Game Summary: St. Louis Battlehawks at Birmingham Stallions, Saturday 11 May, 2024

• St. Louis Battlehawks (5-1) at Birmingham Stallions (6-0)
• Saturday, May 11 at 3:00 PM CT (4:00 PM ET)
• Protective Stadium, Birmingham, AL
• Attendance: 14,056
• Network: ESPN (Streaming)
• Announcers: Curt Menefee (Play-by-Play), Joel Klatt (Analyst), Brock Huard (Sideline Reporter), Mike Pereira (Rules Analyst)
• Odds: Birmingham -3.5, O/U 47.5 (DraftKings)

The St. Louis Battlehawks and Birmingham Stallions met in a clash of the two top teams in the UFL, as well as the top two offenses in the league. The Battlehawks led the UFL with 173 points scored through six games, while the Stallions had scored 171 points. Both teams sat in sole possession of first place in their respective conferences. St. Louis led the XFL Conference at 5-1, and Birmingham paced the USFL Conference at 6-0.

The game was a homecoming for Battlehawks quarterback A.J. McCarron, born in Mobile, Alabama, and who played for the University of Alabama in nearby Tuscaloosa, from 2009–13. He won three BCS national championships with the Crimson Tide (2010, 2012–13) and is one of the two quarterbacks, along with Georgia’s Stetson Bennett (2022–23), to win consecutive national titles.

People were touting this game as a potential championship preview. In the lead-up to this game, ticket sales seemed robust, and an extra boost of fans did show up to cheer on the hometown Stallions.

Birmingham’s Ramiz Ahmed kicked off 65 yards and Darrius Shepherd returned the ball to the St. Louis 39. St. Louis quarterback A.J. McCarron passed incomplete to Jacob Saylors, and then handed to Jahcour Pearson for an 8-yard gain. On third down, a pass to Hakeem Butler fell incomplete and the Battlehawks were forced to punt.

The Sterling Hofrichter punt was returned to the Birmingham 9-yard line by Isaiah Zuber. Birmingham quarterback Adrian Martinez handed to Ricky Person for a 3-yard gain, and then completed a 4-yard pass to Deon Cain. On third down, Martinez was sacked for a 5-yard loss and the Stallions were forced to punt.

Drue Chrisman punted the ball 58 yards, and it was returned by Shepherd to the St. Louis 47-yard line. McCarron passed to Jacob Saylors for a gain of 3 yards, but an offensive holding penalty pushed them back 10 yards. McCarron passed to Hakeem Butler for an 8-yard gain, and then a Saylors rush lost 3 yards. On third down, a McCarron pass was intercepted and returned to the St. Louis 31-yard line.

Martinez pass short left to Kevin Austin for a gain of 12 yards, and then handed to C.J. Marable, but an offensive holding penalty pushed them back 10 yards. Martinez rushed 21 yards for a first down on the St. Louis 8-yard line, and then he passed incomplete to Cain in the end zone. Stallions head coach Skip Holtz challenged the play for defensive pass interference. The challenge was successful and the ball was placed on the 1-yard line. Martinez handed to Marable for a 1-yard run and a Stallions touchdown. The two-point conversion failed, making the score 6-0 for Birmingham.

The Ahmed kickoff was returned by Darrius Shepherd to the St. Louis 35-yard line. McCarron passed to Mitchell for a 12-yard gain, and then handed to Saylors for a 2-yard gain. A short pass to Butler gained 1 yard, and then on third and 7, McCarron threw a screen pass to Shepherd that gained 11 yards for a first down just past midfield.

A.J. McCarron scrambled 23 yards to the Birmingham 26, and then a throw to Jahcour Pearson was almost intercepted. McCarron connected a 7-yard pass to Butler, and then on third and 3, McCarron passed to Stephen Mitchell who was 15 inches short of the first down. On fourth down, Saylors rushed for 3 yards to move the chains.

The snap was bobbled and picked up by Saylors for a loss as the first quarter ended.

McCarron was sacked for a 3-yard loss, and then on third and 17, McCarron could not complete a pass intended for Saylors. The Battlehawks Andre Szmyt kicked a 38-yard field goal to make the score 6-3 for Birmingham.

