Trey Dean and Elijhah Badger both played college football at the University of Florida. They were on opposite sides of the UFL matchup between the St. Louis Battlehawks and Orlando Storm on Saturday.
It led to some Gator-on-Gator crime.
Dean committed one of the most ridiculous and unnecessary late hits in UFL history. He was ejected.
Elijhah Badger was already out of bounds…
Trey Dean played safety at Florida from 2018-2022. He went undrafted in 2023 and spent a few years on the practice squad with the New York Jets, Kansas City Chiefs and Cleveland Browns before he ultimately turned to the United Football League.
The 6-foot-2, 200-pound 26-year-old played played last season with the D.C. Defenders. He is a current member of the Saint Louis Battlehawks.
Elijhah Badger has a similar story but it did not take him as long to transition to spring football. The California-native played fours seasons of college football at Arizona State from 2020-2023. He later transferred to Florida in 2024 and went undrafted in 2025.
Badger, a 6-foot-1, 200-pound wide receiver, was waived by the Kansas City Chiefs as part of final roster cuts back in August as an undrafted free agent. The Orlando Storm of the UFL picked him up in January.
The Storm played the Battlehawks on Saturday. It was a blowout during the first half. St. Louis went up 25-0 but Orlando came storming back (pun intended) during the second half to lose by only eight points.
Dean helped to spark the comeback with a ridiculous penalty during the third quarter. He hit Badger on the sideline even though Badger was very clearly out of bounds.
Trey Dean was ejected by the UFL for a late hit.
Elijhah Badger caught a pass for a first down near the 45-yard-line. He broke a tackle just inside the white boundary line before he stepped onto the sideline. The play was over.
Badger was fully out of bounds for a full two-second count before Trey Dean came flying in from the numbers to lower his shoulder (and his head) to deliver a hit. It was late. Very late.
Trey Dean is absolutely crazy for this 😭😭.
— LanePFN (@LanePFN) April 26, 2026
WHAT is going on in the UFL???
He was immediately ejected. #UFL pic.twitter.com/Gt4jf7lMwi
Badger responded to the hit with three emojis: “🚮🚮🚮”
Dean was immediately ejected from the UFL contest for the Florida-on-Florida crime. Rightfully so.
Maybe he had PTSD from the John Metchie tackle in 2020 and wanted his revenge.
The UFL has not announced any further penalty as of this writing but I would not be surprised if his actions lead to a suspension. You can’t make that hit. Badger was so clearly out of bounds.