The Birmingham Stallions pulled off one of their grittiest wins of the season last week, surviving a defensive battle with the Dallas Renegades before escaping with a dramatic overtime victory. Now sitting in the fourth and final playoff spot at 3-4, Birmingham heads into Week 8 with everything still up for grabs in the UFL postseason race. Standing in their way is a desperate Columbus Aviators squad that sits just one game back and likely needs a win to keep its playoff hopes alive. With both teams fighting to stay afloat, Sunday’s matchup suddenly feels a whole lot bigger than just another regular season game.
Week 7 Recap
It took a few tries before either offence could get going. The Renegades opened the game with a three-and-out, followed by the Stallions throwing an interception on just their second play from scrimmage.
Dallas found its footing on the second possession, holding onto the ball for 15 plays while covering 55 yards. They ate up 8 and a half minutes off the clock, with Ellis Merriweather punching it in from a yard out to open the scoring.
The Stallions followed that up with a three-and-out of their own, giving Dallas another chance to add to the lead and continue draining the clock. After another grueling 15-play, eight-minute drive, the Renegades settled for a field goal. Colton Theaker nailed it from 35 yards out to make the score 10-0 in favour of Dallas.
Third time was the charm for Birmingham. On the ensuing drive, the Stallions finally got their act together, moving 71 yards on eight plays and putting up their first points well into the second quarter. Daewood Davis hauled in a 46-yard touchdown pass from Dorian Thompson-Robinson for what would end up being his lone catch of the game. After the extra point, the score became 10-7 Renegades.
The rest of the second quarter and the entire third quarter turned into a whole lot of nothing, as both teams traded possession back and forth several times without doing much of anything offensively.
It wasn’t until there were just over nine minutes left in the fourth quarter that the Stallions were finally able to get into Anders Carlson range. He drilled a 40-yard field goal to tie the game at 10 apiece.
After that field goal, the scoring suddenly seemed back open for business. On the very next drive, Dallas marched down the field once again, going 46 yards on seven plays before capping it off with another Merriweather rushing touchdown. He finished the day with 38 yards on 14 carries, along with the pair of scores.
Dallas wouldn’t hold the lead for long, though, as the Stallions answered with a seven-play, 52-yard drive that ended with Jaydon Mickens hauling in an 18-yard dart from Thompson-Robinson. Mickens led Birmingham with 82 receiving yards on six catches and the touchdown. Thompson-Robinson finished the game 12-for-26 for 159 yards and two touchdown passes. He also threw the interception earlier in the game.
There would be enough time left for Dallas to set up a game-winning field goal attempt. However, the kick was tipped at the line and sailed no good, sending the game to overtime tied 17-17.
The Renegades failed to score on their opening overtime possession, leaving the Stallions with a chance to take control in the shootout format. Thompson-Robinson found space to the outside and punched it in himself, giving Birmingham a 2-0 advantage in overtime.
After another failed attempt by the Renegades, it all came down to a game-winning play for Birmingham. This time, Thompson-Robinson connected with Mickens for the game-winning grab, sealing a dramatic Stallions victory.
The Renegades had run out of chances, making the final score 21-17 in favour of Birmingham. his moves both teams to 3-4 on the season.
Stud of the Game
Everyone on the Stallions’ defense deserves to be Stud of the Game after this block. Jayden Peevy gets crowned King of the Studs for being the one to get a hand on the ball, but it was a tremendous team defensive effort all around. Peevy only recorded one tackle on the day, but that tip ended up being the biggest play of the game.
Donkey of the Game
There wasn’t a whole lot to complain about in this game. There were no huge offensive explosions on either side, but both teams managed things fairly well for the most part. You can’t really fault the kicker for the blocked field goal at the end, Reed didn’t throw any touchdowns but also didn’t cough the ball up, and Thompson-Robinson bounced back nicely after the early interception. There just really aren’t many donkeys to hand out in this one.
However, one must still be crowned. This week, the honour goes to Khamzat Chimaev for losing to Sean Strickland at UFC 328. That was absolutely brutal for the parlays.
Week 8 Preview
With the Stallions now holding onto that fourth and final playoff spot, the final three games of the season are more crucial than ever. Their Week 8 matchup against Columbus is massive, as it could be the Aviators’ last real chance to keep their postseason hopes alive.
There is currently a three-way tie for fourth between Birmingham, Louisville, and Dallas. Through the magic of the tiebreaker rules, the Stallions sit ahead of the rest despite all three teams holding identical 3-4 records. Columbus sits tied for seventh with Houston at 2-5.
With Louisville and Dallas both facing stronger opponents this week, it’s a really good opportunity for Birmingham to take sole possession of fourth place. However, if the Stallions slip up, combined with a Dallas loss and Houston pulling off an upset over St. Louis, we could suddenly be looking at a five-way tie at 3-5.
A huge target that nobody seems able to cover right now is Jaydon Mickens. He now leads the UFL in both receiving yards (483) and receptions (38). Mickens continues to find space for Thompson-Robinson and has become a massive part of this team’s turnaround.
The Mickens-Thompson-Robinson duo will need to stay sharp this week, though, as they’re going up against the league’s stingiest pass defense. The Aviators have allowed just 1,001 passing yards this season, compared to Birmingham’s 1,566. That total ranks the Stallions seventh worst in the league in that category.
The area the Stallions really need to exploit is the Aviators’ rush defense. Columbus sits dead last in both rushing yards allowed (857) and rushing touchdowns allowed (13). That’s an area Birmingham hasn’t exactly thrived in this season, as the Stallions sit near the bottom of the league in rushing offense.
On the other side, Columbus has been solid on the ground, leading the league with 972 rushing yards and 11 rushing touchdowns. It’s pretty clear the key to victory for both teams will be controlling the trenches.
Power Rankings
- St. Louis Battlehawks (+1)
- D.C. Defenders (-1)
- Orlando Storm (+1)
- Birmingham Stallions (+2)
- Columbus Aviators (-)
- Louisville Kings (+1)
- Dallas Renegades (-4)
- Houston Gamblers (-)
When & Where to Watch
The Week 8 matchup between the Columbus Aviators and the Birmingham Stallions goes down on Sunday, May 17 at 12:00 p.m. CT. The game will be available live on FOX.
