UFL Memphis Showboats

Game Notes - Memphis Showboats at St. Louis

April 16, 2024 - United Football League (UFL)
Memphis Showboats News Release


The second interconference matchup for both teams will leave one of them with their first win over a team from the opposite conference. Memphis fell to XFL Conference foe San Antonio at home in Week2, while St. Louis lost its season-opener at USFL Conference member Michigan.

Memphis is 1-2, coming off a 33-14 loss at Birmingham. The Stallions scored 15 straight second-half points to pull away from the Showboats last weekend in Birmingham.

After dropping its opener, St. Louis has rebounded with a pair of wins over Arlington and San Antonio.

Memphis boasts the No. 2 run defense in the UFL, while the Battlehawks are the No. 2 rushing offense in the league. St. Louis QB A.J. McCarron is No. 3 in the league in passing (616 yds), while Memphis QB Case Cookus is No. 6 (537 yds).

Saturday's game is slated for an 11:30 a.m. CT kickoff and will be broadcast nationally on ABC.

The Memphis radio broadcast will be heard on News Talk 98.9, with Eli Savoie, Russell Copeland and Tyler Springs on the call.

LAST WEEK

The Birmingham Stallions outscored the Memphis Showboats 15-2 in the second half Saturday in Birmingham and pulled away for a 33-14 victory.

With Birmingham on top 15-12 and just 14 seconds remaining in the second quarter, the Stallions got a 36-yard pass from quarterback Adrian Martinez to wide receiver Deon Cain. Chris Blewitt capitalized for Birmingham, kicking a field goal before the intermission to put the Stallions on top 18-12.

From there, Birmingham added 15 consecutive points to take control of the contest. Memphis added a late safety to account for the final score.

Birmingham struck first on a Martinez touchdown pass to tight end Jace Sternberger. The Showboats answered after a Martinez fumble, when quarterback Case Cookus hooked up with wide receiver Vinny Papale for a 23-yard scoring strike to tie the game at 6-6.

A Martinez to Marlon Williams 53-yard touchdown pass made it 12-6 in favor of the Stallions. From there, the teams traded a pair of field goals each.

Martinez accounted for 378 yards of offense.

LET THE CHEF COOK

Starting quarterback Case Cookus' nickname is The Chef. So far this season, he's been the one heating up the Showboat's offense.

Cookus is 55-of-93 passing for 537 yards, 3 touchdowns and one interception. He is also Memphis' leading rusher. Cookus has rushed for 75 yards on 14 carries this season. His 612 yards of total offense currently ranks No. 6 in the UFL.

RUNNING BACK NOTEBOOK

- Darius Victor was the 2022 USFL Offensive Player of the Year, an All-USFL selection and led the league in rushing touchdowns. He rushed for 477 yards and nine touchdowns in 2022 for the New Jersey Generals. While his touchdown total went down in 2023, he rushed for 551 yards last season and his yards per carry was up nearly one full yard. In 2022, he averaged 4.54 yards per carry and that average increased to 5.51 last season.

- Titus Swen and Darius Victor have an interesting shared background. Both were refugees of Civil War-torn Liberia in their youth. Both found their way to the U.S., picked up football, became running backs and now share the same locker room.

- Trey Williams and Victor provided a solid 1-2 punch out of the backfield for the Generals last season and will look to bring that same mentality to the Showboats this season. Williams averaged 5.86 yards per carry with two touchdowns last season in New Jersey. Williams and Victor were teammates for the past two seasons with the Generals.

- Swen had one reception in the season-opener, but it was a big one. Facing a 3rd- and-4 at the Houston 47 with less than four minutes remaining, Swen took a swing pass to the left and looked for the sticks. He lowered his shoulder and powered past the first-down marker in a big collision with the Roughnecks' Colby Richardson. The initial first down of the possession allowed Memphis to control the ball and run the clock under one minute left in the game.

QUARTERBACK NOTEBOOK

- Case Cookus was a two-year starter for the Philadelphia Stars. Josh Love started nine games for the Michigan Panthers last season. Troy Williams started eight games for the Pittsburgh Maulers last season. No other UFL team can boast that amount of USFL/XFL starting experience among its top three quarterbacks.

- Cookus ranked No. 2 in the USFL in passing yards last season, throwing for 2,433 yards, while playing for the Philadelphia Stars. He also passed for 14 touchdowns, which ranked No. 3 in the league.

- Williams was one of the top dual-threat quarterbacks in the USFL last season. He passed for 1,414 yards and six touchdowns, while rushing for 341 yards and three scores for the Pittsburgh Maulers. Williams saw his first extended game action last week, going 11-of-19 for 100 yards with one interception.

- Love passed for 1,556 yards and 13 touchdowns with 13 interceptions for the Michigan Panthers last season.

