Scott Adamson, Author at Adamsonmedia.com

Stallions try to stay perfect

The two-time defending USFL champion Birmingham Stallions have played like champions through their first three games in the United Football League, and on Saturday they’ll try to improve to 4-0 against a former XFL club.

The DC Defenders (2-1) come to Protective Stadium for a 6 p.m. kickoff, hoping to derail Birmingham’s perfect start and keep pace with St. Louis and San Antonio atop their conference. It’ll be the second consecutive week Skip Holtz’s team has played in front of a partisan crowd.

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“We have a DC Defenders team coming in that had the best record in the XFL last year, and they returned a lot of starters off that team,” Holtz said. “Jordan Ta’amu, their quarterback, is a very talented individual from Ole Miss and they can score a lot of points. They have scored a lot of points, and right now they’re tied for first place in the XFL Conference, so we’ve got a real challenge coming in this weekend.”

Ta’amu has connected on 52 of 101 passes for 627 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions.

Ty Scott paces the receiving corps with 152 yards and a score on eight receptions.

Those two played key roles in DC rallying from 11 points down with 2:08 to play to stun the Arlington Renegades, 29-28, last week.

After cutting the deficit to 28-26, Ta’amu and Scott hooked up for 19 yards on the fourth-and-12 onside conversion play, ultimately setting up Matthew McCrane’s 49-yard field goal to win it.

Michael Joseph has been far and away the team’s top defensive player, with 16 solo tackles and 19 takedowns in all.

“I think (Defenders coach and Alabama native) Reggie Barlow does a great job with that team,” Holtz said. “As I said, they were 10-2 last year and he was the Coach of the Year, and they are 2-1 this year, so it’s got all the makings for another great atmosphere, another great environment.”

The Stallions are the lone unbeaten team in the UFL, and not only set the pace in the USFL Conference but lead the circuit in myriad statistical categories.

They’re No. 1 in total offense (374 yards per game); all-purpose yards (513.3); total rushing yards (432); rushing yards per game (144.0); yards per reception (15.6); rushing touchdowns (five) scoring (26.7 points per game); total defense (226.0); fewest rushing yards allowed (126); fewest rushing yards average (42.0); and fewest rushing TDs (none).

Birmingham is coming off a 33-14 rout of the Memphis Showboats, one that saw the winners put together their most complete game of the season to date.

“Really proud of the team and what they were able to accomplish,” Holtz said. “I think the defense set the tone with two out of the first three plays in the game being sacks, and I thought our front seven – really our defense as a whole – challenged everything. I thought (defensive coaches) John Chavis, Bill Johnson, Corey Chamberlain and Deric Riley, all did a great job.”

Holtz pointed out that last year the team managed 17 sacks for the entirety of the 2023 season and hit that mark in just three games in 2024.

Aside from the strong defensive play – through 12 quarters Kyahva Tezino has been in on 22 tackles with 14 unassisted, followed by Chris Jackson (17/13), Lorenzo Burns (17/13) and Carlos Davis (10/6 and the UFL sacks leader with six) – the offense had a breakout game against Memphis.

Adrian Martinez went the distance at quarterback, and now has 448 passing yards and a team-high 161 rushing yards.

Martinez is the top rusher in the league followed by C.J. Marable, who has churned out 140 yards.

“Offensively, to see Adrian Martinez get his opportunity from wire-to-wire and to throw for 334 yards and to see him run for 44 yards was great,” Holtz said. “And I thought Ricky Person Jr. ran really hard, and our offensive line did a great job of protecting our quarterback.”

Despite Martinez’s excellent outing, Holtz says Matt Corral is still very much in the picture at quarterback. In fact, he’s listed as QB1 on Saturday’s depth chart.

“I named Matt the starter at the beginning, but knew that we were going to roll both of them early,” Holtz said. “Adrian had a great week (of preparation) last week, so we made the decision to go wire-to-wire with him.

“Both these quarterbacks are here to get film, but they’re both good enough to win with and we need to find a way to manage the room and play them both, because I do think that we’re going to need them both before it’s all said and done.”

