News broke about 11:30 pm Wednesday night that Matt Colburn had been placed on the injured list. The man who ended up second in the USFL in rushing touchdowns, will ultimately have to watch from the sidelines. The question is can Philly muster enough production from their run game without Matt Colburn II injured?

His Replacement 

Signed just three days before the Championship game former 6th round pick I 2019 out of Notre Dame, Dexter Williams will join the Stars. Williams has bounced around partice squads the past couple seasons most recently with the Browns in 2021. However he just so happened to find himself available as the Stars were in need. 

He spent the first two seasons of his career in Green Bay after they selected him in round 6. Appearing in 7 games during that stretch he had 7 carries for 19 yards. Not impressive, but not exactly a large sample size to judge. 

Ironically the pick used to select Williams came from a trade that sent Brett Hundley to Seattle. At his proday in 2019, at 5’11 212 lbs he managed a 4.57 40 yard dash, a 7.0 3 cone drill, and 17 reps in the bench press. Williams also showed what he could do in college. 

College Career

After splitting carries through his first three seasons Williams finally got his chance to shine as a senior. Prior to his final season of college Williams had just 557 yards rushing. By the time he graduated that number had jumped to 1,694 yards. He would add 20 rushing tds, to his 6.3 yard per carry average. 

Bart Andrus prefers versatility in his backs, and it shows again with this move. Williams caught 22 passes for 162 yards and 2 touchdowns. He also added 87 yards in the return game his first two seasons. If level of competition or production is a question I point you to one game.

On November 10th 2018 the Fighting Irish walked into the game wanting to run the ball. This turned out to be a wise choice against Florida State’s defense. Williams would rush 20 times for 202 yards and 2 touchdowns. This was one of 4 games with 160 or more all purpose yards that season.

Final Word on The Injury

In short Williams is essentially the perfect replacement for Matt Colburn who was a very similar player when healthy. Honestly if Williams comes in ready to go, it would not shock me to see the Stars ride the fresh legs to victory against a team that made a similar move mid season to bring in former NFL back Bo Scarbrough. 

This is without an unwanted setback Colburn has been the most consistent threat on offense this season. However with Paul Terry, Darnell Holland and Dexter Williams I personally believe “every little thing is going to be alright” as the Stars walk into this weekend with next man up philosophy never more prevalent in Philly. 

At this point the Stars faithful believe in Bart Andrus to lead us to victory this weekend. After posting undefeated seasons in The Spring League can Andrus find a championship in his first season with the USFL?

Stay with USFL News Hub for all the playoff coverage.