A new era of professional football is coming this spring, and several Auburn football players will be involved in the action. The United States Football League will officially debut on April 16, 2022, in Birmingham, Alabama.
The league consists of eight teams split into two divisions, North and South, and each team will play a 10-game schedule followed by the playoffs. Teams in the same division will play each other twice and play the opposite division teams once. At the end of the season, the top two teams from the North and South will play each other in the semifinals and then the winners will meet for the championship game.
While the eight teams in the league are scattered around the country, every game in the inaugural season will be played in Birmingham at Protective Stadium and Legion Field. Teams include the Michigan Panthers, Birmingham Stallions, New Jersey Generals, Houston Gamblers, Philadelphia Stars, New Orleans Breakers, Pittsburgh Maulers, and Tampa Bay Bandits.
We are the USFL 🏈
— USFL (@USFL) November 22, 2021
🐾 @USFLPanthers
🎖 @USFLGenerals
⭐️ @USFLStars
⚒️ @USFLMaulers
🐎 @USFLStallions
🎰 @USFLGamblers
🌊 @USFLBreakers
🤠 @USFLBandits pic.twitter.com/IWppp5b2Sz
The very first USFL draft took place across two days on February 22 and 23, and unlike the NFL Draft, players were selected in position groupings one at a time. The draft consisted of 35 rounds, beginning with quarterbacks and ending with long snappers.
Several former Auburn football players were taken in the two-day draft and will be continuing their football careers this spring. The first former Tiger to be selected was offensive tackle Calvin Ashley, chosen by the New Jersey Generals:
"Calvin Ashley was a five-star prospect coming out of high school in 2017. He was signed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent in 2021."
Ashley, who saw most of his action on the Plains in 2018, was the only former Tiger to be selected on Day 1 of the USFL Draft, but day two saw more action for former Auburn football players.