Jennings returned the Szmyt kickoff to the Birmingham 29. Martinez passed 19-yards to Marcus Baugh, and then handed to Ricky Person for a gain of 9 yards. After a 5-yard run by Person gained a first down, Martinez was pressured and had to throw the ball away. On second down, Martinez was sacked for a 12-yard loss, and then passed deep into the end zone which drew a defensive pass interference penalty, giving the Stallions 15 yards and a first down. St. Louis head coach Anthony Becht challenged the pass interference penalty, saying the pass was uncatchable. His challenge failed.

With first and 10 on the St. Louis 35-yard line, Martinez handed to Person for a 5-yard run, and then passed to Marlon Williams for a 5-yard gain and a first down. A pass intended for Binjamin Victor was almost picked off, and then another pass to Victor gained 12-yards and a first down on the St. Louis 13.

Martinez was pressured and sacked for an 8-yard loss, and then a pass to Gary Jennings gained 12 yards. On third and 6, Martinez was pressured and could not complete a pass to Cain in the end zone. The Stallions settled for a 27-yard Ahmed field goal to make the score 9-6 for Birmingham.

Shepherd returned the Ahmed kickoff to the St. Louis 41-yard line. McCarron handed to Saylors for a 7-yard gain, and then passed 44 yards to Butler to the Birmingham 8. A handoff to Saylors gained 2 yards, and another handoff to Saylors put the ball on the 1-yard line. On third and goal, a pass to Butler was incomplete. On fourth down, a handoff to Jacob Saylors was good for a St. Louis touchdown. The two-point conversion was good on a 5-yard run by Saylors, making the score 11-9 for St. Louis.

The Szmyt kickoff was returned by Jennings to the Birmingham 36. After the two-minute warning, Martinez passed 14 yards to Williams, and then passed to Marable for a 10-yard gain and a first down. A run by Marable gained 7 yards, and then Martinez passed incomplete for Williams. On third and 3, Martinez passed 10 yards to Jace Sternberger to move the markers to the St. Louis 23.

An 18-yard pass to Williams put the ball on the St. Louis 11, and then Martinez run moved the ball to the 5-yard line. Martinez passed to the end zone, but the ball was not caught, and then on 3rd and 4, Martinez passed to Cain for the Stallions touchdown. The two-point conversion was good on a 5-yard run by Williams, to make the score 17-11 for Birmingham with 0:16 remaining in the half.

The Ahmed kickoff was returned by Blake Jackson to the St. Louis 35. McCarron threw deep downfield to Mitchell and the pass was dropped. A 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty against Birmingham gave the Battlehawks 15 yards. With 0:05 left, a 23-yard pass to Butler was caught on the Birmingham 42, which gave the Battlehawks a chance to attempt a 60-yard Szmyt field goal, which was good, to make the score 17-14 for Birmingham at halftime.

To begin the second half, Jennings returned the Hofrichter kickoff to the Stallions 37-yard line. A handoff to Person gained 4 yards, and another handoff to Person gained 12 yards and a first down. Martinez passed 16 yards to Sternberger, and then passed again to Sternberger but it fell incomplete. A handoff to Marable gained 6 yards and then a pass to Victor was not caught. The Stallions attempted a 41-yard Ahmed field goal which missed.

McCarron started his drive on the St. Louis 31. Offsetting penalties forced a re-run of his first down play, and then McCarron passed short to Person for a gain of 3 yards. An 11-yard pass to Shepherd moved the markers. McCarron handed to Saylors for a 6-yard gain, and then handed to Wayne Gallman who was dropped for a 6-yard loss. On third and 10, McCarron could not complete a pass to Mitchell and the Battlehawks were forced to punt.

The Hofrichter punt was bobbled by Isaiah Zuber and recovered by St. Louis’s Jerome Kapp and returned to the Birmingham 11-yard line.

McCarron passed to Pearson for a 3-yard gain, and then passed to Mitchell in the end zone but the ball could not be caught. On third and 7, McCarron was pressured, but managed to pass to Jacob Saylors who ran it in for a touchdown. The two-point conversion failed, making the score 20-17 for St. Louis.

