The UFL kicks off its second season this weekend. The long-since merged USFL-XFL league begins a 12-week journey tonight to crown a 2025 champion, with many experts pegging the reigning three-peat champs, the Birmingham Stallions, as heavy favorites to retain their throne atop Spring Pro Football.
Before delving into this weekend’s slate, let’s kick this off with an immediate prediction for the UFL 2025 season.
UFL 2025 Champions
A year ago, the Stallions became the first outdoor pro football team to win three consecutive league championships since Edmonton’s CFL reign of glory in the eighties and the Green Bay Packers of the late 60s.
In 2024, Birmingham accomplished something the Kansas City Chiefs couldn’t in this past February’s Superbowl. Skip Holtz’s team won its third straight title and appears poised to pull off a fourth. Birmingham has what other spring league teams don’t possess, and that’s continuity. Meanwhile, other UFL teams have struggled to build, retain, or find a core. The Stallions continue to build upon theirs.
That’s why when the smoke clears on the 2025 UFL season, I believe that, like Superbowl halftime act Kendrick Lamar, Birmingham will once again prove that ‘they are not like us. ‘To insert a team for the Stallions to beat, I will peg a rematch with San Antonio for the 2025 UFL title game.
Week 1 UFL 2025 Games
March 28, 2025 – FOX UFL Friday
St. Louis Battlehawks vs. Houston Roughnecks
Location: TDECU Stadium, Houston, Texas
Kickoff: 8:00 PM ET (7:00 PM CT) on FOX.
The first of ten straight weeks of primetime Friday Night Football on FOX sees the UFL’s most identifiable team, the St. Louis Battlehawks, travel to Houston to square off with a Roughnecks team still trying to re-establish its identity. The CJ Johnson-led squad is back at the team’s old digs, TDECU stadium.
Houston has made some tweaks after a disappointing 1-9 2024 campaign. It has a new General Manager in Will Lewis, who helped shape a successful Roughneck team in 2020, and it has added grizzled veteran coach Tom Cable to coordinate the team’s ground attack.
Houston’s roster remains relatively the same as it was a year ago, but there have been some changes around the margins. One significant addition is former Ohio State standout cornerback Damon Arnette. A Texas native and the 2020 1st round selection by the Las Vegas Raiders, Arnette is not only seeking to revitalize his career but could also aid in revitalizing Houston’s defense.
However, the new arrival for Houston that could have the most impact is quarterback Anthony Brown. The 26-year-old, well-traveled, dual-threat signal-caller, whose most recent NFL stint occurred this past January with Buffalo, simulating former teammate Lamar Jackson in practices before a Bills playoff showdown against the Baltimore Ravens.
That type of pigeon-holed role has Brown seeking out the UFL for a chance to go from a stunt double to a main character. He gets that opportunity, starting against St. Louis tonight.
The Battlehawks are also turning a new corner, but in a different way. After two-straight 7-3 seasons, Anthony Becht’s St. Louis team has moved on from reliable veteran A.J. McCarron at quarterback. Instead, they are rolling with an unproven combo consisting of the returning Manny Wilkins and TCU standout/ former LA Chargers draft pick Max Duggan. Wilkins gets the first shot at making his new feature role stick on the road. He will be at the controls for a new offensive coordinator in Phil McGeoghan, who replaces Bruce Gradkowski, who landed his first NFL coaching job with Detroit.
Despite the uncertainty on offense and quarterback, oddsmakers have St. Louis as six-point road favorites. The weather forecast is calling for potential rain showers. A game environment conducive to two running-style quarterbacks in Brown and Wilkins. The possible conditions also lend themselves to a low-scoring affair. The current over/under point total is 37.5.
Prediction: No guts, no glory. The safe play here is to split the baby and call for a close St. Louis victory with a Houston cover. I will undoubtedly take the latter, but go one step further, and I am calling for the outright upset. BattleHawks have a lot of kinks to iron out early in their season. On the road, in the elements, it doesn’t seem like the ideal launch point for them.
