Darius Victor

Darius Vito Victor (born 6 March 1994) is a Liberian professional gridiron football running back for the New Jersey Generals of the United States Football League (USFL). 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.

Darius Victor
refer to caption
Victor with the New York Guardians in 2020
No. 27 – New Jersey Generals
Position:Running back
Personal information
Born: (1994-03-06) March 6, 1994
Ivory Coast
Height:5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Weight:209 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High school:Northwestern (Hyattsville, Maryland)
College:Towson
Undrafted:2017
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
USFL
  • USFL Offensive Player of the Year (2022)
  • USFL rushing touchdowns leader (2022)
  • All-USFL (2022)
NCAA
  • First-team All-CAA (2014)
  • Second-team All-CAA (2015)
  • CAA Rookie of the Year(2013)
Career NFL statistics
Attempts:198
Rushing Yards:1,010
Rushing touchdowns:11
Receiving Yards:230
Receiving touchdowns:3
Player stats at NFL.com

Early years

Victor 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

Victor 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

Victor 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]

College statistics
Season Rushing Receiving
AttYardsAvgTDRecYardsAvgTD
2013 986296.4757114.21
2014 2501,3055.2126254.20
2015 2401,2104.9177426.00
2016 82 354 4.3 7 2 3 1.5 0
Total 6373,3095.241201417.11

Professional career
Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand span40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jumpBench 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)		4.70 s1.51 s2.69 s4.55 s7.28 s34.5 in
(0.88 m)		9 ft 9 in
(2.97 m)		22 reps
All values from Pro Day[4]

New Orleans Saints

Victor declared for the 2017 NFL Draft, but he was not drafted. He later attended the New Orleans Saints' rookie minicamp.[5] On August 1, 2017, Victor signed with the Saints.[6] He was waived on September 2, 2017.[7]

Arizona Cardinals

On 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.[8]

On May 1, 2018, Victor was waived by the Cardinals.[9] He was re-signed on August 28, 2018.[10] He was waived on September 1, 2018.[11]

Hamilton Tiger-Cats

In 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

In October 2019, Victor was selected by the New York Guardians in the 2020 XFL Draft.[12] He had his contract terminated when the league suspended operations on April 10, 2020.[13]

New Jersey Generals

Victor was drafted by the New Jersey Generals of the United States Football League.[14] He was named to the All-USFL team following the season[15] and was named the 2022 United States Football League Offensive Player of the Year after leading the league with nine touchdown runs.[16]

On July 19, 2022, Victor worked out with the New Orleans Saints, but no deal was reached.[17]

Victor re-signed with the Generals on July 12, 2023.[18]

References
  1. Lee, Edward (August 18, 2014). "Towson looks to Darius Victor to replace record-setting Terrance West". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
  2. "Towson Athletics". www.towsontigers.com. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
  3. 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.
  4. "2017 Draft Scout Darius Victor, Towson NFL Draft Scout College Football Profile". draftscout.com. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  5. Hendrix, John J. (May 12, 2017). "Several veterans spotted at Saints rookie minicamp tryouts". Canal Street Chronicles. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
  6. Teope, Herbie (August 1, 2017). "Saints to sign rookie RB Darius Victor, waive rookie LB Sae Tautu: source". NOLA.com. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  7. "New Orleans Saints make 37 roster moves". NewOrleansSaints.com. September 2, 2017. Archived from the original on October 7, 2017.
  8. Odegard, Kyle (January 2, 2018). "Carlton Agudosi Among 10 "Futures" Deals". AZCardinals.com. Archived from the original on January 2, 2018.
  9. Urban, Darren (May 1, 2018). "Cardinals Begin To Cut Down Roster". AZCardinals.com. Archived from the original on May 2, 2018.
  10. Root, Jess (August 28, 2018). "Cardinals bring back RB Darius Victor". Cards Wire. USA Today. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  11. Urban, Darren (September 1, 2018). "Cardinals Make Cuts To Reach 53-Man Roster". AZCardinals.com. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  12. Bender, Bill (October 21, 2019). "XFL Draft picks 2019: Complete results, rosters, players for new football league". Sporting News. Retrieved October 23, 2019.
  13. 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.
  14. "USFL DRAFT 2022: SUPPLEMENTAL DRAFT PICK-BY-PICK RESULTS". www.foxsports.com. Fox Media LLC. March 10, 2022. Retrieved March 11, 2022.
  15. "2022 All-USFL Team offense unveiled". theusfl.com. June 16, 2022. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  16. 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.
  17. 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.
  18. @USFLGenerals (July 12, 2023). "Free Agent Signing" (Tweet). Retrieved July 16, 2023 – via Twitter.
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