Special Teams Carry Birmingham Stallions to 7-0 Over Maulers, 26 – 16
All season long the Birmingham Stallions have proven to be the most complete team in the USFL. In week 7 when the Stallions picked up victory #7, the team saw key contributions from the offense, defense, and special teams. With just three weeks remaining could we see the first-ever undefeated team in the USFL?
All season long the Birmingham Stallions have proven to be the most complete team in the USFL. In week 7 when the Stallions picked up victory #7, the team saw key contributions from the offense, defense, and special teams. With just three weeks remaining could we see the first-ever undefeated team in the USFL?
Birmingham stays undefeated with a victory over Pittsburgh in week 7. Heading into week 8 Birmingham is now 7-0 since turning the keys of the offense over to J’Mar Smith. However, it was their special teams unit, not their offense that scored a touchdown first.
Special Teams Unit Scores First
On the strength of a fake punt, that was executed to perfection, fullback Bobby Holly rumbles 52 yards for a touchdown. Bo Scarbrough again managed to lead the running game with over 100 yards on the ground in back-to-back weeks.
Despite the offense not scoring a touchdown in the first half, Brandon Aubrey managed to make 2 field goals and help the Stallions to 13 points following the fake punt. It didn’t take long for the offense to follow suit.
Two-Headed Rushing Attack
In the fourth quarter, Cj Marable punched it in for a touchdown on only his second carry of the afternoon. The Stallions saw five different players run the ball for a total of 37 attempts for 200 yards and 2 touchdowns.
If Birmingham continues to run the ball like this on the strength of back-to-back 100 yard performances by bell-cow back Bo Scarbrough, they may not even need wide receivers by the time the playoffs roll around. With Scarbrough, Buddy Holly, Cj Marable, and Tony Brooks-James all showing their value in week 7, I don’t expect the run game to slow down by any means.
On a day that saw Birmingham so short-handed that backup quarterback Alex McGough played at wide receiver following an injury to Victor Bolden, the Stallions still managed to find a running game to carry the offense to victory.
Injury Attrition an Issue in Week 8?
Alex McGough has been seeing more and more time on offense, but I don’t think anyone expected him to play at wide receiver even in an emergency. This just goes to show, that even with 40-man active rosters, and 10-man practice squads, the coaches could use the benefit of more flexibility in roster construction before game day.
With the injury list piling up with seven games down and three more to go, we could see the injuries start to take a real toll on the Stallions headed into their first experience without home-field advantage all season long when they travel to Canton.
The @usflstallions have booked their ticket to the inaugural USFL Playoffs! 🐎🐎🐎
Watch the moment Head Coach Skip Holtz reads the team's official invitation to Canton, Ohio ✉️🏆 pic.twitter.com/lL9DzuBJN9
Heading into week 8 with a spotless record, the very banged-up Birmingham Stallions take on the New Orleans Breakers who are suffering from injury attrition themselves. Could we see a team win a game in week 8 simply because they are healthier than the opposing roster?
