Victor keeps churning

The first time I met running back Darius Victor he was playing rock/paper/scissors with a group of kids outside a doughnut shop in Homewood, Alabama. It was the day before the New Jersey Generals and Birmingham Stallions were set to lift the lid on the new United States Football League in 2022, and he was there to hype the new spring gridiron product.

The last time I talked to him he was sitting in the postgame presser after the Generals had lost to the Stallions in the Year 2 USFL season opener, 27-10.

Scott Adamson writes stuff. Follow him on Threads @sladamson1960 and Adamsonmedia on Facebook.

And next time?

Hopefully that’ll come on April 13 when the Stallions host Victor and his new team, the Memphis Showboats, at Protective Stadium. He’s one of those guys you instantly like – and cheer for even if he plays for a team you might normally cheer against.

After the Generals and seven other teams failed to make the cut in the USFL-XFL merger that created the new United Football League, Victor was one of the hottest commodities in the dispersal draft.

The man who made “Thick Thighs Save Lives” a rallying cry (and a T-Shirt slogan) during his USFL days now takes his wrecking ball running style to the land of the Delta Blues.

“It all feels pretty good,” Victor said during a training break at UFL Central in Arlington, Texas. “We’re coming together as a team and picking up the plays that are being installed. I think we’re doing pretty good. We’re meshing together. We all have the same type of common goal, and that’s always good when you’re trying to build a team and win ballgames.”

Victor – a 5-9, 209-pound dynamo – is a veteran of spring leagues. The 30-year-old has been on training camp rosters with two NFL franchises and one Canadian Football League club, but he first earned notice as a member of the New York Guardians in XFL 2.0 in 2020.

That league was cut short largely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but Victor returned to the new USFL in 2022.

He did not disappoint, earning Offensive Player of the Year honors with 1,131 rushing yards (1,433 rushing and receiving) and 18 total touchdowns.

Last year the Towson State product rushed for 554 yards, had 189 receiving and scored seven TDs – even managing to throw for one.

“I’ve been very grateful for these leagues,” he said. “Without these leagues I wouldn’t still be playing,  so I’m just grateful for the opportunity for these leagues to pop up and for me to be able to show the world that I can still play football.

“I appreciate the opportunity, and it’s extended my football life for sure.”

Memphis offensive coordinator Doug Martin has high praise for the ‘Boats’ new ballcarrier.

“Victor’s exactly what we saw when we played against him last year,” Martin said. “He’s hard to bring down. He’s really bright, he’s really intelligent … he understands the game really well and understands past protections really well. He’s probably a little bit ahead right now because of that.”

Victor likes being in Martin’s system and he’s also a big fan of new head coach John DeFilippo, who coached the New Orleans Breakers last season and replaces Todd Haley in Memphis.

“He’s a great guy,” Victor said. “He’s a player’s coach, for sure. He always has a player’s best interests at heart no matter what’s going on and what we’re doing. And it’s crazy … he’s like a database of random plays and information. He’s very knowledgeable. He’s been around the game for a while and it’s great just to pick his brain and learn from him.”

Memphis opens the season on Sunday, March 31, when the Showboats travel to Houston to take on the Roughnecks.

It’ll be another opportunity for Victor to live up to his “Thick Thighs Save Lives” motto.

“It’s a way for me to pay homage to my lineman,” Victor said. “They have thick thighs, and I hide behind them. And I also plan to break a lot of tackles with my thighs.

“So, watch for it.”

Rules for the UFL to live by

Say the words, “alternative football,” and you have my attention.

Say the words, “alternative football rule innovations,” and I get weirdly excited.

Scott Adamson writes stuff. Follow him on Threads @sladamson1960 and Adamsonmedia on Facebook.

So, when it was first announced that the modern United States Football League was going to merge with XFL 3.0, I was curious which rules from which circuit would carry over to the United Football League.

While there were already some commonalities, kickoffs and conversions were where the USFL and XFL differed most.

The USFL allowed a traditional PAT along with scrimmage plays for two and three-point conversions.

In the XFL, there were no extra point kicks; one, two and three-point conversions had to be scored via the run or pass.

As for XFL kickoffs, they were unique. The kicker lined up at his 30 while the rest of the team stood at the opponents’ 35-yard line – five yards away from the receiving team.

The kicker and returner were the only players who could move until the ball was fielded.

In the USFL, kickoffs took place from the 20-yard line of the kicking team, making touchbacks quite a feat.

When the UFL begins play on March 30, games will utilize XFL conversions and USFL kickoffs.

Personally, I wish the UFL had flip-flopped what they decided to cull from the old leagues.

I like a PAT option, especially now that extra points are more than automatic chip shots.

And since the NFL is considering adopting the XFL kickoff, it seems like it would’ve been a natural fit for a league that hopes to send players to – or back to – the NFL.

But the rules in play for 2024 are still nice tweaks.

“Early on when we were looking at rule changes, the first thing I noticed was that in the XFL, they didn’t kick extra points,” Birmingham Stallions coach Skip Holtz said. “When they went for one, two or three, they were all offensive scrimmage plays, it was just whether they went from the two or the five or the 10.

“But with us losing (kicker) Brandon Aubrey (who parlayed an All-USFL season into an All-Pro year with the Dallas Cowboys) that rule change did not break my heart. And now, is a touchdown gonna be worth six points? Seven? Eight? Nine? It depends on the conversions, and I think that’s gonna be exciting.”

Stallions receiver Deon Cain returned two kickoffs for touchdowns and racked up 606 return yards last season so, as you might expect, he’s fine with retaining the USFL kickoff rules.

