Ex-Cal QB Chandler Rogers Leads Louisville's UFL Surge

Chandler Rogers began the 2026 United Football League season as a backup quarterback, much like he did at Cal in 2024, when he was the No. 2 quarterback behind Fernando Mendoza.

He never replaced Mendoza as a starter two years ago, but he took over as the starter for the Louisville Kings this season after the Kings started 1-3. In his four starts since taking over, the Kings are 3-1, including Saturday's 33-30 victory over the DC Defenders.

That pushes the 4-4 Kings into fourth place in the eight-team UFL standings with two regular-season games left, and that is important because the top four teams advance to the playoffs.

In Saturday's victory Rogers completed 11-of-20 passes for 143 yards, one touchdowns and one interception. He also ran the ball six times for 26 yards.

His one scoring pass proved to be the game-winner. Rogers' 24-yard touchdown pass to Isaiah Westhead gave the Kings a 33-24 lead with 7:43 remaining in the game.

WHY NOT SIX MORE?!

Isaiah Winstead wide open for the TD! pic.twitter.com/F7Q1EgqiSG
— Louisville Kings (@UFLKings) May 16, 2026

The Defenders drove downfield for a touchdown with 28 seconds to go and could have tied the game with the UFL's option to attempt a three-point conversion from the 8-yard line. But Spencer Sanders' pass fell incomplete on the failed conversion.

The Defenders still had a chance to win or tie because of another UFL rule, which allows a trailing team to keep the ball if it can convert a 4th-and-12 play rather than kick off following a score

Sanders threw another incompletion on that fourth-and-12 play to end the game.

Another former Cal player, defensive end Xavier Carlton, was also in the Kings starting lineup on Saturday. He recorded two tackles against the Defenders and has 22 tackles and five sacks for the season.

But Rogers has been the key component of Louisville's surge up the standings. For the season, he has completed 70-of117 passes (59.8 percent) for 853 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions. He has also run for 69 yards.

Rogers said his approach has not changed much from the beginning of the season when he was not a starter.

"Honestly, it's never changed," he said, according to WHAS-11 TV in Louisville. "I'm a competitor, so coming into camp, I just, you know, do whatever, do whatever I need to do to become the guy, and I have to earn my keeping out that I am the guy.

"My role is the leader, and just make everything operate, really just playing and being a point guard,. If anything, we have great receivers, great running backs, amazing off the line, so those are the playmakers."

This was the Kings' second win in two weeks over the Defenders, who were in first place before the Kings beat them last week.

Rogers never got a chance at Cal, where he played behind Mendoza, who would win the Heisman Trophy the next season at Indiana and become the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL draft.

Rogers played in eight games for Cal in 2024, but attempted just 25 passes, completing 12 for 117 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions.

As a trasnsfer from North Texas, Rogers competed with Mendoza for the starting job in the 2024 preseason. But Mendoza, who had become a starter midway through the 2023 season, hung onto the starting job and performed well enough to remain the Bears' No. 1 quarterback as a redshirt sophomore..

Now Rogers is showing what he can do in a pro spring league. He was the first Kings player to express his satisfaction after Saturday's victory in this video:

TALK TO ‘EM 😮‍💨@neweracap pic.twitter.com/DkC0Ny28Pj
— Louisville Kings (@UFLKings) May 16, 2026

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