Houston Roughnecks 18, St. Louis Battlehawks 16
Saturday, March 29, 2025 – Texas Rivalry
Arlington Renegades vs. San Antonio Brahmas
Location: Choctaw Stadium, Arlington, Texas
Kickoff: 4:00 PM ET (3:00 PM CT)
The Brahmas have a bitter taste from last season’s end. San Antonio upset the apple cart by ousting the Battlehawks in St. Louis for the XFL championship but couldn’t stand up to the Stallions for the UFL crown.
Wade Phillips, the oldest head coach in Pro Football, and his San Antonio bunch have unfinished business in 2025, and they are going to try and exact it with San Antonio’s own Kellen Mond taking over the reins at Quarterback. Like the Brahmas, Mond, the former third-round pick of the Minnesota Vikings, has much to prove this season. The Texas A&M star is getting an opportunity to lead a pro offense, which eluded him in the NFL.
From a newcomer in Spring Pro Football to its king, Luis Perez. The UFL’s passing leader in multiple categories last season and an XFL Champion is embarking upon his sixth season in the Spring. From the AAF to the UFL, Perez has progressed from his early struggles in Birmingham to one of the constants in the UFL.
Despite Perez’s growth as a quarterback and leader from year to year, Bob Stoops Renegades had a disappointing follow-up in 2024 to its improbable championship run in 2023. Arlington needs to get off to a better start in 2025 than they did a year ago when they lost their first six games en route to a 3-7 season.
With uncertainty in St. Louis and a shaken-up DC, Arlington can challenge for the top spot in the XFL conference. They must send a statement at home against San Antonio to accomplish that.
Prediction: San Antonio is a 3.5-point favorite on Saturday. With the forecast calling for rain in another part of the UFL’s Texas triad cities, an over/under of 37 makes sense, even though both teams have two of the league’s best passing attacks on paper. The Brahmas look significantly improved with the additions of Mond and Greg Ward. Spring league standout Chris Odom could play a pivotal role in rushing the passer for Arlington. He’s among the few new add-ons the Renegades made to their veteran bunch. Logic would dictate that the Brahmas are better after sweeping Arlington last season. But I am doubling down on craziness and going against the grain.
Arlington Renegades 25, San Antonio Brahmas 23
Sunday, March 30, 2025 – ESPN Doubleheader Sunday
Game 1: Michigan Panthers vs. Memphis Showboats
Location: Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium, Memphis, Tenn.
Kickoff: 2:00 PM ET (1:00 PM CT)
The Michigan Panthers, under the expert leadership of Mike Nolan and longtime exec Steve Kazor, showed excellent progression in 2024. They stepped up to challenge Birmingham for the USFL throne, going 7-3 after being a 4-6 team in 2023.
Michigan has many key pieces returning from last year’s ascent, including defensive stalwarts Frank Ginda, Breeland Speaks, and Levi Bell. But they did lose last year’s breakout sensation, kicker Jake Bates, who also took the NFL by storm last season. Bates was a difference maker in the Panthers’ winning close games, which improved their win total from 4 to 7.
The most significant piece for Michigan this season is quarterback Bryce Perkins. He showed great promise late last year and has been given the keys to the Panthers’ offense. Perkins will need to elevate his level of play for Michigan to challenge for the crown again.
Conversely, Memphis doesn’t look ready to progress like Michigan did a year ago. A 2 win 2024 saw the Showboats reshaped its staff in the off-season, but unfortunately, just days before the start of the 2025 campaign, its captain, Ken Whisenhunt, had to jump ship for personal reasons.
Line coach Jim Turner takes over the controls in Whisenhunt’s stead. Despite appointing Jim Monos as the new GM and a coaching shakeup, Memphis didn’t make many significant changes to a team that won only two games. The lone addition that could move the needle for them is quarterback E.J. Perry, who has shown flashes of brilliance in his spring league run. If he becomes more consistent, Memphis should be more competitive than they were in 2024.
Prediction: The Panthers are surprisingly only 3.5-point favorites in this one, despite last year’s sweep by Michigan and recent developments. As a result, this is an easy game to predict, but sometimes, in football, the most apparent choice is the wrong one. Nevertheless, I don’t foresee a Memphis victory. The Panthers’ defense will keep this game under the popular projected point total of 37 for UFL games this weekend.
