Darius Vito Victor (born 6 March 1994) is a Liberian professional American football running back for the Memphis Showboats of the United Football League (UFL). He played college football at Towson University. Victor was named 2022 Offensive Player of the Year of the United States Football League as a member of the New Jersey Generals.
 Victor with the New York Guardians in 2020 | |||||||||||||||
| No. 27 – Memphis Showboats | |||||||||||||||
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| Position: | Running back | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born: | March 6, 1994 Ivory Coast | ||||||||||||||
| Height: | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight: | 230 lb (104 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school: | Northwestern (Hyattsville, Maryland) | ||||||||||||||
| College: | Towson | ||||||||||||||
| Undrafted: | 2017 | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
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| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||||||||
| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||
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| Career spring football statistics as of 2024 | |||||||||||||||
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Early years
editVictor was born to Liberian parents as one of seven children in a refugee camp in the Ivory Coast after their parents fled the First Liberian Civil War.[1] He lived there until 1999, when his family came to the United States.
High school career
editVictor attended Northwestern High School in Hyattsville, Maryland. As a senior, Victor was the leading rusher in the state of Maryland with 2,107 yards and 31 touchdowns. His efforts would be rewarded with all-state honors.[2] During his time at Northwestern, Victor also played basketball and ran track. Despite his success in high school Victor was only ranked a 2-star recruit (73) by 247Sports.
College career
editVictor attended Towson University in Towson, Maryland. As a true freshman in 2013, Victor found success as the backup to record-breaking running back Terrance West. He made his debut at North Carolina Central and ran for 53 yards and two touchdowns on six carries. Victor would go on to appear in 14 games his first year, amassing 629 yards and seven touchdowns on 98 carries. Following the season, he was named the CAA Offensive Rookie of the Year.
With Terrance West departing for the NFL, Victor saw his workload increase in 2014. Despite the Tigers' rough 4-8 season, he was able to gain 1,305 yards and 12 touchdowns on 250 carries. Victor averaged 108.8 yards a game and scored a touchdown in 9 of the team's 12 games. He finished his college career with more than 3,300 yards and 41 touchdowns.
Throughout his career at Towson, Johnny Unitas Stadium played part of his brother's song about him each time he got a carry called "VITO".[3]
| Season | Rushing | Receiving | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Att | Yards | Avg | TD | Rec | Yards | Avg | TD | |
| 2013 | 98 | 629 | 6.4 | 7 | 5 | 71 | 14.2 | 1 |
| 2014 | 250 | 1,305 | 5.2 | 12 | 6 | 25 | 4.2 | 0 |
| 2015 | 240 | 1,210 | 4.9 | 17 | 7 | 42 | 6.0 | 0 |
| 2016 | 82 | 354 | 4.3 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 1.5 | 0 |
| Total | 637 | 3,309 | 5.2 | 41 | 20 | 141 | 7.1 | 1 |
Professional career
edit| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft 7+1⁄8 in (1.70 m) |
227 lb (103 kg) |
28+3⁄8 in (0.72 m) |
9 in (0.23 m) |
4.57 s | 1.50 s | 2.59 s | 4.55 s | 7.28 s | 37.5 in (0.95 m) |
9 ft 9 in (2.97 m) |
25 reps |
New Orleans Saints
editVictor declared for the 2017 NFL draft, but he was not drafted. He later attended the New Orleans Saints' rookie minicamp.[4] On August 1, 2017, Victor signed with the Saints.[5] He was waived on September 2, 2017.[6]
Arizona Cardinals
editOn November 29, 2017, Victor was signed to the Arizona Cardinals' practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Cardinals on January 2, 2018.[7]
On May 1, 2018, Victor was waived by the Cardinals.[8] He was re-signed on August 28, 2018.[9] He was waived on September 1, 2018.[10]
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
editIn February 2019, Victor was signed by Hamilton Tiger-Cats. He was released on April 30, 2019, between mini-camp and before start of main training camp.
New York Guardians
editIn October 2019, Victor was selected by the New York Guardians in the 2020 XFL Draft.[11] He had his contract terminated when the league suspended operations on April 10, 2020.[12]
New Jersey Generals
editVictor was drafted by the New Jersey Generals of the United States Football League.[13] He was named to the All-USFL team following the season[14] and was named the 2022 United States Football League Offensive Player of the Year after leading the league with nine touchdown runs.[15]
On July 19, 2022, Victor worked out with the New Orleans Saints, but no deal was reached.[16]
Victor re-signed with the Generals on July 12, 2023.[17] The Generals folded when the XFL and USFL merged to create the United Football League (UFL).[18]
Memphis Showboats
editOn January 5, 2024, Victor was drafted by the Memphis Showboats during the 2024 UFL dispersal draft.[19]
References
edit- ^ Lee, Edward (August 18, 2014). "Towson looks to Darius Victor to replace record-setting Terrance West". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
- ^ "Towson Athletics". www.towsontigers.com. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
- ^ Scherr, Rich (September 19, 2015). "Led by running back Darius Victor, Towson rallies to beat Holy Cross, 29-26". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
- ^ Hendrix, John J. (May 12, 2017). "Several veterans spotted at Saints rookie minicamp tryouts". Canal Street Chronicles. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
- ^ Teope, Herbie (August 1, 2017). "Saints to sign rookie RB Darius Victor, waive rookie LB Sae Tautu: source". NOLA.com. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
- ^ "New Orleans Saints make 37 roster moves". NewOrleansSaints.com. September 2, 2017. Archived from the original on October 7, 2017.
- ^ Odegard, Kyle (January 2, 2018). "Carlton Agudosi Among 10 "Futures" Deals". AZCardinals.com. Archived from the original on January 2, 2018.
- ^ Urban, Darren (May 1, 2018). "Cardinals Begin To Cut Down Roster". AZCardinals.com. Archived from the original on May 2, 2018.
- ^ Root, Jess (August 28, 2018). "Cardinals bring back RB Darius Victor". Cards Wire. USA Today. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
- ^ Urban, Darren (September 1, 2018). "Cardinals Make Cuts To Reach 53-Man Roster". AZCardinals.com. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
- ^ Bender, Bill (October 21, 2019). "XFL Draft picks 2019: Complete results, rosters, players for new football league". Sporting News. Retrieved October 23, 2019.
- ^ Condotta, Bob (April 10, 2020). "XFL suspends operations, terminates all employees, but Jim Zorn says he has hopes league will continue". SeattleTimes.com. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
- ^ "USFL DRAFT 2022: SUPPLEMENTAL DRAFT PICK-BY-PICK RESULTS". www.foxsports.com. Fox Media LLC. March 10, 2022. Retrieved March 11, 2022.
- ^ "2022 All-USFL Team offense unveiled". theusfl.com. June 16, 2022. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
- ^ Sigler, John (June 22, 2022). "USFL names former Saints RB Darius Victor its Offensive Player of the Year". Saints Wire. USA Today. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
- ^ Dajani, Jordan (July 19, 2022). "Saints work out USFL Offensive Player of the Year running back Darius Victor, per report". CBSSports.com. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
- ^ @USFLGenerals (July 12, 2023). "Free Agent Signing" (Tweet). Retrieved July 16, 2023 – via Twitter.
- ^ Seifert, Kevin (January 1, 2024). "Newly formed United Football League sets 8 markets, tabs coaches". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 15, 2024.
- ^ Reports, Staff (January 6, 2024). "UFL Dispersal Draft Results for Former XFL, USFL Teams". Sports Illustrated UFL on FanNation News, Analysis and More. Retrieved January 7, 2024.