Michigan Panthers (2022)

This article is about the team in the second edition of the USFL. For the team in the original USFL from the 1980s, see Michigan Panthers.

The Michigan Panthers are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. The Panthers compete in the United Football League (UFL) as a member of the USFL Conference. The team is owned and operated by Dwayne Johnson's Alpha Acquico and Fox Corporation. The team plays its home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit, which also hosts the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL).^[1]

Michigan Panthers
Current season
Established November 22, 2021; 3 years ago (2021-11-22) Play in Ford Field (Detroit, Michigan)
League/conference affiliations
United States Football League (2022–2023) North Division (2022–2023) United Football League (2024–present) USFL Conference (2024–present)
Current uniform
Team colors	Royal plum, champagne silver, light blue
Mascot	Pablo
Personnel
Owner(s)	Fox Corporation (50%), Dany Garcia, Dwayne Johnson, RedBird Capital Partners (50%)
Head coach	Mike Nolan
Team history
Michigan Panthers (2022–present)
Championships
League championships (0)
Conference championships (0)
Division championships (0)
Playoff appearances (2)
* USFL: 2023 * UFL: 2024
Home stadium(s)
Protective Stadium/Legion Field (2022) Ford Field (2023‍–‍present)

History

The Michigan Panthers were one of eight teams that were officially announced as a USFL franchise on The Herd with Colin Cowherd on November 22, 2021.^[2] On January 27, 2022, it was announced on The Herd with Colin Cowherd that former NFL Head coach Jeff Fisher was named the head coach and general manager of the Panthers.^[3]

The Panthers selected Michigan quarterback Shea Patterson with the first overall pick in the 2022 USFL draft.^[4] In the first two games of 2022, the Panthers lost to the Houston Gamblers and New Jersey Generals.^[5][6] On May 1, 2022, the team won their first ever game with a 24–0 win at Protective Stadium against the Pittsburgh Maulers.^[7] Losses resumed after that, the Panthers' only other win of the season was against the Maulers, a 33–21 with the winner assuming the rights to the first overall pick in the 2023 USFL draft.^[8]

In October, 2022, the Panthers hired Steve Kazor as general manager.^[9] After all eight USFL teams played their home games in Birmingham, Alabama, the Panthers moved to the state of Michigan in 2023, announcing Ford Field as their home stadium.^[10] On February 3, 2023, the USFL announced that Fisher had been replaced as head coach by Mike Nolan, citing only "personal reasons."^[11]

A game between the Panthers (left) and the Houston Roughnecks in Houston in 2024

In September 2023, Axios reported that the XFL was in advanced talks with the USFL to merge the two leagues prior to the start of their 2024 seasons.^[12] On September 28, 2023, the XFL and USFL announced their intent to merge with details surrounding the merger to be announced at a later date.^[13] The merger would also require regulatory approval.^[14] In October 2023 the XFL filed a trademark application for the name "United Football League".^[15] On November 30, 2023, Garcia announced via her Instagram page that the leagues had received regulatory approval for the merger and were finalizing plans for a "combined season" to begin March 30, 2024.^[16] The merger was made official on December 31, 2023.^[17]

Current roster

Players

Michigan Panthers roster

• v
• t
• e

Quarterbacks (QB)  8 Danny Etling 12 Rocky Lombardi 17 Bryce Perkins Running backs (RB) 28 Nate McCrary 20 Jaden Shirden 35 Toa Taua Wide receivers (WR) 13 Xavier Malone  4 Siaosi Mariner 29 Phazione McClurge  7 Jaylon Moore 86 Samson Nacua  6 Devin Ross 17 Malik Turner Tight ends (TE) 80 Cole Hikutini 84 Gunnar Oakes 85 Jalen Wydermyer

Offensive linemen (OL) 73 Jake Burton G 69 Cohl Cabral G 78 Cam Carter T 60 Victor Curne T 77 Brian Dooley T 61 Noah Johnson C 75 Ryan Nelson G 72 Chim Okorafor T 76 Keith Russell T Defensive linemen (DL) 98 Levi Bell DE 97 Ron'Dell Carter DE 96 T. J. Carter DE 44 Garrett Marino DT 99 Walter Palmore DT 94 Taylor Stallworth DT 91 Ron Stone Jr. DE 95 Mika Tafua DE 48 Kenny Willekes DE

Linebackers (LB) 10 Noah Dawkins ILB  5 Frank Ginda ILB 45 Donavan Mutin ILB 24 James Neal ILB Defensive backs (DB) 19 Adonis Alexander CB 15 Akeem Dent FS 18 Keni-H Lovely CB 14 D.J. Miller Jr CB 21 Kai Nacua SS  2 Arnold Tarpley III SS  1 Levonta Taylor CB 22 Bryce Torneden CB 32 Kedrick Whitehead Jr. FS Special teams 46 Peter Bowden LS 33 B. T. Potter K 36 Seth Vernon K

Reserve lists 26 Matt Colburn RB (IR) 23 De'Gabriel Floyd ILB (IR) 25 Tyree Gillespie FS (IR) 57 Breeland Speaks DE (IR) 11 Javin White ILB (IR) Roster updated April 29, 2025 50 active, 5 reserve(s)

