This time last year, the USFL might as well have been an acronym for Undefeated Stallions Football League.
Birmingham, at 5-0, already had a two-game lead in the South Division. In fact, its only loss was a Week Nine hiccup against the Houston Gamblers, a low-stakes game against a last place team that was quickly forgotten as Skip Holtz’s club went on to win the crown.
Today’s contest between the Stallions and Gamblers at Protective Stadium was different. It had a playoff feel even though five weeks still remain in the regular season.
With New Orleans sitting atop the South as the league’s lone unbeaten team (the Breakers play the Memphis Showboats here on Sunday), the showdown was a battle for position.
Birmingham started the day at 3-1, and a win would translate into a two-game cushion over Houston and firm control of second place in the division.
A Gamblers “W” meant they would be tied with the Stallions at 3-2, and hold a tiebreaker advantage for second place (with a rematch set for June 11 in Memphis).
By the time a scorching afternoon had given way to a muggy early evening, the result was a best-case scenario for Houston.
A 27-20 victory didn’t wrap up a postseason berth for Curtis Johnson’s team, of course, but it was a positive step in the right direction.
“We knew that this was more of a must-win for us than it probably was for them,” Johnson said. “They’re the champions, and they played like it.”
Both teams were missing some key components in what was – to date – the biggest game of 2023 for each. I know, I know … injuries aren’t an excuse, but they are a reality.
The biggest loss for Houston was starting quarterback Kenji Bahar, who missed the game due to an ankle injury and took 835 yards and seven passing touchdowns with him.
The home team has dealt with a litany of wounds and ailments week in and week out. Scooby Wright – the emotional leader of the defense – wasn’t in the lineup today, nor was all-purpose yards leader Deon Cain, who has already been worth two touchdowns on special teams.
“Some of our injuries were supposed to be two to four weeks, and here we are at five,” Holtz said. “I’m hopeful we’ll get a couple back … I’m hoping (safety) Jojo Tillery and (defensive end) Joe Jackson will be back. Unfortunately, four or five of the guys have pretty close to season-ending injuries.”
The expression “next man up” should probably be amended to “next men up.”
Yet, it’s all part of the game, and the name of the game is to win.
So, coaches and players have to figure out a way.
The Gamblers did that today, with a national TV audience and a few thousand fans in the stands looking on.
Terry Wilson stepped in admirably in place of Bahar, assisting Mark Thompson in a ground game that racked up 138 yards but showing he could throw when needed, registering a tidy 117 aerial yards with nearly half coming on a 50-yard pass to Anthony Ratliff-Williams.
“It really starts with the coaches,” Wilson said. “They believed in me and gave me the opportunity to go out there. It started with a phenomenal week of practice. We knew it would be hot when we got down here but we wanted to be ready for anything, and we knew we’d play hard and it was going to be a battle. I thought we brought it, and got the ‘W’.”
Stallions QB Alex McGough, however, took another step toward ironman status with a gutsy performance that netted 209 passing yards, 71 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
“That quarterback is something special,” Johnson said. “I come from the NFL, and I’d take him right now. He’s outstanding.”
Tomorrow, Houston can look at this game as a signature win, their third in a row and a result that makes them the hottest team in the USFL not named the Breakers.
Birmingham will bemoan being hit with 10 penalties for 106 yards while the Gamblers never saw a yellow flag over 60 minutes.
“That’s part of the frustration,” Holtz said. “The penalties were 10 to nothing. It was hard. We couldn’t get anything going and it seems like anytime we did, we’d get a penalty.”
Come Monday, however, it’ll be back to business for both.
And every game going forward will seem like a playoff for two teams with the same record and the same goal.
“I’m proud of our team,” Holtz said. “I’m proud of the way they continue to compete. Proud of the way they fought back, and they never give up.”
