The Michigan Panthers on Sunday waived 15 players to get down to 58 players. It was the first roster cut date as teams were required to cut down to 58 players on Sunday and will have 2 weeks until the final roster cut date when they will be required to cut down to 50 players.
The list of players waived includes ex-Michigan State quarterback, Brian Lewerke, receivers Lance Lenoir and Garett Maag, tight end Nick Guggemos, and offensive tackles Denzel Okafor, Phil Saleh, LaColby Tucker. On the defensive side, the players waived include cornerback Keandre Evans, safeties Shalom Luani, Jamal Perry, Cory Rahman, Warren Saba, linebacker Isaac Darkangelo, and defensive tackle Damion Daniels. The Panthers have also waived Cole Murphy who served as their kicker over the last 2 seasons.
Damion Daniels, DT, Nebraska (24 y/o, 6’3, 325 lbs)
Damion Daniels was the most recently signed player to the Michigan Panthers having joined the team just last week Wednesday. He played in 41 games for Nebraska where he contributed 24 solo tackles and 73 assisted tackles. He was an Honorable Mention All-bit Ten in 2021 by Coaches and Media.
Daniels was signed by the Houston Texans in 2022 as an undrafted free agent although he was waived on August 16 of 2022. He played 1 game for the St Louis Battlehawks in the XFL and 3 games for the Houston Gamblers in the USFL in 2023.
Isaac Darkangelo, ILB, Illinois (23 y/o, 6’1, 230 lbs)
Isaac Darkangelo signed with the Michigan Panthers in late December and was among the players they protected ahead of the dispersal draft. He played for Illinois from 2020 to 2022 where he played in 26 games contributing 46 solo tackles, 29 assisted tackles, 7.5 tackles for a loss, a sack, and a fumble recovery. He was Academic All-Big Ten in 2021 and 2022.
Keandre Evans, CB, Ouachita Baptist (26 y/o, 5’11, 180 lbs)
Keandre Evans played in 41 games from 2015 to 2019 for Ouachita Baptist generating 165 solo tackles, 44 assisted tackles, 48 passes defended, 10.5 tackles for a loss, 0 interceptions, and a forced fumble.
Evans played in 6 games for the Panthers last season and made 1 solo tackle and 1 assisted tackle. was among the players protected by the Panthers ahead of the dispersal draft.
Nick Guggemos, TE, St. Thomas (MN) (28 y/o, 6’4, 248 lbs)
Nick Guggemos played receiver at St. Thomas at the D3 level. His collegiate career was limited due to injuries and he finished with one reception for 8 yards. He was also a sprinter and jumper in track and field. Despite his limited playing time in college, Guggemos caught the attention of NFL scouts in 2021 when he displayed a 4.49 40-yard dash and 38.5 in vertical.
Guggemos was signed by the Panthers on January 19.
Lance Lenoir, WR, Western Illinois (29 y/o, 5’11, 210 lbs)
Lance Lenoir played for the Michigan Panthers in 2022 when he led the USFL in receptions catching 52 passes for 484 yards and 2 touchdowns. He was also 2nd in receiving yards over the regular season. He played for the Orlando Guardians in the XFL in 2023 where he played in 4 games with 3 starts catching 9 passes for 99 yards.
Lenoir played his collegiate football for Western Illinois from 2013 to 2016. He became the program’s all-time leader in receptions (273), yards (3,796), touchdowns (28), 100-yard games (14), 200-yard games (2), and consecutive games with a catch (41).
He signed with the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2017 and appeared in 8 games for Dallas over the next 2 seasons. He spent time with different NFL practice squads from 2019 to 2021. After his impressive season with the Michigan Panthers in 2022, he was signed to the Los Angeles Rams’ practice squad in late December of 2022 for the remainder of the season.
Lenoir was signed to the 2024 Panthers roster in late February.
Brian Lewerke, QB, Michigan State (27 y/o, 6’3, 210 lbs)
Brian Lewerke played for Michigan State from 2015 to 2019 appearing in 40 games with 37 starts. He completed 721 of his 1,249 passes (57.7%) with the Spartans for 8,293 yards and 47 touchdowns with 32 interceptions. He added 1,258 yards rushing on 346 rushes and 10 rushing touchdowns.
Lewerke signed with the New England Patriots as an undrafted Free Agent in 2020 although he was waived on September 5 of 2020. He signed with the New York Giants ahead of the 2021 season and was waived in May of 2022.
Lewerke was among the players protected by the Panthers ahead of the dispersal draft. He joined the Panthers late last season although he did not have a passing attempt.
Shalom Luani, S, Washington State (29 y/o, 6’0, 201 lbs)
Shalom Luani was acquired by the Michigan Panthers in the first phase of the UFL Dispersal Draft. He played for the New Jersey Generals in the USFL over the past 2 seasons contributing 57 solo tackles, 19 assisted tackles, 6 interceptions, and a sack.