Jennings returned the Hofrichter kickoff to the Birmingham 39. Martinez attempted a deep pass to Cain, but he was well defended. A handoff to Marable gained 4 yards, and then an offensive holding penalty negated a catch by Sternberger. On third and 16, Martinez scrambled for 17 yards and a first down at midfield.

A pass to Zuber gained only 2 yards, and then another pass to Zuber gained 4 more yards. On third and 3, Martinez ran 6 yards for another first down. Martinez passed to Cain, but the ball was tipped and fell incomplete, and then Martinez went back to Cain for an 11-yard gain and a first down on the St. Louis 27.

A pass to Sternberger was well defended and could not be caught, and then a pass to Jordan Thomas gained 10 yards and a first down as the third quarter ended.

Martinez passed to Cain for a 9-yard gain, and then handed to Person for a 3-yard run and a first down on the St. Louis 5. A handoff to Marable gained 4 yards, and then a handoff to Person was fumbled and recovered by Martinez for a loss of 1 yard. On third and 4, Martinez passed to a wide open Marlon Williams for a touchdown. The two-point conversion failed, making the score 23-20 for Birmingham.

Darrius Shepherd returned the Ahmed kickoff to midfield. McCarron passed 3 yards to Saylor, and then passed to Pearson for a 3-yard gain. On third and 5, a 6-yard pass to Butler moved the chains. McCarron was pressured and threw the ball away, resulting in an intentional grounding penalty. On second and 20, Birmingham was penalized 5 yards for defensive offside, and then a 7-yard pass was caught by Mitchell. On third and 8, McCarron completed a 15-yard pass to Butler on the Birmingham 22-yard line.

McCarron was pressured and could not complete a quick pass to Sutherland. A roughing the passer penalty gave the Battlehawks 15 yards, moving the ball to the 7-yard line. McCarron tossed the ball to Jacob Saylors who fought for 7 yards and a Battlehawks touchdown. The two-point conversion failed, making the score 26-23 for St. Louis.

The Hofrichter kickoff went out of bounds, giving the Stallions the ball on the 50-yard line. Martinez passed to Kevin Austin for an 8-yard gain, and then handed to Marable for a 7-yard gain and a first down. A false start penalty pushed Birmingham back 5 yards, and then a pass to Austin was ran for a 40- yard touchdown. The one-yard conversion was good on a pass to Sternberger, to make the score 30-26 for Birmingham.

The Ahmed kickoff was returned by Shepherd to the St. Louis 35-yard line. McCarron was sacked for a 7-yard loss, and then a handoff to Saylors gained 8 yards. On third and 8, McCarron could not complete a pass to Butler and the Battlehawks were forced to punt.

The Hofrichter punt was returned by Jennings to the Birmingham 21. A handoff to Zuber picked up 7 yards, and then Martinez passed 8 yards to Jennings to move the markers as the two-minute warning was announced.

Martinez handed to Person for a loss of 2 yards, and then could not complete a deep pass to Cain. On third and 11, Martinez ran 12 yards for a first down. With 1:25 remaining, a handoff to Williams gained 5 yards, and then a Martinez rush was stopped for a 1-yard loss at midfield. On third and 6, a handoff to Person only gained 3 yards and the Stallions were forced to punt.

The Drue Chrisman punt was blocked by Chris Garrett and recovered on the Birmingham 47.

With no time-outs remaining, McCarron passed 7 yards to Saylors, and then McCarron went down for a 1 yard gain.  With the clock ticking down, McCarron spiked the ball with 0:16 remaining. On 4th and 2, a pass to Pearson fell incomplete, turning over the ball on downs.

Martinez snapped the ball and kneeled, running out the remaining time.

The final score was Birmingham Stallions 30, St. Louis Battlehawks 26.