SWEN STEPS UP

With Darius Victor seeing limited action due to an ankle injury last week, Titus Swen stepped into a larger role in the offense.

Swen rushed 5 times for 10 yards last week at Birmingham, but he played a big role in the passing game. The former Wyoming Cowboy caught four passes for 37 yards against the Stallions.

GET HIM THE BALL

Daewood Davis has been the top receiving target through three games for the Showboats.

He currently ranks No. 6 in the UFL in receptions with 15 and is No. 13 in the league in receiving yards with 114. Davis caught his first touchdown pass of the season in Week 2 vs. San Antonio.

WIDE RECEIVER NOTEBOOK

- Vinny Papale is one of just four UFL receivers with multiple touchdowns this season. Papale hit paydirt in the season-opener at Houston and last week at Birmingham. He has a TD catch in each of the Showboats' two road games this season.

- Jonathan Adams ranked No. 6 in the USFL in receiving yards last season, playing under John DeFilippo with the New Orleans Breakers. Adams hauled in 41 receptions for 511 yards and 2 touchdowns. He ranks No. 6 in the UFL in receiving yards so far this season, with 13 receptions for 174 yards.

- Papale was the Showboats' leading receiver last season, catching 33 balls for 345 yards and three scores. He was also an All-USFL selection as a Special Teams Player.

And yes, if you recognize his name, his father is Vince Papale, the subject of the movie Invincible.

TIGHT END NOTEBOOK

- Sage Surratt was the top-ranked tight end in the USFL in both receptions and receiving yards last season. He hauled in 50 receptions for 552 yards. His reception total was No. 2 in the league among all receivers, while his receiving yards ranked No. 3 among all receivers. He did all that under John DeFilippo with the Breakers.

- Jay Jay Wilson returns to the Showboats after catching 16 balls for 170 yards and a score last season.

- Wes Saxton comes to the Showboats after playing for the New Jersey Generals in both 2022 and 2023. Saxton missed last week's game at Birmingham with an injury.

- Saxton iced the victory for the Showboats vs. Houston in Week 1, making a play on special teams. He recovered a muffed punt with less than a minute left, allowing Memphis to run out the clock and secure the win.

OFFENSIVE LINE NOTEBOOK

- Jarron Jones returns to the Showboats as a two-time All-USFL selection for the franchise. He earned that honor with the Tampa Bay Bandits in 2022, before the franchise became the Memphis Showboats.

- Jared Thomas was a 2022 All-USFL selection with New Orleans and played for the XFL Seattle Sea Dragons last season..

- Terry Poole got the start at left tackle in Week 1 at Houston. Larry Tunstall took over the left tackle spot the last two weeks. Darrin Paulo has started all three at left guard. Thomas has held down the center spot, Jarron Jones (tackle) manned the right tackle position.

- Jordan McCray got his first start of the season last week at Birmingham, lining up at right guard.

SURE-HANDED SURRATT

Tight end Sage Surratt is No. 2 in the UFL among tight ends with 110 yards receiving on 10 receptions, trailing only San Antonio's Cody Latimer (156 yds). Surratt caught four balls for 40 yards at Birmingham last week.

DEFENSIVE LINE NOTEBOOK

- John Atkins Sr. returns to anchor the defensive line for the Showboats. He was a 2023 All-USFL selection, recording 29 tackles and 2.5 sacks. Atkins has been with the franchise since 2022, when it was the Tampa Bay Bandits. Atkins has seven stops in three games this season to lead the Showboats' defensive line.

- Dilon Faamatau and Bronson each have a total of four tackles so far this season.

- Daylon Mack has tallied 3 stops so far this season.

- Bronson, Atkins, Faamatau, Mack and Connor Christian all saw action last week.

BIG BAD BRONSON

Josiah Bronson made an impact in last week's game at Birmingham. The 6-3, 304-pounder out of Washington picked up a pair of sacks vs. the Stallions, becoming the third different Showboat to notch two sacks in a game this season.

ONE IN A MAXIMILLIAN

Maximillian Roberts has not been on the field to start a game for the Showboats. But when he has been on the field, his presence is felt.

Roberts is tied for No. 2 in the UFL with three sacks. He is one of just three UFL players with 3+ sacks through two games. Roberts tallied two sacks, a forced fumble and a tackle for-loss against San Antonio in Week 2.

SECONDARY NOTEBOOK

- T.J. Green returns to the Memphis secondary. He tallied 21 tackles last season and his lone interception of the season secured a win over Houston on May 28, 2023. He recorded a team-best 6 solo stops (7 total) with 2 tackles for-loss in Week 2 vs. SA.

- Christian McFarland and Kyree Woods teamed up to produce a defensive score in Week 1 with Woods forcing a fumble and McFarland returning it for the touchdown.

