Defensive back Jarey Elder, 2023 USFL New Orleans Breakers (USFL/FOX)
Defensive back Jarey Elder made a name for himself as a key defensive player for the New Orleans Breakers through the 2022 and 2023 USFL seasons. With the Breakers folding during the USFL/XFL merger, former Breakers head coach John DeFilippo brought Elder along to the UFL Memphis Showboats when they selected Elder during Phase 2 of the UFL dispersal draft.
It is no doubt that Elder impressed his former Breakers coaches, with 49 tackles, one sack, two interceptions, and 93 yards as a returner, in the 2023 season. Now that many of the same coaches are with the Memphis Showboats, they probably hope Elder keeps up his defensive ways.
“We’re all really excited in the locker room,” Elder said. “The coach and his staff did a good job of putting together a highly competitive team. Camp was long, but it’s going to benefit us in the way that we got a little more things accomplished than we have in the past.”
Elder feels this will be a good season for his football career as he will have the opportunity to improve his skills under the tutelage of defensive coach Carnell Lake, and be able to work hard to become a better playmaker.
“I am moving around and playing different coverages. Being able to play inside in the box, outside of the box, rolling different coverages and showing different looks, I feel like I’ll be able to put everything on the tape this year,” Elder explained. “Playing under a guy like Carnell Lake is great. He’s done it at the highest level, so, any questions, or anything we might be confused about, or going through, he’s already done it.”
Jarey Elder is ready to learn more as a player, and he feels this season with the Showboats will allow him to to just that.
“Being able to learn from a guy like Coach Lake is great,” Elder said. “He’s really easy to talk to. He’s really good with us as well. He makes it so that he is a football player coaching a football player. That’s one of the best things that I like coming in every day, and being able to learn from a real football guy.”
Since Elder played for the New Orleans Breakers last two years, he was playing for a “hub” team, which meant they did not play any home games in New Orleans. Now, things would be different, as Elder and the Showboats will play five home games in Memphis.
“To have fans on a consistent basis, it’ll be great,” Elder said. “It’s nice when you feel your work is appreciated. It’s almost like another way of giving back, and they (the fans) are coming in, and spending their hard earned money to come to the games.”
With the Showboats opening game against the Roughnecks in a few days, don’t even think Elder is nervous about the season starting.
“I wouldn’t really say I’m nervous at all,” Elder explained. “It’s just all that hard work in the offseason, and now with the hard work in camp, you get to finally go out and prove everything you’ve done. Make sure the offseason weight training and the speed workouts really were real and you weren’t just wasting time.”
“I wouldn’t necessarily say I’m anxious. I’m just excited. Just to get back out there on the field, doing what I love to do, with these guys I have now had a month to build this bond with,” Elder said. “It’s special. Football is one of those things in life that you can spend two weeks with a guy and feel like you’ve known them your whole life. So, that’s kind of the feeling that I have in this locker room and I’m excited for that to be shown, and get out in front of our fans and play for them.”
The Showboats will kick off their 2024 season Sunday, March 31 at the Houston Roughnecks, with kickoff set for 2 p.m. CT. The season-opener will air on ESPN.
