20% of the way through the UFL season probably isn’t the best time to start thinking about the championship. But, when you’ve won three straight championships, it’s hard not to look at things through a championship lens.
So that begs the question, is the 2025 version of the Birmingham Stallions a championship-caliber squad?
Two weeks into the season, the results are mixed.
The week one loss hurt.
The week two win (21-12 over the Michigan Panthers) helped.
Offense
The offense looked much better in week two than it did in week one.
That’s a little surprising considering that starting QB Alex McGough went down on the first offensive play of the game.
Thankfully, Matt Corral once again proved to be more than up to the task. His stats were respectable:
- 18–29
- 198 yards passing
- 1 TD
- 2 INT
Corral needs to do a better job taking care of the ball (he was two drops away from a 4 INT day), but it was a good game overall.
Ricky Person Jr also had a respectable day. After only receiving 6 carries in the first game, he put up the following stat line:
- 17 carries
- 53 yards
- 1 TD
His 3.1 yards per carry average doesn’t do him justice. He ran the ball well and broke a lot of tackles. The extra emphasis on establishing the running game bodes well for whoever is under center for the Stallions going forward.
The biggest stat of the game was 0.
That’s the number of sacks allowed by the OL. After allowing 8 sacks in week one, it was nice to see the OL step up in a big way.
Defense
The defense has been the star of the show for the Stallions this season.
They gave up zero points through the first three quarters. Most of the yards and all of the points allowed came after the game was pretty well over.
The entire defense has been playing well, but the defensive line deserves a lot of credit. In week one, it was all about the batted balls. In week two, they finally started to get home with 3 sacks.
The defense’s early-season performance isn’t lost on the coaching staff. In the post-game press conference, Coach Holtz mentioned the effect the defensive success has on his decision-making.
"I felt like, you know what? Let’s just punt the ball away if we can’t get a first down and make them go 80 yards against our defense. I felt really good about the way our defense was playing today." Coach Holtz
Special Teams
The Birmingham Stallions' special-teams group has flown under the radar somewhat. This group has been playing well so far this season.
Harrison Mevis is 4 for 4 on his field goal attempts this season. That kind of accuracy will be a weapon in close games.
The return game has done its part in giving the Stallions good starting field position.
Deon Cain has averaged over 30 yards per kick return this season. Davion Davis averaged 17.3 yards per punt return against Michigan.
Special teams doesn’t always get the spotlight, but it’s a huge part of winning championships.
The Verdict
After two weeks, I’ll be honest, I’m not 100% sold on the Stallions as a championship team. Previous versions of the team have felt better.
However, it’s only been two weeks, and things change quickly.
Both the defense and special teams have proven themselves capable of making a run at a 4-peat. The offense, not yet, but they’re moving in the right direction.
The offense was much improved in week two, and if that improvement continues, the Stallion will be tough to beat.
It is worth mentioning that the USFL conference looks very winnable.
The Roughnecks and Showboats are sitting at 0–2, and they already hold a win over the Panthers.
Anything can happen once you get into the playoffs, including winning a fourth straight championship.