Luani played his last 2 seasons of collegiate football for Washington State after his first 2 seasons playing for City College of San Francisco. He played in 25 games for Washington State generating 113 solo tackles, 44 assisted tackles, 2 sacks, 8 interceptions, and a touchdown. He was All Pac 12 in 2016.
He was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in 2017 in the 7th round and appeared in 16 games with the Raiders in 2017. He played in 15 games over the 2018 and 2019 seasons with the Seattle Seahawks. Over 31 NFL games, he has made 21 solo tackles and 7 assisted tackles.
Luani used to make an impact on the soccer pitch and was a former player of the American Somoa youth teams before earning 8 caps at the senior level. In 2011 he scored 2 of Samoa’s 5 goals in the first round of the Oceania Football Confederation Fifa World Cup Qualification. This helped Samoa qualify for the 2012 OFC Nations Cup.
Garett Maag, WR, North Dakota (24 y/o, 6’4, 206 lbs)
Garrett Maag played for North Dakota from 2018 to 2022 appearing in 50 games with 40 starts. He caught 164 passes for 2,205 yards and 19 touchdowns with the program. He signed with the Minnesota Vikings as an undrafted free agent in 2023 although he was waived on August 28.
Maag signed with the Panthers in October and was among the players protected by the Panthers ahead of the dispersal draft.
Cole Murphy, K, Syracuse (27 y/o, 6’3, 215 lbs)
Cole Murphy was acquired by the Panthers in the 4th round of the UFL Super Draft this past offseason. He played for the Michigan Panthers over the last 2 seasons although he was not among the 40 players protected ahead of the UFL Dispersal Draft. Murphy made 25 of his 30 field goal attempts with the Panthers and made 22 of his 28 extra points. He made all 16 of his field goals within 40 yards.
Murphy played for Syracuse from 2014 to 2017 where he appeared in 48 games and made 59 of his 83 field goals. He also made 118 of his 123 extra points with the program.
Denzel Okafor, T, Texas (26 y/o, 6’4, 322 lbs)
Denzel played for Texas from 2016 to 2021 where he played in 48 games with 18 starts. He was Academic All-big 12 in 2021.
Okafor signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars as an undrafted free agent in May of 2022 although he was waived 8 days later. He played for the Michigan Panthers in 2023 appearing in 2 games. He was not among the 40 players protected heading into the UFL dispersal draft but was signed by the team in mid-February.
Jamal Perry, S, Iowa State (29 y/o, 5’10, 182 lbs)
Jamal Perry played for Iowa State in 2015 and 2016 after his first 2 seasons playing for Trinity Valley CC. At Iowa State, he made 57 solo tackles, 23 assisted tackles, 17 passes defended and 2 interceptions.
He signed with the Philadelphia Eagles as an undrafted free agent in 2017 and was waived in early September. He spent 2017 and 2018 on the New England Patriots’ practice squad. From 2019 to 2021 he appeared in 31 games with the Miami Dolphins contributing 57 solo tackles, 23 assisted tackles, 7 pass deflections, and an interception. He was released from the Dolphins on August 29, 2023.
Perry was signed by the Panthers this past January.
Cory Rahman, S, Tennessee State (24 y/o, 6’1, 200 lbs)
Cory Rahman played his final season of college ball for Tennessee State in 2021. He made 41 solo tackles, 24 assisted tackles, 6 passes defended, 5.5 tackles for a loss, 2 interceptions, and a sack over 11 games.
Rahman made 13 solo tackles and 2 assisted tackles playing for the Panthers in 2022. He played in 2 games last season making 2 solo tackles and 2 assisted tackles. He resigned with the Panthers in September and was among the players protected by the Panthers ahead of the dispersal draft.
Warren Saba, S, East Carolina (26 y/o, 5’9, 189 lbs)
Warren Saba played for East Carolina from 2018 to 2021 after playing for Garden City CC in 2017. He generated 65 solo tackles, 40 assisted tackles, 17 passes defended, 6 interceptions, 5 tackles for a loss, and a sack with East Carolina.
Saba missed the 2022 season due to injury. In 2023 he played in 10 games for the Michigan Panthers contributing 24 solo tackles, 6 assisted tackles, and 2 interceptions. He was among the players protected by the Panthers ahead of the dispersal draft.
Phil Saleh, T, Fordham (23 y/o, 6’4, 303 lbs)
Phil Saleh played for Fordham from 2018 to 2022 where he was a 4 year starter. He started at left tackle in 2022 and had started prior to that season at center and right tackle. He was named First Team All-Patriot League in 2022, 2021, and 2020 and was Second Team in 2019. He was Second Team FCS All-American by the coaches in 2022.
Saleh signed with the Panthers in August and was among the players protected by the Panthers ahead of the dispersal draft.
LaColby Tucker, T, Missouri Southern State (26 y/o, 6’9, 313 lbs)
LaColby Tucker played 2 seasons at Garden City Community College before transferring to Missouri Southern State as the 12th-ranked JUCO offensive tackle in the nation.
Tucker was signed by the Atlanta Falcons as an undrafted free agent on August 7 2023 although he was released on August 15. He was signed by the Michigan Panthers in early February.
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