The following is a breakdown of each of the St. Louis Battlehawks’ 2024 UFL College Draft selections:
Round 1: QB Chevan Cordeiro, San Jose State
In Cordeiro, the Battlehawks may have just found their replacement for A.J. McCarron, who’s status for the 2025 season is currently uncertain. Cordeiro spent six years at the collegiate level, beginning at Hawaii where he spent four seasons and was a full-time starter for two years. In the games he started with the Rainbow Warriors, he compiled a 15-11 record. Overall, he was 489-for-835 passing (59.0% completion) with 6,167 yards and 45 touchdowns during his time in the Aloha State. He also had 295 carries for 1,083 yards and 13 touchdowns.
For the 2022 season, Cordeiro made a move within his conference, transferring to San Jose State where he had his best season yet, throwing for a career-high 3,551 yards and 23 touchdowns and earning Second-Team All-Mountain West honors. In 2023, he entered his final college campaign as the Mountain West Preseason Offensive Player of the Year. He went on to become the All-time Mountain West leader in total yardage (13,811), touchdowns (113), and completions (971). In leading his team to the 2023 Hawaii Bowl, Cordeiro became the first Spartans quarterback to lead his team to back-to-back bowl games since 1987. His record-breaking season resulted in First-Team All-Mountain West honors.
Cordeiro has a good mix of throw power and accuracy, plus excellent athleticism and mobility. He played in a spread system at San Jose State similar to what offensive coordinator Bruce Gradkowski employs in St. Louis. While Cordeiro is generally accurate with his passes, he sometimes struggles with putting proper touch and layering the ball, especially on deep throws. He’s a good improviser; however, his pocket presence could use some improvement. His footwork is clean, for the most part, but when there’s pressure he can get sloppy, rushing through his progressions and being quicker than he should to exit the pocket. Nonetheless, excluding McCarron, I think Cordeiro is the most well-rounded among St. Louis’ 2024 quarterbacks, beating out Manny Wilkins and Brandon Silvers
Cordeiro signed with the Seattle Seahawks as an undrafted free agent but has since been released, making him available to join the Battlehawks.
Round 2: RB Cody Schrader, Missouri
Schrader, the St. Louis native, gets to stay in his hometown if he ends up in the UFL. He started his collegiate career at Truman State (D-II) before bursting onto the scene at Missouri as a walk-on transfer in 2022, quickly becoming the team’s star feature back. His first season with the Tigers saw him post 746 yards and nine touchdowns on 170 carries, along with 19 catches for 137 yards. The following season saw him double his rushing production, leading the SEC with 1,627 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns on 276 touches on his way to All-American honors and the Burlsworth Trophy (Best Walk-On Player).
Shrader can be an effective runner both between the tackles and outside thanks to his good combination of toughness, evasiveness, and vision. He is a downhill runner and has great burst, which makes it tough for defenders to catch him in the open field. He is also an average receiving back and can pick up pass rushers.
Schrader signed with the San Francisco 49ers as an undrafted free agent shortly after the 2024 NFL Draft and remains with the organization ahead of training camp.
Round 3: DT Pheldarius Payne, Virginia Tech
Payne is another player who took the JUCO route, spending two seasons at Lackawanna College before being recruited by and transferring to Nebraska in 2021. His first season with the Cornhuskers saw him appear in 10 games as a rotational player on the defensive line, recording 19 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and 2.0 sacks. He went on to miss the entirety of the 2022 season with an achilles injury and chose to transfer again, this time to Virginia Tech, for his final season of eligibility. With the Hokies, he served in a similar rotational role as he did with Nebraska, playing in all 13 games with two starts and tallying 31 tackles, 10.0 tackles for loss, and 4.0 sacks.
Among 2024 draft-eligible defensive tackles, Payne had the third-highest PFF career grade. For a defensive tackle, he’s slightly undersized at 6-2 286 lbs, but makes up for it with his quickness and explosiveness that he uses to penetrate the offensive line and disrupt plays. He had signed with the Houston Texans as an undrafted free agent but was released this past Wednesday with an injury.
Round 4: OT Bradley Ashmore, Vanderbilt
Ashmore was a three-year full-time starter at Vanderbilt from 2021 to 2023 after spending his freshman year as a rotational piece on the offensive line. As a sophomore, he allowed just four sacks on 773 snaps at the right tackle position. In 2022, he saw all his snaps at right guard and didn’t allow a single sack while being responsible for just three penalties. Ahead of his senior season, he was named a team captain as a testament to his leadership ability. He went on to earn a PFF run-blocking grade of 77.4, good for sixth-best among SEC offensive linemen.
