Today the USFL is set to announce its hub city location of Birmingham, Alabama. The USFL 2022 season will be played at the new Protective Stadium and Legion Field.
According to Greg Garrison of AL.com, former NFL players Reggie Bush, and Daryl “Moose” Johnston visited youth at the A.G. Gaston Boys and Girls Club in Birmingham Monday afternoon.
The visit was to give the kids a pep talk on achieving their dreams and to promote the USFL.
“After encouraging kids to follow their dreams, Bush also gave the youth a pitch for the new USFL, a spring professional football league that’s bringing eight teams to play games this spring in Birmingham.
“Y’all going to have to learn about this new league,” Bush told a group of boys and girls sitting on bleachers in the gymnasium.
The USFL also announced a community partnership to support the Gaston Boys and Girls Club. Bush’s role as a broadcaster for USFL games is unclear; however, he will be an ambassador for the USFL.
“Another ex-NFL player, former Dallas Cowboys running back Daryl “Moose” Johnston, was also on the visit to the Gaston Boys and Girls Club, and he said Bush will be an ambassador for the USFL, letting people know that it’s quality professional football.
“There’s plenty of talent out there,” said Johnston, who is serving as executive vice president of football operations for the USFL. “Fans are smart. They know good football. We’re going to give them good football.'”
Reggie Bush and Gus Johnson were brought in during talks with the city and Fox Sports. According to a report by Roy S. Johnson, it was Gus Johnson’s talk that really sealed the deal for the USFL in Birmingham.
At some juncture, after entrees and copious libations, no doubt, several speakers took a turn at the mike. Numerous Fox representatives shared how their respective departments would touch the city, their potential outreach and impact on areas beyond downtown
Yet it was Johnson who dropped it.
“My whole take on that night,” Gus shared recently, “being in Birmingham in that moment was my mother passed away in 2014. I could just imagine her face. If she stood there with me that night with an African American mayor and the people of color in his cabinet, the county commissioners. To have an opportunity to represent Fox and stand strong with representatives of the city of Birmingham, considering the history of the city, Bull Connor, it just brought tears to my eyes. I know history is tragic, but the future is bright. I just had a very proud moment being there that night.
“Gus,” Hallman recalls, “was the star that night.”
The USFL will be playing 43 games in Birmingham starting April 16th and running to mid-June.
Stay tuned to XFL News Hub for all the latest USFL news as we get closer to kick-off.
