# New Jersey Generals (2022)

The New Jersey Generals were a professional American football team. The Generals competed in the United States Football League (USFL) as a member club of the league's North division. Though named after the 1980s USFL team of the same name, which played at The Meadowlands in East Rutherford, New Jersey, the Generals never played in New Jersey nor the New York metropolitan area the original Generals represented, instead playing its home games at the USFL's hub at Protective Stadium and Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama in 2022, and at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio (shared with the Pittsburgh Maulers) in 2023 under the USFL's stadium sharing model. The Generals were one of eight teams that joined the USFL in 2022.
On December 19, 2023, the USFL informed its players union that the Generals would not be among four USFL teams to be contracted as part of the league's upcoming merger with the XFL.

## History

The New Jersey Generals were one of eight teams that were officially announced as a USFL franchise on The Herd with Colin Cowherd on November 22, 2021. USFL co-founder Brian Woods had been using the Generals brand for teams in The Spring League since 2019. On January 6, 2022, it was announced on The Herd with Colin Cowherd that former NFL, AAF, and NCAA Football Head coach Mike Riley was named the Head coach and General manager of the Generals.
The team was placed to select fourth overall in the 2022 USFL draft, where they selected Ben Holmes. Holmes was injured in training camp and ultimately released, but this allowed for the Generals to sign Luis Perez, who impressed during the season, starting only 6 games, finishing in the top 5 in passing yards and touchdowns. The Generals also selected KaVontae Turpin as their top receiver, who lead the USFL in receiving yards (540), coupled with 4 touchdowns. He was also selected as to the All-USFL Team, alongside teammates Darius Victor, Terry Poole, Garrett McGhin, Toby Johnson and Shalom Luani in addition to winning USFL Most Valuable Player Award. The Generals won the top seed in the North Division with a 9–1 record. Despite the top seed in the North Division, the Generals were upset by the Philadelphia Stars, 19–14 in the North Division Championship Game.
On October 18, 2022, the team hired Billy Devaney as the team's general manager.
On December 19, 2023, the USFL informed its players union that the Generals would not be among four USFL teams to be contracted as part of the league's upcoming merger with the XFL.

## Player history
### Current NFL Players

| USFL Season | Pos | Name | NFL Team |
| 2022 | WR | KaVontae Turpin | Dallas Cowboys |

### USFL MVP award winners

Generals USFL MVP winners :
| Year | Player | Position | Selector |
| 2022 | KaVontae Turpin | WR | USFL |

### USFL Offensive Player of the Year award winners

Generals USFL OPOY winners :
| Year | Player | Position | Selector |
| 2022 | Darius Victor | RB | USFL |

## Coach history
### Head coach history

| # | Name | Term | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Awards |
| # | Name | Term | GC | W | L | Win % | GC | W | L | Awards |
| New Jersey Generals |||||||||||
| 1 | Mike Riley | 2022-2023 | 20 | 12 | 8 | .600 | 1 | 0 | 1 | *2022 USFL Coach of the Year |

### Offensive coordinator history

| # | Name | Term | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Awards |
| # | Name | Term | GC | W | L | Win % | GC | W | L | Awards |
| New Jersey Generals |||||||||||
| 1 | Steven Smith | 2022-2023 | 20 | 12 | 8 | .600 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |

### Defensive Coordinator history

| # | Name | Term | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Awards |
| # | Name | Term | GC | W | L | Win % | GC | W | L | Awards |
| New Jersey Generals |||||||||||
| 1 | Cris Dishman | 2022 | 10 | 9 | 1 | .900 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 2 | Ted Cottrell | 2023 | 10 | 3 | 7 | .300 | – | – | – | |

## Championships
### Division championships

| Year | Coach | Record |
| 2022 | Mike Riley | 9–1 |
| Total Division Championships won: 1 | Total Division Championships won: 1 | |

## Records

All-time Generals leaders :
| Leader | Player | Record | Years with Generals |
| Passing Yards | De'Andre Johnson | 1,712 passing yards | 2022–2023 |
| Passing Touchdowns | Luis Perez | 9 passing touchdowns | 2022 |
| Rushing Yards | Darius Victor | 1,127 rushing yards | 2022-2023 |
| Rushing Touchdowns | Darius Victor | 13 rushing touchdowns | 2022-2023 |
| Receiving Yards | Alonzo Moore | 713 receiving yards | 2022-2023 |
| Receiving Touchdowns | Alonzo Moore | 8 receiving touchdowns | 2022-2023 |
| Receptions | Alonzo Moore | 51 receptions | 2022-2023 |
| Tackles | Chris Orr | 159 tackles | 2022-2023 |
| Sacks | Hercules Mata'afa | 6.0 sacks | 2022-2023 |
| Interceptions | Shalom Luani | 6 interceptions | 2022-2023 |
| Coaching wins | Mike Riley | 12 wins | 2022-2023 |

## Statistics and records
### Season-by-season record

Note: The Finish, Wins, Losses, and Ties columns list regular season results and exclude any postseason play.
Legend :
| USFL champions$^†$ | Division champions$^^$ | Wild Card berth$^#$ |
New Jersey Generals season-by-season records :
| Season | Team | League | Division | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Postseason results | Awards |
| Season | Team | League | Division | Finish | Wins | Losses | Ties | Pct | Postseason results | Awards |
| 2022 | 2022 | USFL | North$^^$ | 1st$^^$ | 9 | 1 | 0 | .900 | Lost Division finals (Stars) 14–19 | KaVontae Turpin (MVP) Darius Victor (OPOY) Mike Riley (COY) |
| 2023 | 2023 | USFL | North | 4th | 3 | 7 | 0 | .300 | – | – |
| Totals | Totals | Totals | Totals | Totals | 12 | 8 | 0 | .600 | (2022–2023, regular season) | (2022–2023, regular season) | (2022–2023, regular season) | (2022–2023, regular season) |
| Totals | Totals | Totals | Totals | Totals | 0 | 1 | — | .000 | (2022–2023, playoffs) | (2022–2023, playoffs) | (2022–2023, playoffs) | (2022–2023, playoffs) |
| Totals | Totals | Totals | Totals | Totals | 12 | 9 | 0 | .571 | (2022–2023, regular season and playoffs) | (2022–2023, regular season and playoffs) | (2022–2023, regular season and playoffs) | (2022–2023, regular season and playoffs) |

### Rivalries
#### Northern Duel

The New Jersey Generals shared a rivalry with the Michigan Panthers. This rivalry was called the Northern Duel. The Generals finished with a 3–1 record against the Michigan Panthers 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. |
| Tampa Bay Bandits | 1–0 | 1.000 |
| Michigan Panthers | 3–1 | .750 |
| Pittsburgh Maulers | 3–1 | .750 |
| Philadelphia Stars | 3–2 | .600 |
| Houston Gamblers | 1–1 | .500 |
| New Orleans Breakers | 1–1 | .500 |
| Memphis Showboats | 0–1 | .000 |
| Birmingham Stallions | 0–2 | .000 |