Box Score

SCORE BY QUARTER

TEAM	1	2	3	4	T
STL	0	14	6	6	26
BIR	6	11	0	13	30



ST. LOUIS BATTLEHAWKS

St. Louis Battlehawks Passing
#	PLAYER			C-A	YDS	TD	I	C%	RTG
10	McCarron, AJ		19-32	161	1	1	59	105.7

St. Louis Battlehawks Rushing
#	PLAYER			ATT	YDS	TD	LNG	AVG
15	Saylors, Jacob		10	38	2	8	3.8
10	McCarron, AJ		2	24	0	23	12
01	Pearson, Jahcour	1	8	0	8	8
61	Panasiuk, Mike		1	0	0	0	0
30	Gallman II, Wayne	1	-6	0	-6	-6

St. Louis Battlehawks Receiving
#	PLAYER			NO	YDS	TD	LNG	TGT	YAC
88	Butler, Hakeem		7	89	0	44	10	38
15	Saylors, Jacob		4	20	1	8	6	14
22	Mitchell Jr., Steve	3	21	0	12	6	15
01	Pearson, Jahcour	3	9	0	3	5	10
11	Shepherd, Darrius	2	22	0	11	3	29

St. Louis Battlehawks Defense
#	Player (Starter)		TotTk	Solo	Sack	TFL	Int	BrUp	FF
32	Cole, Qwynnterrio (FS)		12	6	0	1	0	1	0
51	Harvey, Willie (LB)		10	5	2	2	0	1	1
06	Williams, Lakiem (LB)		9	2	0	0	0	0	0
38	Sebastian, Brandon (CB)		5	5	0	0	0	0	0
09	Payton-Jones, Chris (CB)	4	4	0	0	0	1	0
23	Kelly, Kameron (DB)		4	2	0	0	0	0	0
96	Smith, Kobe (DT)		3	3	0	1	0	0	0
04	Harris, Tim			3	3	0	0	0	0	0
56	Feeney, Travis (DE)		3	1	0	0	0	0	0
07	Taumoepenu, Pita (DE)		3	1	1	1	0	0	0
24	Hill, Lavert (CB)		2	1	0	0	0	0	0
29	Askew-Henry, Dravon		2	2	0	0	0	0	0
26	Wells, Carson			1	1	0	0	0	1	0
80	Averett, Kemari			1	1	0	0	0	0	0
98	Akinmoladun, Freedo (DE)	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
85	Kapp, Jerome			1	0	0	0	0	0	0
75	Jones-Smith, Jaryd		1	1	0	0	0	0	0
52	Jackson, Antwuan		1	0	0	0	0	0	0
48	Garrett, Chris			1	1	0	0	0	0	0

St. Louis Battlehawks All Purpose Yards
Player			Tot	Rush	Rec	KOR	PR	IR-FR	TDs
Shepherd, Darrius	159	0	22	121	16	0	0
Butler, Hakeem		89	0	89	0	0	0	0
Saylors, Jacob		60	38	20	0	0	2	3

St. Louis Battlehawks Punting
Punter			NO	YDS	AVG	LNG	I20
Hofrichter, Sterling	3	143	47.667	50	2

St. Louis Battlehawks Kick Returns
Returner		NO	YDS	AVG	LNG	TD
Shepherd, Darrius	5	121	24	32	0
Jackson, Blake		1	22	22	22	0

St. Louis Battlehawks Punt Returns
Returner		NO	YDS	AVG	LNG	TD
Shepherd, Darrius	1	16	16	16	0

St. Louis Battlehawks Field Goals
Kicker		Time		Dist	Result
Szmyt, Andre	2nd-13:43	38	GOOD
Szmyt, Andre	2nd-00:00	61	GOOD
TOTAL	2-2	LONG OF 61





BIRMINGHAM STALLIONS

Birmingham Stallions Passing
#	PLAYER			C-A	YDS	TD	I	C%	RTG
09	Martinez, Adrian	21-33	230	3	0	64	152.2

Birmingham Stallions Rushing
#	PLAYER			ATT	YDS	TD	LNG	AVG
09	Martinez, Adrian	7	60	0	21	8.6
23	Person Jr., Ricky	10	42	0	12	4.2
11	Marable, C.J.		7	31	1	8	4.4
18	Zuber, Isaiah		1	6	0	6	6
17	Williams, Marlon	1	5	0	5	5

