UFLSU: Eight former Tigers make UFL opening day rosters

NFLSU? Try UFLSU.

Alright, bad pun, but the LSU Tigers have eight former players across five different teams on UFL rosters as they begin their inaugural season.

Week one is now in the books. Some of the former Tigers made a big impact while some hardly touched the field, but today, we're going to go through each player, their history at LSU and what they did in week one of the UFL season.

The first player we're going to talk about is Danny Etling, who is currently the backup quarterback on the Michigan Panthers.

Etling played three seasons at LSU, starting two of those seasons in 2016 and 2017. During that time, Etling accumulated 4,586 passing yards and 27 touchdowns to just seven interceptions while completing around 60% of his passes. He was later drafted in the seventh round by the New England Patriots, but his stint in the pros didn't last very long.

Etling is currently backing up E.J. Perry, who completed 50% of his passes for 176 yards in the Panthers season opening win over the Battlehawks.

Next up is Glenn Logan, who is currently a defensive tackle for the Houston Roughnecks.

Like Etling, Logan is probably a very familiar name to most of you. He played five seasons at LSU, appearing in 51 games and starting 37 of them. Over those five seasons, Logan recorded 110 tackles, 10 tackles for loss and seven sacks. He started 11 games in the Tigers national championship run in 2019 where he finished the year with 20 tackles and 1.5 sacks.

Logan went undrafted in the 2022 NFL Draft, but is continuing his football career in the UFL. He earned some good playing time in the Roughnecks loss to the Showboats where he recorded one tackle.

Colby Richardson is the second former Tiger to land on the Houston Roughnecks roster for the UFL's inaugural season.

Richardson was a five-year player at McNeese State before he transferred to LSU in 2022 when Brian Kelly took over as head coach. In his one season in the purple and gold, Richardson appeared in 12 games, starting five where he'd finish the season with 12 tackles while allowing nine receptions.

Richardson was not drafted, but signed a UDFA contract with the Panthers before signing with the Lions later that year. His NFL career didn't turn out great, but he's now playing alongside his former teammate, Glenn Logan with the Roughnecks.

In his first game, Richardson recorded four tackles, which was tied for fifth on the team in the Roughnecks win.

Cyril Grayson is a bit of an interesting case. He never played football for the Tigers, but he was a track star, winning four NCAA Championships, an SEC Championship and was a seven-time All-American.

Since graduating, Grayson has tried to make a name for himself playing football, and it's worked. He bounced around the NFL for a few years before finding a semi-permanent home with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. There, he'd record his first professional catch after spending over two years on practice squads.

He then found himself playing in the USFL before they merged with the XFL to form the UFL. He's now a receiver for the Roughnecks, but did not record a catch in their season opener.

Jontre Kirklin is one of two former Tigers to find themselves on the San Antonio Brahmas, joining punter Brad Wing, who we'll talk about in a second.

Kirklin played five seasons at LSU, always appearing in 9+ games, but never starting more than two games in a season. He totaled 20 catches for 313 yards in his time at LSU, but he's probably more widely known for stepping in as the Tigers emergency QB in their Texas Bowl loss to Kansas State, where he'd go 7-for-11 with 138 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions.

Kirklin bounced around the NFL, including a stint with the Saints this past season, before landing with the Brahmas in 2024. In their season opening win over the DC Defenders, Kirklin led the team (and was third in the league) in receiving yards (61) while also scoring in a touchdown on a jet sweep.

It seems that the former Tigers on the San Antonio Brahmas had the most success on opening weekend, because former LSU punter, Brad Wing, completely stole the show.

In a 14-9 ball game with less than 15 seconds in the first half, the Brahmas lined up for a 58-yard field goal attempt. However, instead of kicking it, they motioned some guys around and put Brad Wing in the shotgun.

The play completely caught the defenders off guard as Wing threw a 40-yard touchdown to the Brahmas 300-pound center to go up 20-9 before half time.

The play completely broke social media, and just watch this clip, because this is football at it's purest form:

Darren Evans was a two-year player for the Tigers in 2020 and 2021, appearing in 22 games and starting six of them.

Over those two years, Evans totaled 33 tackles and four passes defended while allowing 31 catches for 433 yards. He was not selected in the NFL Draft, but made his way to the XFL in 2023. When the XFL and USFL merged, Evans joined the Arlington Renegades as the sole LSU player on the roster.

Evans made quite the impression in his UFL debut, recording four tackles and one interception in the Renegades loss to the Stallions.

Finally, the last former Tiger to end up on a UFL roster in Vadal Alexander, a four-year starter on LSU's offensive line from 2012-2015.

Alexander was a stud on the offensive line for LSU, earning Freshman All-SEC, Freshman All-American Second-Team, All-SEC, All-American Third-Team and All-American Second-Team honors during his four-year career.

Alexander was selected in the seventh round of the 2016 NFL Draft by the Oakland Raiders and would spend two-years with them before he was waived after a PED violation.

In 2022, he continued his playing career with the Pittsburgh Maulers after he was selected in the 22nd round of the USFL Draft. He played one season there, bouncing between the active and inactive roster before becoming a free agent that offseason.

He signed with the St. Louis Battlehawks in 2023 and resigned when they merged into the UFL. He's currently on the roster and played in the season opening loss to the Panthers.