Josh Banderas (born February 22, 1995) is an American football linebacker who is a free agent. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at Nebraska.

Early life and education

Banderas was born on February 22, 1995, in Lincoln, Nebraska. He attended Lincoln Southwest High School, where he was a two-way starter in football. Although originally focusing on linebacker in his first two years, he played running back as well in his final season. Despite playing in just five games as a sophomore, Banderas made 30 tackles. In his junior season, Banderas made a total of 127 tackles. As a senior, he ran 189 times for 1,237 and scored 18 touchdowns on offense, while making 119 tackles and two interceptions on defense. For his performance, Banderas was named honorary captain of the '' Omaha World-Herald'' and '' Lincoln Journal-Star'' all-state teams. Banderas was a four-star prospect and committed to the University of Nebraska over offers from Iowa, Tulsa, Vanderbilt, and Kansas State, among others. As a freshman, he played in every game and was a starter in four games, making 28 tackles and two sacks. As a sophomore, he appeared in 12 games and started six, making 50 tackles. Against

USC USC most often refers to: * University of South Carolina, a public research university ** University of South Carolina System, the main university and its satellite campuses **South Carolina Gamecocks, the school athletic program * University of ...

, Banderas made a career-high 14 tackles. As a junior in 2015, Banderas was a starter at middle linebacker in nine games and ranked among the team's top tacklers with 61 stops. He led the school with 93 tackles as a senior and earned honorable mention all-conference honors.

Professional career

After going unselected in the

2017 NFL Draft The 2017 NFL Draft was the 82nd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. It was held in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art on April 27–29, returning to Philadelphia f ...

, Banderas was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Denver Broncos. He was released in July. After spending 2018 out of football, Banderas signed with the Salt Lake Stallions of the

Alliance of American Football The Alliance of American Football (AAF) was a professional American football minor league. The AAF consisted of eight centrally owned and operated teams in the southern and western United States, seven of which were located in metropolitan are ...

(AAF) in 2019. He appeared in eight games with the team and made seven tackles before the league folded. In , Banderas was signed by the Edmonton Football Team of the Canadian Football League (CFL), but the season was cancelled. In 2021, Banderas played for the Generals of The Spring League. Banderas was selected in the 21st round of the

2022 USFL draft The 2022 USFL Draft, also known as the 2022 USFL Player Selection Meeting, was the player selection process to fill the rosters of the eight teams for the 2022 USFL season. The draft was held on February 22–23, 2022, with results released throug ...

by the Philadelphia Stars. He was transferred to the team's inactive roster on April 30, 2022. He was moved back to the active roster on May 5. Banderas finished the 2022 season with six games played, 45 tackles and 2.0 sacks.

Early life and education

Professional career

Coaching career

Personal life

References

Further reading