UFL Memphis Showboats

Game Notes: Memphis Showboats at Birmingham Stallions

Published on April 9, 2024 under United Football League (UFL)
Memphis Showboats News Release


Series Notes:

- In the last two seasons of the USFL, the Stallions are 4-0 against the Showboats/Bandits. The Tampa Bay Bandits moved to Memphis after the 2022 season.

- DeFilippo is 1-1 against Holtz in USFL action. He coached the New Orleans Breakers to a split last year.

- This will be the second USFL Conference matchup of the season for both squads.

MEMPHIS-BIRMINGHAM PREVIEW

The Memphis Showboats and San Antonio Brahmas will both look to remain undefeated this week, as both won their United Football League opener last week.

Memphis is 1-1, but coming off a heart-breaking 20-19 loss to San Antonio. Birmingham remained undefeated at 2-0 after winning a pair of road games to start the season.

The Showboats' defense has held its opponents scoreless in five of the eight quarters played so far this season. ILB Malik Lawal leads the team in tackles with 10. QB Case Cookus is 40-of-71 for 398 yards, with two TDs and 1 interception. Cookus is also the team's leading rusher with 73 yards.

C.J. Marable leads Birmingham with 121 yards rushing, while QBs Matt Corral and Adrian Martinez are a combined 27-of-54 for 367 yards, 1 TD, 3 INTs.

Saturday's game is slated for a 6 p.m. CT kickoff and will be broadcast nationally on FOX.

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 Memphis Showboats lost in excruciating fashion Saturday at Simmons Liberty Bank Stadium. The San Antonio Brahmas scored all 20 of their points in the fourth quarter to tally a come- from-behind victory over Memphis, 20-19.

The Showboats (1-1) led 16-0 after three quarters. But settled for field goals, including three drives that ended inside the 5-yard line.

San Antonio sandwiched a pair of touchdowns around a Matt Coghlin field goal to pull within five points, 19-14. The Brahmas then took advantage of the UFL's alternate to an onside kick, allowing them to retain possession with 4th-and-12 at their own 28 and scored with three seconds remaining to put the Brahmas on top 20-19.

Memphis opened the scoring with a 2-yard TD pass from Case Cookus to Daewood Davis.

Memphis extended its lead to 13-0 at halftime on a pair of Matt Coghlin field goals, including one as time expired before halftime.

Coghlin put the Showboats on top 16-0 with 58 seconds remaining in the third quarter with a 22- yard field goal.

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 40-of-71 passing for 398 yards, 2 touchdowns and one interception. He is also Memphis' leading rusher. Cookus has rushed for 73 yards on 13 carries this season. His 471 yards of total offense currently ranks No. 1 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 game action last week, taking over for one play when Cookus briefly left with an injury.

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

TO THE VICTOR GOES THE SPOILS

While the Showboats' running backs have produced just 61 yards rushing this season, running back Darius Victor has contributed in the passing game.

Memphis' starting running back has 27 carries for 57 yards this season. But he is tied for No. 2 on the team with seven receptions. His seven catches have gone for 44 yards.

GET HIM THE BALL

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

He currently ranks No. 3 in the UFL in receptions with 13 and is No. 9 in the league in receiving yards with 101. Davis caught his first touchdown pass of the season last week on the opening drive for the Showboats.

WIDE RECEIVER NOTEBOOK

- Only three UFL teams have a receiver duo each with 100-plus receiving yards. The Showboats are on that list. Jonathan Adams has seven receptions for 125 yards (No. 4) and Daewood Davis has 13 receptions for 101 yards (No. 9).

- 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. Adams posted a game-best 49 yards receiving on four catches in last week's win over Houston.

- Vinny 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. Papale scored a highlight-reel TD in game one at Houston.

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 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 in Week 2. The other four spots remained the same from Week 1 to Week 2. Darrin Paulo got the nod at left guard. Thomas was the starting center, while Alec Lindstrom (guard) and Jarron Jones (tackle) manned the right side of the offensive line.

- The Showboats' offensive line has allowed three sacks in each of the two games so far this season.

SURE-HANDED SURRATT

Tight end Sage Surratt pulled in two receptions for 38 yards in Week 1 at Houston. His 33-yard reception in the second quarter vs the Roughnecks was the longest of the game for either team. He has six receptions for 70 yards through two games.

DEFENSIVE LINE NOTEBOOK

- Atkins 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 five stops in two games this season.

- Dilon Faamatau has two tackles in each of the first two games this season. In Week 1 against Houston, he also added a tackle for-loss and a fumble recovery.

- Tyshun Render had a hand on a punt in Week 1 at Houston and added a solo stop vs. San Antonio last week.

BIG JOHN HOLDING IT DOWN UP FRONT

John Atkins Sr. led the way on the defensive line for the Showboats last week. The big man in the middle tallied 2 solo tackles and 1 assisted tackle, helping the Memphis defense to hold San Antonio to just 36 rushing yards.

ONE IN A MAXIMILLIAN

Maximillian Roberts has not been on the field to start either game for the Showboats.

But when he has been on the field, his presence is felt.

Roberts is tied for the UFL lead with three sacks. He is one of just three UFL players with three sacks through two games. Roberts tallied two sacks, a forced fumble and a tackle for-loss against San Antonio last week.

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 last week 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 tallied a pass breakup and three tackles last week vs. San Antonio.

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 4-for-4 last week, he is now 6-of-7 and still has not missed from less than 50.

- White averaged 44.9 yards per punt last season for the Breakers, ranking No. 4 in the USFL. He booted four balls for an average of 42.5 yards last week, while seeing two of his kicks downed inside the 20-yard line.

- 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

- Malik Lawal tied for the team tackle lead for the Showboats last week with seven stops. He has 10 for the season, which makes him the only Memphis defender with double-digit tackles through two games.

- 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.

- Reaves ranked No. 7 in the USFL with 4.5 sacks last season for the Showboats and he nearly doubled that production in his first game this season. He's also in his third year with the franchise, starting with the Bandits.

DELRICK DID IT

Delrick Abrams did a little bit of everything for the Showboats' defense last week. He tied for the team lead in tackles with 7, recorded Memphis' first interception of the season and also broke up a pass.

POSSESSION IS 9/10THS OF THE LAW

Memphis has dominated time of possession through two weeks in the UFL. The Showboats' average time of possession is 37:52, which easily ranks No. 1 in the United Football League.

The Showboats held the ball for 39:32 against the Roughnecks in Week 1, while holding the ball for 36:13 last week against San Antonio.

WHAT'S THE CONVERSION RATE?

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

Memphis ranks No. 2 in the league in third-down conversions on offense, converting at 48.1 percent (13-of-27). The Showboats defense ranks No. 3 in stopping third-down converstions, allowing a success rate of just 31.6 percent (6-of-19).

JUMPING IN FRONT, EATING CLOCK

The Showboats have begun each of their two games this season with the ball first and both possessions resulted in points and a good deal of time off the clock.

In Week 1 at Houston, the Showboats went 16 plays and took 10:29 off the clock in a drive that ended with a field goal. Last week, Memphis put together a 13-play drive that ate 7:44 off the clock and finished the possession with a TD.

In two game-opening possessions, the Showboats have scored 10 points, run 29 plays and chewed up 18 minutes, 13 seconds off the first-quarter clock.

RUN-STUFFING 'BOATS

It's been tough sledding the first two games for opposing defenses trying to run against Memphis. The Showboats currently lead the league in rushing defense, allowing an average of just 39 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.

Check out the Memphis Showboats Statistics

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United Football League Stories from April 9, 2024


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