stallions’ scooby wright on injured reserved list but holtz hopeful for tillery’s return

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MAY 1, 2024 - BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA

By Steve Irvine

Scooby Wright is out of the lineup for the remainder of the 2024 season for the Birmingham Stallions. However, despite indications to the contrary last week, the dynamic linebacker’s retirement from professional football is not official.

As for now, according to Stallions head coach Skip Holtz, Wright is on injured reserve for the rest of this season after injuring his neck in the first half of a win over the DC Defenders on April 20 at Protective Stadium. As of now, Holtz said he doesn’t consider Wright retired, even though Wright posted a picture of his cleats hanging over the goal posts, seemingly indicating retirement, during the Stallions practice in Arlington, Texas.

“I guess on Twitter and such, he’s made some statements,” Holtz said. “But, our standpoint, he’s still on IR. I’m still going to try to get him back next year. He’s going to have to tell me he’s retired to not bring him back here next year. I think Scooby, he meant so much to the culture of this team and to the way we’ve built it from day one. His personality, his hard work, his talent, his abilities.  He was just a passionate player that was fun to be around.”

Last week was a good example, even though it wasn’t a happy time for Wright.

“He hung his cleats over the goal posts, which I think was absolutely iconic, which I absolutely loved,” Holtz said. “While we’re out at practice, you’re looking at those cleats hanging on the goal posts every day. It was so Scooby. He’s got such personality.”

Wright played in the NFL, Alliance of American Football (AAF) and the XFL before joining the Stallions in the USFL. He immediately became a fan favorite, partly because of the popular “Shark Dog” mentality that he carries on the football field.

In 2022, he had 52 tackles, three sacks and two forced fumbles during 10 regular season games. He made one of the biggest plays of the season in the USFL Championship Game when his pick-six interception in the fourth quarter provided the go-ahead points in a win over the Philadelphia Stars. Injuries limited him to just four games in 2023 – two during the regular season and both playoff games – as the Stallions won another championship. He had eight tackles in four games before his injury this season.

Another key player for the Stallions, safety JoJo Tillery, is working through an injury. Tillery suffered a hamstring injury while returning an interception in last week’s road win over the Houston Renegades. Tillery is expected to return at some point this season but Holtz said he is “very doubtful” for Saturday’s visit to Memphis.

“We’re just hoping that he can recover at a fast rate,” Holtz said. “We’re going to have a week by week, day by day situation as he continues to recover. Sometimes when you deal with muscles, it’s a little bit harder to evaluate the speed of recovery. I feel he’s very doubtful for this weekend  but we are hopeful he can make a strong recovery and be back there.”

Tillery was a critical part of both of the Stallions USFL championship teams. He had 16 tackles in the first five games this season.

“JoJo has brought an awful lot to our football team,” Holtz said. “Not just with his physical presence but he’s vocal, his leadership. I mean, he’s talking every day at practice. You don’t have to ask where JoJo is on the practice field. You can hear him, same thing on the game field. We not only lost a very talented football player but he’s also one of our best leaders on the defensive side of the ball.”