Ashmore has solid strength that allowed him to fend off SEC defensive linemen and edge rushers throughout his years at Vanderbilt. While he has experience at both the guard and tackle positions from college, he’s suited more to play tackle. With his tall 6-6 303 lbs frame, it should be easier for him to gain leverage on outside edge rushers rather than interior defensive lineman.
Round 5: LB Carl Jones Jr., UCLA
While he never became a full-time starter, Jones Jr. played a role on UCLA’s defense in each season since his freshman year in 2019, which saw him make 24 tackles and 3.0 tackles for loss. Overall, he has appeared in 57 career games with seven starts, totaling 130 tackles, 19.5 tackles for loss, and 8.0 sacks through five seasons with the Bruins. His most successful year was his last one, which saw him notch a career-high in tackles (39).
Jones Jr. signed with the Chicago Bears as an undrafted free agent shortly after the 2024 NFL Draft. The safety-turned-linebacker ran a 4.51s 40 at his pro day, which would have been the fastest among linebackers at this year’s NFL Combine. UCLA moved him around a bit at outside linebacker between the defensive line at edge rusher and the second level in coverage. So there’s some versatility there.
Round 6: DT Isaiah Coe, Oklahoma
Coe played three seasons for the Sooners after transferring from Iowa Western Community College. Across 37 games, he made 13 starts and totaled 55 tackles, 15.0 tackles for loss, and 3.0 sacks. His redshirt season was his best one yet with Oklahoma, as he racked up 26 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss on the way to an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention.
Coe is a beefy defensive tackle at 6-2 311 lbs who acts as an anchor in stopping the run and can attract and hold double teams with his size and strength. During Oklahoma’s pro day, he repped 34 on the bench press, which would have been tied for first at the NFL Combine among defensive tackles.
Round 7: WR Jelani Baker, Limestone
Baker is the only player in St. Louis’ draft class without a D-I background, having spent his collegiate career at two D-II schools—West Georgia and Limestone. At West Georgia, he appeared in 12 games over four years, which included a redshirt season in 2018 and a canceled season due to COVID in 2020. In 2022, he transferred to Limestone where he became a starter in his first year. Over 24 games in two seasons, he would rack up 118 catches for 1,681 yards and 19 touchdowns, putting himself on the map at his new school.
Baker is a physical receiver with good route running ability and a 6-2 195 lbs frame that can pose mismatches against smaller slot defenders. With his size, he has a wide catch radius and can also be a viable option to be lined up on the outside if need be.
Round 8: WR Jadon Janke, South Dakota State
Janke is another slot receiver with solid route running ability, size, and toughness. He was a three-year starter at South Dakota State, logging 2,800 receiving yards and 30 touchdowns on 170 grabs in 67 career games. He earned All-MVFC honors as both a wide receiver and return specialist in 2022, so there’s definitely some versatility there.
Janke is currently under contract with the Houston Texans, where his receiver and return man experience can definitely give him the leg-up over his competition in training camp. However, if the NFL doesn’t work out, the UFL is a viable backup plan.
Round 9: CB Myles Sims, Georgia Tech
Sims spent his redshirt season with Michigan in 2018 before transferring to Georgia Tech, where he spent the next five seasons. With the Yellow Jackets, he totaled 136 tackles and 19 passes defended in 53 games (25 starts). During his most recent season, he was the highest-graded defender by PFF on his team with a 74.7 overall defensive grade, while his coverage grade was 74.9. His NFL passer rating against in 2023 was a low 51.2 on 39 targets, while his career rating against was 88.2.
Sims’ pro day performance certainly helped his stock as he logged a 4.45s 40 and 4.25s 20 shuttle. Combine his foot speed with his tall 6-3 190 lbs frame and he becomes a pretty appealing cornerback prospect. He is best suited as an outside corner, where Georgia Tech mainly employed him, and he can be used in both man and zone coverage.
Round 10: CB Myles Jones, Duke
Jones’ collegiate career got off to a great start with Texas A&M, as he totaled 121 tackles, 33 passes defended, and four interceptions in 46 games (21 starts) across four seasons. His sophomore season in 2018 had seen him lead the Aggies in pass breakups (nine), while he was second on his team in pass breakups (six) in 2019. However, things took a turn as the back-end of Jones’ career was plagued by injuries that limited him to just seven game appearances from 2021 to 2023 between Texas A&M and Duke, where he transferred for his final season of eligibility.
Despite his injury history, the New York Jets currently have Jones under contract as an undrafted free agent ahead of training camp. He has solid speed for his 6-4 194 lbs frame, with a 4.53s 40. Throughout college, he allowed a 53.5% completion percentage when targeted, which is about average. He was used mainly as an outside corner and was most effective in zone and off-man coverage.