Prediction: Michigan Panthers 22 Memphis Showboats 11
Game 2: Birmingham Stallions vs. D.C. Defenders
Location: Audi Field, Washington, D.C.
Kickoff: 6:30 PM ET
The final game of UFL’s opening weekend looked like a potential championship game preview before Reggie Barlow returned to FCS play in favor of leading the Defenders. Perhaps it will still be, but the sudden change makes D.C.’s chances of starting strong and upsetting the league champs, albeit at home, much more challenging.
Before they head off to join Barlow at Tennessee State, Shannon Harris assumes the interim head coaching role. The team’s two coordinators, Fred Kaiss (offense) and Gregg Williams (defense), are still intact, so the transition may not be as messy as one would expect.
D.C., put together by GM Von Hutchins, boasts one of the UFL’s most talented rosters, featuring returning XFL leading rusher Abram Smith. On paper, D.C. and its smashmouth play style match up well with Birmingham. That proved the case in the Stallions’ nail-biting 20-18 victory over the Defenders last season in sloppy conditions at Protective Stadium.
Birmingham is returning the majority of its championship core but has added some of the league’s best new arrivals, as it has typically done since 2022. These include defensive players Ronnie Perkins and Perrion Winfrey, two high-end recent NFL draft picks. However, the most impactful addition from a year ago is the return of USFL 2023 MVP quarterback Alex McGough.
Prediction: A clean sweep of road teams in Week 1. That’s the oddity you won’t see in many other leagues. But that’s where I am headed with this one. The Defenders crowd could be Birmingham’s stiffest road challenge since 2022, when most of its games have been at home or in less charged-up atmospheres. The Defenders can hang with the Stallions, and I expect this to be a higher-scoring affair than most UFL games. Oddsmakers have the point total at 41, but it’s hard to bet against Skip Holtz’s Stallions, who are justifiable seven-point favorites.
Birmingham Stallions 31 Defenders 20
2 Comments
by Ken Granito
Let’s just say the Alamo looked like a better fight than I saw last night. Horrible for the league that it was the first game of the season, but it’s a good thing for the Roughnecks as they can get on the phone as early as today to get some players in for Monday’s practice. There were literally 4 plays on defense where the defender aggressively faced the offensive player. In some plays it was due to lack of caring, but more often the defenders were uncertain how to act, like they were learning the game yesterday. I understand why Will Lewis signed some of the players he signed this off-season. After seeing the Roughnecks play carelessly last year, I imagine he wanted to see people play that he knew would play with the team concept. All I can say is that was absolutely awful. The Battlehawks need to have another game to just if they have was real or if it was the complete ineptitude of the Roughnecks or is it more the Battlehawks played a complete game. It is fair to say that the Roughnecks would have lost to the Hal Mumme’s San Antonio Caballeros last night. This was great for the IFA. I like Curtis Johnson, but he is going to have to show me a little more with regards to details. I feel the uncertainty was due to the team really not knowing what it was supposed to be doing. I can’t look to see who is available, but all these players are on my prospect list and will likely be available. Bobby Evans & Matt Kaskey for the O-Line. Daylon Mack to help Olive Sagapolu to stop the run on a rotation. Wyatt Ray, Delontae Scott, Ethan Westbrooks to apply pressure. Joey Alfieri, Anthony Butler, Gabriel Sewell, Elijah Sullivan, De’Juan Hines. Hell even Dale Warren signed a LOI with the IFA so he likely is willing to play for the Roughnecks. Do forget Carson Wells. For the Defensive backfield. DJ Swearinger, (He might get beat deep from time to time, but he will close in on a runner and HIT him). Jarey Elder, Paris Ford, Nevelle Clarke, Reggie Northrup, Vontae Diggs Nate Holley. There are literally a busload of help out there if you only get on the phone. On offense KD Cannon, Keke Coutee (former Texans, can only help) Cyril Grayson, Vinny Papale, Darrius Sheppard, Josh Simmons and Bryan Scott QB if you feel he will help. He will be on with the specifics. Just get some help.
by Ken Granito
Don’t forget Carson Wells.