BY RALPH VENTRE
The second rendition of the United States Football League is now two weeks old.
The USFL continued its spring season with four Week 2 contests and NCAA Football Championship Subdivision alumni were in the middle of the action.
Here are five former FCS players who caught my eye during the second round of USFL games.
DE Aaron Adeoye, Birmingham Stallions (Southeast Missouri State)
The former SEMO scholarship basketball player, who saw action in four football games during the Red Hawks’ 2015 season, has landed in the USFL where he’s setting the edge for the Stallions. The 6-foot-6 Adedoye was credited with two tackles during Birmingham’s Week 2 win over Houston, playing on a defensive front that forced Gamblers’ quarterback Clayton Thorson into three interceptions. The Stallions’ defensive end, who has seven total tackles through two games, spent time on the Green Bay Packers’ Practice Squad in 2021. He is no stranger to spring leagues, either, having played for the AAF’s Birmingham Iron in 2019.
RB C.J. Marable, Birmingham Stallions (Presbyterian/Coastal Carolina)
He qualifies as an FCS alumnus (by Talking Pigskin’s definition) since he earned All-Big South Conference First Team honors as a freshman in 2017, prior to leaving Presbyterian for Coastal Carolina. Marable found paydirt for the second week in a row, finishing as the Stallions’ leading rusher in a 33-28 triumph over the Houston Gamblers. The 5-foot-9 ball carrier also made receptions on two targets, totaling 20 yards in the pass game.
LB Donald Payne, Houston Gamblers (Stetson)
The versatile linebacker, who made five starts for the Jacksonville Jaguars during the 2019 NFL season, has spent the first two weeks of his USFL tenure as the league’s leading tackler. Payne, who starred at Pioneer Football League member Stetson before going undrafted in 2017, made a game-high 15 stops in the Gamblers’ 33-28 setback to Birmingham on April 23. That performance came one week after Payne recorded 18 tackles in the Gamblers’ season-opening win.
QB Kyle Sloter, New Orleans Breakers (Northern Colorado)
The former Northern Colorado record-setter moved to 2-0 in USFL starts, engineering a 34-3 win over the Tampa Bay Bandits. Following a shaky Week 1 performance, Sloter was arguably the most-efficient and most-efficient quarterback on the circuit this week. He accounted for three touchdowns (2 pass, 1 rush) while completing 64.1 percent of passes for 266 yards. Sloter (416) ranks second overall behind Philadelphia’s Bryan Scott (474) amongst USFL passing yards leaders.
RB Darius Victor, New Jersey Generals (Towson)
In a game where both sides seemed to be offensively-challenged, Victor provided the Generals’ lone touchdown in what ended as a 10-6 victory. His two-yard scoring plunge erased a 6-3 deficit, capping an 11-play second-quarter possession. The former All-CAA running back, who rushed for 3,309 yards and 41 touchdowns in 41 games at Towson, carried 11 times for 40 yards against the Michigan Panthers. He gained 66 yards rushing in the season opener on April 16.
TALKING PIGSKIN 