Football is one of the sports that Americans love to watch. A newly established football minor league is making waves among American football fans. The United States Football League (USFL) launched last year on April 16, 2022.
The National Spring Football League Enterprises Co., LLC is USFL’s owner. The USFL currently has eight teams in four cities divided into the North and South divisions. Seven of the teams are located east of the Mississippi River. In addition, all the teams bear brands of teams from the previous incarnation of the USFL from 1983 to 1985.
Here’s a quick preview if you want to learn more about the eight teams playing in the 2023 USFL Season.
North Division
The North Division has four football teams: Michigan Panthers, New Jersey Generals, Philadelphia Stars, and Pittsburgh Maulers. All of them were part of the eight inaugural teams of the USFL 2022 season. Football fans and bettors are excited to witness these four teams’ thrilling games.
You can check the FanDuel Sportsbook, which among the North Division teams has better odds of winning the championship this season. You can now pick which team you’ll want to support and gamble on using the sportsbook and other information you’ve gathered about the teams, players, and coaches.
Michigan Panthers
The Michigan Panthers finished a disappointing 2-8 record. This 2023 season, the Panthers have already improved their record and are still in playoff contention with a 3-6 record. Adding Michigan State’s offensive tackle as the number one pick in the draft helped the Panthers improve their offensive efficiency.
Philadelphia Stars
Had the stars aligned last season, the Philadelphia Stars would have been the first-ever USFL Champions. It didn’t, so the Stars had to settle for the runner-up. The broken leg injury to their quarterback Case Cookus during the fourth quarter of the championship game derailed their title hopes.
The Stars had the league-best scoring offense; they averaged 26.2 points per game. This was primarily due to Cookus’ performance, who led the league in passer rating among quarterbacks. After entering the 2023 season as a team favorite and a healthy Cookus, the Stars currently have the division-best record of 4-5.
New Jersey Generals
After finishing the league-best 9-1 record last year, the New Jersey Generals were upset by the Philadelphia Stars during the division finals. During the off-season, they lost KaVontae Turpin to the NFL.
Luckily, they still retained for the 2023 season the team best running back in the person of USFL Offensive Player of the Year, Darius Victor. Still, Turpin’s departure greatly impacted the Generals. They will unlikely retain their previous record as they currently have a 3-6 record.
Pittsburgh Maulers
Having the league-worst record of 1-9 last season, the Pittsburgh Maulers made drastic changes in their team. They hired Ray Horton as the newest head coach of the team. Former NFL linebacker Reuben Foster was also added to the Maulers. With these additions, they’re still in contention to be part of the playoff berth.
South Division
The four football teams in the South Division are the Birmingham Stallions, Houston Gamblers, Memphis Showboats, and New Orleans Breakers. The Memphis Showboats is the only team in the league not part of the eight inaugural teams last 2022 season. It replaced the Tampa Bay Bandits, who are currently on hiatus.
Football bettors and fans are thrilled to have a new team in the South Division to compete with the original teams in the league. It adds a mysterious effect when you check the team’s odds rating in determining which is the strongest. The other data you’ve collected will justify why you’ll support this team by watching their games and betting on them.
Birmingham Stallions
The Birmingham Stallions won the first-ever USFL season last 2022. This year, 80% of the championship roster coached by head coach Skip Holtz remained with the team. It still has the depth and experience at the quarterback since J’Mar Smith and Alex McGough are returning.
Smith is the team’s undisputed leader and a close confidant of head coach Holfz. The two have been together since Smith’s first year at Louisiana Tech. With their solid tandem, the Stallions are the only one who has secured a playoff berth with the league-best 7-2 record this 2023 season.
New Orleans Breakers
After reaching the USFL playoffs last season before falling to the eventual champions, Birmingham Stallions, the New Orleans Breakers revamped their team. They hired a new head coach, John DeFilppo, and acquired a new starting quarterback. The changes have not paid off since they just maintained a 6-3 record.
Houston Gamblers
With a new head coach in the person of Curtis Johnson and their current athletic quarterback Kenji Bahar, the Houston Gamblers want to create a spark in their offense this 2023. The Gamblers also retained its two top players, running back Mark Thompson and linebacker Beniquez Brown.
In the current ranking, they have already improved on their previous 3-7 record, as they’re currently fighting with the New Orleans Breakers and Memphis Showboats for the last spot in the South Division.
Memphis Showboats
As the newest team in the league, the Memphis Showboats is currently led by Head Coach Todd Haley. Haley was the previous coach of the on-hiatus Tampa Bay Bandits last season. The Showboats also added quarterback Brady White this 2023 season. Their current 5-4 record in the South Division remains in contention for the last playoff berth.
Final Thoughts
The United States Football League is still in its infancy. The 2023% season is only their second season. There’s still a lot of room for improvement in the league’s setup and game structure, but the USFL looks promising and has a lot of potential. With more teams, a broader broadcast scope, and competent management, it can surely become a favorite football occasion for people who watch and bet on football games.