Staff

2024 Michigan Panthers staff

Front office General manager – Steve Kazor Head coaches Head coach – Mike Nolan Offensive coaches Offensive coordinator – Marcel Bellefeuille Offensive line – Tim Holt Running backs – Jordan Pavlisin Special teams coordinator/Wide receivers – Jaron Fairman Tight ends – Gary Watkins

Defensive coaches Defensive coordinator/Defensive line – Collin Bauer Linebackers – Christian Runza Defensive backs – Brock Marion

Player history

Current NFL players

Season	Pos	Name	NFL team
2023	CB	Josh Butler	Dallas Cowboys
2023	WR	D. J. Montgomery	Indianapolis Colts
2024	K	Jake Bates	Detroit Lions
2024	CB	Nate Brooks	Cincinnati Bengals

Notable players

Season	Pos	Name	Notes
2023	DT	Robert Nkemdiche	Former Arizona Cardinals Defensive Tackle, 2016 1st Round Pick
2023–present	DE	Breeland Speaks	Former Kansas City Chiefs Defensive End, 2018 2nd Round Pick

Defensive Player of the Year award winners

Panthers USFL DPOY winners

Year	Player	Position	Selector
2023	Frank Ginda	LB	USFL
2024	Breeland Speaks	DE	UFL

Coach history

Head coach history

#	Name	Term	Regular season				Playoffs			Awards
			GC	W	L	Win %	GC	W	L
Michigan Panthers
1	Jeff Fisher	2022	10	2	8	.200	0	0	0
2	Mike Nolan	2023–present	25	14	11	.560	2	0	2	*2024 UFL Coach of the Year

Offensive coordinator history

#	Name	Term	Regular season				Playoffs			Awards
			GC	W	L	Win %	GC	W	L
Michigan Panthers
1	Eric Marty	2022-2023	20	6	14	.300	1	0	1
2	Marcel Bellefeuille	2024–present	15	10	5	.667	1	0	1

Defensive coordinator history

#	Name	Term	Regular season				Playoffs			Awards
			GC	W	L	Win %	GC	W	L
Michigan Panthers
1	Daniel Carrell	2022	10	2	8	.200	0	0	0
2	Steve Brown	2023	10	4	6	.400	1	0	1
2	Collin Bauer	2024–present	15	10	5	.667	1	0	1

Records

All-time Panthers leaders

Leader	Player	Record	Years with Panthers
Passing Yards	Josh Love	1,630 passing yards	2022–2023
Passing Touchdowns	Josh Love	15 passing touchdowns	2022–2023
Rushing	Reggie Corbin	955 rushing yards	2022–2023
Rushing Touchdowns	Wes Hills E. J. Perry	5 rushing touchdowns	2024 2023-2025
Receiving Yards	Trey Quinn	678 receiving yards	2022–2024
Receiving Touchdowns	Cole Hikutini	6 receiving touchdowns	2023–present
Receptions	Joe Walker	66 receptions	2022–2023
Tackles	Frank Ginda	227 tackles	2022–present
Sacks	Breeland Speaks	18.5 sacks	2023–present
Interceptions	Frank Ginda Kai Nacua	3 interceptions	2022–present 2023–present
Coaching wins	Mike Nolan	11 wins	2023–present

Statistics and records

Season by season record

UFL champions† (2024–present)

USFL champions§ (2022–2023)

Conference champions*

Division champions^

Wild Card berth#

Season	Team	League	Conference	Division	Regular season			Postseason results	Awards	Head coaches	Pct.
					Finish	W	L
2022	2022	USFL		North	3rd	2	8			Jeff Fisher	.200
2023	2023	USFL		North	2nd #	4	6	Lost Division Finals (Maulers) 27–31 (OT)	Frank Ginda (DPOY) Ethan Westbrooks (SMOY)	Mike Nolan	.550
2024	2024	UFL	USFL		2nd #	7	3	Lost USFL Conference Championship (Stallions) 18–31	Mike Nolan COTY Breeland Speaks DPOTY
Total						13	17	All-time regular season record (2022–2024)			.433
						0	2	All-time postseason record (2022–2024)			.000
						13	19	All-time regular season and postseason record (2022–2024)			.406

Rivalries

Northern Duel

The Michigan Panthers previously shared a rivalry with the New Jersey Generals.^[18] This rivalry was called the Northern Duel. The Panthers finished with a 1–3 record against the New Jersey Generals in 2 seasons. After the 2023 season the rivalry was not renewed as the New Jersey Generals folded during the XFL–USFL merger of 2024.

Franchise matchup history

Team	Record	Pct.
Arlington Renegades	1–0	1.000
DC Defenders	1–0	1.000
St. Louis Battlehawks	1–0	1.000
Houston Gamblers/Roughnecks	3–1	.750
Memphis Showboats	3–1	.750
Philadelphia Stars	2–2	.500
Pittsburgh Maulers	2–3	.400
New Jersey Generals	1–3	.250
San Antonio Brahmas	0–1	.000
Tampa Bay Bandits	0–1	.000
New Orleans Breakers	0–2	.000
Birmingham Stallions	0–6	.000

• Defunct teams in light gray.