“It was something that obviously was in question with the XFL kickoffs, but I was definitely glad that they made the decision to have the normal USFL kickoff rules,” Cain said. “It brings another element of excitement to the game.” 

I also like the scrimmage option to the onside kick.

While traditional onside kicks are allowed at any time during the game, teams will have an alternate way to retain possession in the fourth quarter. If a squad is tied or behind during the final frame, it can try to retain possession after a score with a 4th-and-12 play from its own 28-yard line.

“I think the kickoff rules are safer and still create excitement,” Holtz said. “They bring the return game back into it, which is something that’s been lost right now in the game of football because kickers have become so strong with their legs. We’re really trying to introduce some new policies into the game.”

One kicking rule I wish league officials would rethink, however, involves punts. Any punt that goes out of bounds inside the receiving team’s 25-yard line will be considered a touchback and placed at the 25.

That punishes a good punter who has the ability to pin a team deep with a coffin-corner kick. I love offense, but I also like to see punters who can flip the field.

The UFL will feature the now-familiar “shootout” overtime procedure as well as two forward passes on one play, so there is plenty for us alternative football geeks to love. And yet, the UFL will still showcase a largely familiar brand of pro football.

Going forward, it’ll be interesting to see just how experimental the UFL chooses to be.

On the one hand, you want to give spring football its own identity. On the other, you need to make sure players are prepared if and when they get the call-up to the NFL.

Regardless, it should be a whole lot of fun when they tee it up later this month.

For a complete list of rules, go to www.theufl.com.

An invitation from Skip Holtz

OK, let me throw some numbers at you – 62,500, 54,872, 54,413 and 52,942.

Know what they are?

Scott Adamson writes stuff. Follow him on Threads @sladamson1960 and Adamsonmedia on Facebook.

The first is the throng that showed up at Legion Field to watch the Birmingham Stallions take on the New Jersey Generals during the 1984 season of the original United States Football League.

The second is fans in the stands at the Birmingham Americans’ home date against the Chicago Fire during the 1974 World Football League campaign. (It’s notable that the game was played in torrential rain).

The third? That was the number of extremely loud and rowdy folks who saw the Ams square off with the Memphis Southmen in ’74.

And the fourth reflects the turnstile clicks for the Birmingham Fire’s 1991 World League of American football debut against the Montreal Machine.

With 72,594 capacity Legion Field no longer the primary gridiron venue in the Magic City, those attendance marks will likely remain the top four in the history of Birmingham-branded professional football teams.

What Stallions coach Skip Holtz would like to see, however, is Protective Stadium enter the chat when it comes to massive Birmingham crowds.

The home stadium of the city’s United Football League team holds 47,100, but during the Stallions’ previous two years in the modern USFL, more than half the building has been empty any time they played.

Considering they won championships during both seasons in their old league – and ticket prices were more than reasonable – that kind of in-house support is underwhelming.

“One of the reasons I love the UFL and love spring football, is I still believe it’s one of the purest brands of football going on right now,” Holtz said. “When you look at these players, they aren’t here just for the money. They’re in it because they love the game. They want to continue their dreams and aspirations. They’re not in it for an NIL. They just want to get on the field and they want to continue their dream of playing this great game.”

I asked Holtz on Wednesday what he’d say to fans who’ve enjoyed spring ball from their living rooms, but haven’t made it to the stadium yet.

“With the merger (between the USFL and XFL), there are eight teams, eight cities in the United States of America, that have the opportunity to support a spring football team,” Holtz said. “There are probably 80 more that would love to have one. And I think we’ve got an opportunity to show how big football is in the state of Alabama, and how much professional football has been wanted in the state of Alabama.

“I think we have an opportunity to show the UFL the standards being set on what it’s going to take to be one of the better markets – and we’ve had one of the better teams.”

The only official attendance USFL officials ever announced came on opening night in 2022 when they reported that 17,500 were on hand at Protective Stadium for the fledgling league’s debut.

The XFL – during the 2020 reboot that was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic – averaged roughly 18,000 fans per game, with the St. Louis Battlehawks leading the way with 28,541.

Last season, XFL average attendance dipped to 14,431, but St. Louis again was the standout with 35,104 occupying seats for games at the 67,000-seat The Dome at America’s Center.

Based on early sales, more than 50,000 fans are expected for the Battlehawks’ Week Two home opener against the Arlington Renegades.

“I think Fox was built on building a television (product),” said Holtz, referring to the network’s ownership of the USFL. “We had a lot of teams that weren’t even in their home markets. But I think the big push this year and the big push last year in the XFL (owned by RedBird Capital, Dwayne Johnson and Dany Garcia) was attendance and ticket sales.

“If you love the game of football, I think the product is going to be outstanding. It’s going to be professional football. When I’m going through our roster and knowing we’ve got to make 25 cuts right now, I don’t know where to begin. I mean, I think it’s going to be an awesome product. It’s going to be entertaining.”

I’m fortunate to have been at all those “big ticket” games in Birmingham in 1974, 1984 and 1991. No matter how good the product is on the field – and the latest incarnations of the USFL and XFL gave us a fine product – it seems so much better when people far outnumber empty seats. Sports is about competition, but from a fan standpoint, it’s also about the experience.

Thus, those games were unforgettable.

Birmingham plays its home opener against the Memphis Showboats on April 13, and I’d love to be part of another unforgettable pro football event in my hometown.

That can and will happen if football fans decide to show up and show off.

“I encourage everybody … let’s step up and let’s show this league that Birmingham has got what it takes to be one of these eight teams in the UFL that can be elite when it comes to fan attendance,” Holtz said.