Jason Bean went down in the third quarter of the United Bowl, and that was the ballgame. The DC Defenders quarterback, already playing on a hurt shoulder for weeks, couldn't return, and the Louisville Kings smelled blood in the water. Down 16-7 at halftime and getting nothing going on offense, Louisville flipped the script and won 27-20 in front of a sold-out crowd of over 19,000 at Audi Field, capturing the franchise's first championship in its debut season.
"Your starting quarterback is the head of the snake," said Anita Marks on The UFL Show. "How do you kill a snake? You cut off its head. And unfortunately, that's exactly what happened to DC."
DC turned to E.J. Perry, signed just three weeks earlier, with Jordan Ta'amu already lost to injury earlier in the season. Louisville's defense smothered the Defenders in the second half, holding them to just four points and 2-of-12 on third down. Ian Wheeler broke a 40-plus-yard touchdown, Cam Dantzler came up with a huge interception, and the Kings never let go. Matt McCrane kept DC's hopes alive late with a 4-point, 60-plus-yard field goal to make it a one-score game, but Louisville closed it out and took home the trophy.
A Hometown Story for the Ages
For Kings head coach Chris Redmond, this one hit different. Born and raised in Louisville, a third-generation player at the University of Louisville, Redmond brought a championship back to his own city in the franchise's first season.
"This is my hometown. Like, a lot of these coaches, they're coaching for a team and maybe in the same state they're from, but Louisville is where I was born and raised. I won a high school state championship here with my dad, and I was the third generation to play at the University of Louisville. My ties go really, really deep in Louisville." — Chris Redmond
The road there wasn't smooth. Louisville opened the season 0-3 before Redmond made changes he admitted weren't popular with everyone.
"Our 0-3 start easily could have been 2-1. We knew we weren't far off. We just needed a little bit of chemistry change. I had a gut feeling after the Houston game that I needed to change drastically if I wanted to make a run at it... starting 0-3 and finishing out on top was just an incredible story and something I don't think any of us will ever forget." — Chris Redmond
At halftime of the United Bowl, trailing 16-7, Redmond's message stayed simple. "I said, hey guys, let's hang together and we're not far off. Let's don't get frustrated, let's stay the course," he said. "The game ended up kind of like our season, a slow start. And these guys know how to finish."
The Hardware: Plummer, Beck, Gill, and Butler Get Their Due
Orlando Storm quarterback Jack Plummer walked away with league MVP after throwing 17 touchdowns against very few interceptions, guiding an 8-2 Storm team built almost entirely from scratch to the No. 1 seed. Cornell Powell of the DC Defenders took home Sportsman of the Year. Cam Gill of the Kings earned Defensive Player of the Year after racking up 10 sacks and helping fuel Louisville's turnaround.
Anthony Beck won Coach of the Year for guiding Orlando to that 8-2 finish in the franchise's first season under his watch. Beck credited the buy-in from his locker room.
"It's about people, it's about coaches, it's about players, and this is what you get when those guys buy in and you have a staff that works diligently towards a goal. We're going to have guys that are being training camps in the NFL. We have the MVP of the league here as well. And so those are the victories that don't get counted on the wins and losses that I really cherish the most." — Anthony Beck
Battlehawks wide receiver Hakeem Butler took Offensive Player of the Year after posting 29 catches for 641 yards and 3 touchdowns in just nine games, leading the league in receiving yards and yards per reception. And Butler had news of his own to share in his acceptance interview.
"This feels good, man. I'm happy about it to get honored. It's an individual award, but it's definitely team-based, so I'm thankful... Honestly, signing tomorrow with the Denver Broncos, for another opportunity in the NFL, man." — Hakeem Butler
Butler also credited Battlehawks head coach Rick Neuheisel's staff for his development, singling out what he learned working under a coaching staff with heavy NFL pedigree. Tanner Brown took home Special Teams Player of the Year after going 25-of-28 on field goals, and Corey Chamberlain earned Assistant Coach of the Year after building St. Louis into the league's top defense, one that finished with 31 sacks, the second-highest single-season total in UFL history.
Who's Getting the Call?
With the season over, attention turns to who lands an NFL camp invite. Ian Wheeler tops the running back list after a breakout year that started with a four-touchdown explosion against Dallas in Week 5. Butler headlines a deep receiver class that could see 10 to 12 names get calls. Plummer leads the quarterbacks, with Chandler Rodgers and Austin Reed also in the mix.
On defense, Cam Gill and Tay Crowder stand out — Crowder broke the UFL's single-season tackles record playing for Birmingham. And then there's the kicking duo of Matt McCrane and Tanner Brown, who turned the league's new 4-point, 60-plus-yard field goal rule into must-see TV all season.
"Matt McCrane kicked 4 60-plus yard field goals. He's the first professional kicker to ever record 4 or more in a season. It's never even happened in the NFL. Brandon Aubrey had the previous record of 3, and Matt McCrane just did it 4 times." — Ethan Burch
Redmond, for his part, is already fielding calls about his own guys. "There's going to be a lot of guys that get opportunities," he said. "I'm real confident we're going to have some guys making some teams this year and the UFL is going to be really proud of the product they're sending to the NFL."
A first-year franchise just won it all, a coach brought a title home to his own city, and a wave of UFL talent is about to test itself against NFL competition. However next spring shakes out, the Kings have set the bar.