Adrian Martinez, Scooby Wright among ex-college football stars to watch in 2024 UFL Championship Game

The 2024 UFL season concludes on Sunday with the league championship game, held at The Dome at America’s Center in St. 2022-23) against Wade Phillips’ San Antonio Brahmas.

The creation of the UFL, which exists as a merger between the USFL and the XFL, opened the door for many college players who were unable to break into the market. NFL to continue their careers in professional football. Taking place in the spring, it also provides the opportunity to play against heightened competition in front of NFL scouts and evaluators before the training camp and preseason period begin in the fall.

Given the championship setting for Sunday’s game, many notable college stars will take the field for Birmingham and St. Each team is led by several former All-Americans and award winners. Some even had long careers in the NFL before plying their trade in spring football. Others were high draft picks that didn’t pan out for whatever reason.

Here’s a look at some ex- college football highlights playing in the 2024 UFL Championship Game.

Birmingham Stallions

QB Adrian Martinez (Nebraska, Kansas State): The 2024 UFL MVP and league leader with 528 yards on the ground, Martinez’s versatility was on full display during a long college career that spanned two different teams. He signed with Nebraska as a four-star prospect in 2018 and was immediately named the team’s starter. In four years with the Huskers, he accounted for 10,792 total yards and 110 touchdowns, 36 of which were rushing. With an extra season of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Martinez transferred to Kansas State in 2022 and posted a 6-3 record as a starter, throwing for 1,261 yards and six touchdowns. He also rushed for 627 yards — two yards shy of his career high — and 10 touchdowns.

LB Scooby Wright (Arizona): The most decorated player on this list, Wright had one of the most impressive seasons we’ve seen as a quarterback in the modern era of college football. As a starter at Arizona in 2014, he recorded 163 total tackles, 29 for losses, 14 sacks, six forced fumbles and one fumble recovery. He was the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year and a unanimous All-American, and collected plenty of gear in the form of the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, Lombardi Award and Chuck Bednarik Award. He also finished ninth in Heisman Trophy voting. Wright missed most of the 2015 season due to injury, although he returned to record two sacks in Arizona’s New Mexico Bowl victory. He decided to forgo his final year of eligibility and spent two seasons in the NFL before playing in spring football leagues.

QB Matt Corral (Ole Miss): A former top-100 prospect, Corral signed with Ole Miss in 2018 and emerged as a consistent starter in 2020 under coach Lane Kiffin, who turned Corral into one of the best passers in the SEC. He posted back-to-back 3,000-yard passing efforts from 2020-21. He was selected to the All-SEC second team in 2021 after leading the Rebels to their first 10-win regular season in program history. Corral was drafted in the third round in 2022 NFL Draft and spent two seasons in the NFL before joining the UFL.

WR Amari Rodgers, (Clemson): Rodgers was a key figure on Clemson’s 2018 national championship team and established early chemistry with then-freshman quarterback Trevor Lawrence, catching 55 passes for 575 yards and four touchdowns. A preseason ACL tear caused his production to regress in 2019, but he bounced back as a senior in 2020 and had the best year of his career with 1,020 receiving yards and seven touchdowns. He was selected in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft and spent three seasons with three different teams.

DL Taco Charlton (Michigan): A native of Columbus, Ohio, Charlton signed with Michigan in 2013 and took the field on special teams as a freshman. He was a key reserve from 2014 to 2015, recording nine sacks in that span before earning a starting role as a senior in 2016. Charlton earned first-team All-Big Ten honors with 13.5 tackles for loss and 10 sacks, 2. 5 of which came against Ohio State. He was selected with the 28th overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. The ex-Wolverine jumped several NFL teams from 2017-23 before signing with the Stallions in March.

TE Jace Sternberger (Kansas, Oklahoma A&M, Texas A&M): A Texas A&M fan favorite during his relatively brief stint with the Aggies, Sternberger’s career began at Kansas 2015. After redshirting his freshman year with the Jayhawks and playing limited snaps in 2016, he transferred to Oklahoma A&M and emerged as one of the best juniors. college recruits in the country. He ultimately signed with Texas A&M in 2018. In his only season in the SEC, Sternberger led the Aggies with 48 receptions for 832 yards and 10 touchdowns while earning consensus All-American and first-team All-SEC honors.

Santo Antônio Brahmas

QB Kevin Hogan (Stanford): Hogan was named the Cardinal’s starting quarterback near the end of the 2012 season and held the position until 2015, finishing his career as one of the most prolific signal-callers in program history. His 1,249 yards and 15 touchdowns rushing as a quarterback and his 10,634 total yards are all Stanford career records. A fifth-round pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, Hogan carved out a strong eight-year career as a reserve spot before leaving the league.

CB Teez Tabor (Florida): A two-time All-SEC first-team selection, Tabor had eight interceptions in two seasons at Florida from 2015-16, three of which he returned for a touchdown. He also had two sacks and 20 pass deflections in that span, making him one of the best cornerbacks in the country. He decided to forgo his senior season and enter the 2017 NFL Draft, where he was selected in the second round by the Detroit Lions.

RB Pooka Williams Jr. The fourth-highest-rated recruit to sign with Kansas according to the 247Sports Composite, Williams was the No. 12 Freshman of the Year in 2018 after rushing for 1,125 yards and seven touchdowns. He earned a second consecutive first-team All-Big 12 nod in 2019 after a 1,042-yard season. It also made him just the second Kansas running back to rush for at least 1,000 yards in consecutive seasons. He broke Hall of Famer Gale Sayers’ record for most rushing yards in a player’s first two seasons. Williams played just four games in 2020 before opting out of the rest of the season and declaring for the NFL Draft.