Birmingham Stallions Receiving
#	PLAYER			NO	YDS	TD	LNG	TGT	YAC
17	Williams, Marlon	4	41	1	18	5	28
08	Cain, Deon		4	29	1	11	8	10
80	Austin Jr., Kevin	3	59	1	40	3	36
12	Sternberger, Jace	2	25	0	16	4	5
05	Jennings, Gary		2	20	0	12	4	8
18	Zuber, Isaiah		2	6	0	4	2	7
85	Baugh, Marcus		1	19	0	19	1	11
16	Victor, Binjimen	1	12	0	12	3	7
81	Thomas, Jordan		1	10	0	10	2	0
11	Marable, C.J.		1	9	0	9	1	9

St. Louis Battlehawks Defense
#	Player (Starter)		TotTk	Solo	Sack	TFL	Int	BrUp	FF
32	Cole, Qwynnterrio (FS)		12	6	0	1	0	1	0
51	Harvey, Willie (LB)		10	5	2	2	0	1	1
06	Williams, Lakiem (LB)		9	2	0	0	0	0	0
38	Sebastian, Brandon (CB)		5	5	0	0	0	0	0
09	Payton-Jones, Chris (CB)	4	4	0	0	0	1	0
23	Kelly, Kameron (DB)		4	2	0	0	0	0	0
96	Smith, Kobe (DT)		3	3	0	1	0	0	0
04	Harris, Tim			3	3	0	0	0	0	0
56	Feeney, Travis (DE)		3	1	0	0	0	0	0
07	Taumoepenu, Pita (DE)		3	1	1	1	0	0	0
24	Hill, Lavert (CB)		2	1	0	0	0	0	0
29	Askew-Henry, Dravon		2	2	0	0	0	0	0
26	Wells, Carson			1	1	0	0	0	1	0
80	Averett, Kemari			1	1	0	0	0	0	0
98	Akinmoladun, Freedo (DE)	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
85	Kapp, Jerome			1	0	0	0	0	0	0
75	Jones-Smith, Jaryd		1	1	0	0	0	0	0
52	Jackson, Antwuan		1	0	0	0	0	0	0
48	Garrett, Chris			1	1	0	0	0	0	0

Birmingham Stallions All Purpose Yards
Player			Tot	Rush	Rec	KOR	PR	IR-FR	TDs
Jennings, Gary		135	0	20	108	7	0	0
Martinez, Adrian	60	60	0	0	0	0	0
Austin Jr., Kevin	59	0	59	0	0	0	1

Birmingham Stallions Punting
Punter	NO	YDS	AVG	LNG	I20
Chrisman, Drue	1	58	58.0	58	0

Birmingham Stallions Kick Returns
Returner	NO	YDS	AVG	LNG	TD
Jennings, Gary	4	108	27	31	0

Birmingham Stallions Punt Returns
Returner	NO	YDS	AVG	LNG	TD
Jennings, Gary	1	7	07	7	0
Zuber, Isaiah	2	0	00	0	0

Birmingham Stallions Field Goals
Kicker		Time		Dist	Result
Ahmed, Ramiz	2nd-5:11	27	GOOD
Ahmed, Ramiz	3rd-11:23	41	MISS
TOTAL	1-2	LONG OF 27




GAME COMPARISON

STAT				STL		BIR		
Total Yds			214		349
Pass Yds			150		205
Rush Yds			64		144
Penalties			6-57		7-65
1st Downs			12		25
3rd Downs			4-12		7-11
4th Downs			2-3		0-0
Total Plays			49		62
Avg Yds/Play			4.4		5.6
Avg Yds/Completion		7.9		9.8
Avg Yds/Rush			4.3		5.5
Sack-Adj Rush Yd(Avg)		75 (5.8)	169 (7.3)
Red Zone			3-4		3-5
Time of Poss			29:47		30:13
Turnovers (Def Pts Off)		1 (6)		1 (0)
Fumbles-Lost			1-0		2-1
Sacks (Def Yds)			3.0 (25.0)	2.0 (11.0)
TFL (Def Yds)			5 (27.0)	4 (20.0)
Alt. Kickoffs			0-0		0-0