Birmingham Stallions squad that has won the last two USFL championships.

Find a photo gallery of Adrian Martinez’s college career below.

Panthers reportedly signing TE Chris Pierce to practice squad

According to KPRC 2 Houston’s Aaron Wilson, the Panthers are signing TE Chris Pierce to their practice squad.

The Carolina Panthers are set to add a pretty big pass catcher.

As reported by Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Houston on Tuesday, the team is planning to sign 6-foot-4, 235-pound tight end Chris Pierce to their practice squad.

Pierce was a three-star recruit out of Smithfield, Va., where he lettered in both football and basketball. The decorated high schooler, who ended up as a three-time all-region wide receiver and two-time all-region forward, went on to play (football) for Vanderbilt University starting in 2017.

Over his five seasons in Nashville, Tenn., Pierce recorded 109 receptions for 1,398 yards and nine touchdowns in 55 games. He cracked into the NFL as an undrafted free agent with the Arizona Cardinals, who rostered him on their practice squad for part of the 2022 campaign.

After signing a reserve/future deal in January, Pierce was released by the Cardinals later on in July. He then, in September, signed with the USFL’s Birmingham Stallions for the 2024 season.

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Former Georgia Bulldogs DT signs with USFL team

Former Georgia Bulldogs defensive tackle signs with the Memphis Showboats in the USFL

Former Georgia Bulldogs defensive lineman John Atkins has signed with the USFL’s Memphis Showboats. Atkins’ most recent professional football stint was with the Tampa Bay Bandits in the USFL.

The Thomson, Georgia, native went undrafted in 2018 but signed an undrafted free agent deal with the New England Patriots the same year. Atkins spent time with the Detroit Lions in 2019-2020 and with the Atlanta Falcons in 2021 before this move to the USFL.

John Atkins has 22 tackles in his NFL career. Last season, the USFL ran from April to July. Atkins, who played for Georgia from 2013 to 2017, racked up 81 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and five pass breakups in his career with the Bulldogs.

The Memphis Showboats announced the signing of John Atkins via social media:

We wish Atkins luck with the Memphis Showboats. The XFL and USFL combined ahead of next season. The Memphis Showboats are one of four USFL teams in the merger.

 

Dolphins to work out former 49ers LB again

The Dolphins will host the LB on another workout.

The Miami Dolphins got some fairly good news on Monday, as linebacker Jerome Baker’s MRI revealed an MCL injury that will have him considered week-to-week.

Still, the Dolphins, who are pursuing the top seed in the AFC and a deep postseason run, are considering outside help to, perhaps, fill in, in the meantime.

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Dolphins will host former San Francisco 49ers linebacker Reuben Foster for a workout on Wednesday.

Foster, 29, was originally selected by the 49ers with the 31st overall pick in the 2017 NFL draft after a collegiate career at Alabama that included a national championship and a First-team All-SEC appearance.

In 16 games over his first two seasons, Foster recorded 101 tackles (10 for a loss), seven quarterback hits and two passes defensed. Legal issues led to his release by the 49ers in 2018. He spent time with Washington, but a torn ACL cost him his 2019 and 2020 seasons.

He was unsigned through 2021 and 2022, but he did work out with teams, including the Dolphins. And, this past year, he joined the Pittsburgh Maulers of the USFL in 2023. He recorded 53 tackles, one interception and a half-sack in his first season in the league.

Miami has some in-house options to fill the immediate hole left by Baker’s absence, including David Long Jr., Duke Riley and Channing Tindall. However, Foster might be as competitive as some of the team’s depth options at the position.

Former Notre Dame soccer star ties NFL record

Hollywood couldn’t write a better script.

The Dallas Cowboys have as good of kicker as there is the NFL this season.  Rookie placekicker Brandon Aubrey was 2-2 on field goal attempts for Dallas on Sunday, making him 18-18 on the season.  That 18-18 start ties an NFL record for most successful field goal attempts to begin a career.

If you’re here at Fighting Irish Wire then we assume you’re a fairly big Notre Dame football fan.  We also assume you know all about Brandon Aubrey’s career playing with the gold helmet.

Except Aubrey didn’t play football at Notre Dame, he only played soccer.  Aubrey was a defender for the Irish who scored 15 goals in 76 career games for the Irish.

Aubrey was drafted by Toronto FC of the MLS after his senior year but his professional soccer career lasted just a year.  Four years later he gave placekicking a shot and earned a spot on the USFL’s Birmingham Stallions where he made 14 of 15 attempts and all 35 extra point attempts last season.

That strong season led to a tryout with the Cowboys, one that Aubrey ran with, earning the starting kicking job this training camp.

Aubrey is now 18-18 on field goal attempts this year, tying him with Travis Coons of the Cleveland Browns in 2015 for the most successful field goal attempts to begin an NFL career.

Aubrey connected on two field goals Sunday as the Cowboys moved to 5-2 with a 43-20 win over the Los Angeles Rams.

Check out some of the best kicking photos of Brandon Aubrey below.  

XFL and USFL announce intent to merge

The XFL and USFL announce plans to merge

If you can’t succeed on your own, why not try and merge?

The XFL, which has already failed twice, and the USFL, which fell apart once decades ago, announced Thursday they are planning to merge.

It looks like the new league will be called the National Spring Football League.

The XFL is run by Dwayne Johnson and Co.

While this is a significant step, there is no guarantee a second league, even in the Spring, will succeed.

It is worth a try, as they say.