- McFarland comes to the Showboats after two seasons with the Birmingham Stallions, where he racked up 98 total tackles in two seasons.

- Quenton Meeks returns to the 'Boats after posting 21 stops and 1 INT last year. He played for both New Orleans and Tampa Bay in the USFL's 2022 season.

- Jarey Elder recorded seven tackles last week at Birmingham.

SPECIAL TEAMS NOTEBOOK

- Matt Coghlin made 18-of-19 field goal attempts last season for New Orleans. He was 6-of-6 from 40-49 yards and did not miss a field goal of less than 50 yards. After going 2-for-2 last week, including a career-best 57-yarder, he is now 8-of-9 and still has not missed from less than 50.

- Matthew White averaged 44.9 yards per punt last season for the Breakers, ranking No. 4 in the USFL. He currently ranks No. 2 in the UFL with an average of 46.3 yards per punt. His 66-yarder last week at Birmingham is the longest of the UFL season.

- Head coach John DeFilippo is very familiar with his specialists. The Showboats' new head coach brought his kicker, punter and long snapper over with him from the New Orleans Breakers. Coghlin handles the placekicking duties, while White punts and holds for placekicks. Turner Bernard is the long snapper.

O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN(S)!

The Showboats have announced their captains for the 2024 season, as determined by a team vote. The 2024 Memphis Showboats captains are:

- DL John Atkins Sr.

- QB Case Cookus

- DB Jarey Elder

- RB Darius Victor

- P Matt White

LINEBACKER NOTEBOOK

- Jordan Ferguson led the Memphis defense last week at Birmingham. He tallied 10 tackles and a sack, becoming the first Showboat to reach double-digit stops in a game so far this season.

- Malik Lawal racked up seven tackles and a forced fumble last week at Birmingham. He has 18 tackles for the season to lead the team and rank No. 14 in the United Football League.

- T.J. Neal topped the stat sheet for the Showboats defense in Week 1 with four solo stops vs. the Roughnecks. Neal has been with the franchise for three seasons now. He was on the team in 2022 as part of the Tampa Bay Bandits, as well.

- Outside linebacker Greg Reaves had two sacks, including a strip sack for a turnover against Houston in Week 1. Those two sacks have him tied for No. 3 in the UFL.

DELRICK DID IT

Delrick Abrams did a little bit of everything for the Showboats' defense in Week 2. He tied for the team lead in tackles with 7, recorded Memphis' first interception of the season and also broke up a pass. He is No. 2 on the team with 15 total tackles.

POSSESSION IS 9/10THS OF THE LAW

Memphis has dominated time of possession through three weeks in the UFL. The Showboats' average time of possession is 35:28, which easily ranks No. 1 in the United Football League.

The Showboats held the ball for 39:32 against the Roughnecks in Week 1, 36:13 in Week 2 against San Antonio and 30:14 last week in Birmingham.

WHAT'S THE CONVERSION RATE?

The Showboats have played complementary football when it comes to third-down conversions through few weeks.

Memphis ranks No. 3 in the league in third-down conversions on offense, converting at 46.3 percent (19-of-41). The Showboats defense ranks No. 4 in stopping third-down converstions, allowing a success rate of 44.8 percent (13-of-29).

RUN-STUFFING 'BOATS

It's been tough sledding the first two games for opposing defenses trying to run against Memphis. The Showboats are currently No. 2 in the league in rushing defense, allowing an average of just 59.3 yards per game on the ground.

Houston rushed for 43 yards in Week 1, while San Antonio mustered just 36 yards on the ground against Memphis.

ROSTER MOVES

The Showboats announced a pair of roster moves Monday. Memphis waived tackle Terry Poole and running back Trey Williams.

In a corresponding move, Memphis added running back Cyrus Habibi-Likio and tackle Marcus Tatum. Habibi-Likio played college football at Boise State and Oregon, where he saw action in 43 games with 23 rushing touchdowns. Tatum played two seasons at UCF and was an Honorable Mention All-AAC performer. He transferred to UCF from Tennessee, where he he started 11 games.

UNDER ARMOUR THREADS

Under Armour is the exclusive provider of all on-field uniforms, including jerseys, base layer, sideline and training apparel, for all XFL teams. The unique home and away sets are designed with an authentic execution of the individual team identities. The design process was a collaboration between XFL ownership, marketing, and Under Armour teams.

Each jersey features a "Blood, Sweat, Respect" mantra - a personal message from ownership to players, which is sublimated on the interior collars of all team uniforms.

Additional design details include embroidered team wordmarks and branding at the base of the neckline, UA's ArmourGrid nameplates with twill lettering, and all uniforms are branded with XFL, Under Armour, and Project Rock Brahma Bull patches.

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