Deon Cain leads the receiving corps (and the UFL) with 240 yards and a TD. Person Jr., Jace Sternberger and Marlon Williams have all made an impact as well, cracking the 100-yard barrier in receptions.

One major change on Saturday will be at kicker. With Chris Blewitt nursing an injury, recent signee Ramiz Ahmed will handle field goal chores against DC.

Holtz hopes for another energetic crowd on Saturday.

“I was very appreciative of the fan base, the noise they made (last week),” Holtz said. “It was really nice to be back in Protective Stadium. You know we’ve been (in the Arlington hub) for about six, eight weeks now, and it just reminds you when you come back to Birmingham what a special place it is and how much it means to us on the field.”

Wright place, Wright time

Linebacker Scooby Wright has a big personality – no one will argue that point.

He also has plenty of talent to go along with it.

Whether running down the field with his hand atop his helmet, mimicking a fin (“I had to go Sharkdog on them … half shark, half dog”) or running a pick-six into the end zone and finishing with a somersault to cement the Birmingham Stallions’ 33-30 USFL Championship Game win over the Philadelphia Stars, the man is a force of nature.

But as he settles into his third year with Birmingham – and is an integral part of one of the United Football League’s most formidable defensive units – he has become a veteran leader for the 3-0 Stallions.

“It’s been a great year,” said Wright, who has been nursing a right knee injury this week. “My teammates get better every week and we just look forward to bringing a great product to the field.”

During his prep days, Wright was an all-purpose player. He didn’t care where he played – he just wanted to be on the field.

“In high school, I kind of did everything,” he said. “It’s kind of funny … I was talking to someone a few days ago, and I said I used to return kicks and return punts and stuff, so it was kind of fun looking back because there’s no way in hell I could do that now.

“But really, I just love playing football. To be honest, it didn’t really matter what position I was playing or anything, I just always see myself as a football player.”

When healthy, Wright was one of the greatest defensive players in Arizona State University history.

He was Honorable Mention All-Pac-10 as a freshman and a consensus All-American as a sophomore, earning the Lombardi Award and Bronko Nagurski Award, among others, as well as Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year.

By his junior year he was limited to just three games due to injury, but closed out his college career with 145 solo tackles in 27 games, 14 sacks, an interception and six forced fumbles.

College success didn’t translate to more of the same in the NFL – at least not yet.

Following stints with the Cleveland Browns and Arizona Cardinals, Wright opted for an alternative pro football path.

The Arizona Hotshots of the ill-fated Alliance of American Football signed him in 2019, and he managed nine tackles before the league folded after eight games.

A practice squad job with the New England Patriots later that year lasted less than two weeks, and by 2020 he was with the DC Defenders of XFL 2.0.

That iteration of the league hit the halfway mark before crumbling under the weight of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Still, he managed 17 tackles in four games.

Since then, he’s been a staple of the Stallions, first in the reimagined United States Football League and now with the UFL. Despite being injured for most of the 2023 season, Wright managed 34 solo tackles and 31 assists, with three sacks and 23 tackles for loss.

This year he has five solo tackles and three assists.

“I played lot of football on my day,” Wright said. “I think the thing that we’re trying to adopt here and as a team is just trying to win every day. We want to control what we can control. Try not to not look too far forward, but just stay in the moment. “Stay focused, stay prepared. Just do what you do … just try to win.”

The Birmingham defense has put on quite a show over the past three weeks. The unit leads the UFL in interceptions (three), sacks (17), passes defended (18 with 15 breakups), and paces the circuit in total defense (226 yards allowed per game) and scoring defense (13.7 points per game).

“We know how good we can be and how good we are, and know where we want to go,” he said. “So, I think it’s just a matter of attacking the day and just staying motivated.

“I mean, instead of just being one guy deep or two guys deep, we’re able to roll guys through. If you’ve watched games, you notice at the linebacker position we kind of rotate a little bit to keep guys fresh.”

The Stallions face the DC Defenders (2-1) Saturday at Protective Stadium with a 6 p.m. kickoff. It’s the second consecutive home game for the USFL Conference leaders and “SharkDawg” is happy to be back in the friendly confines. Since the team is housed in the Arlington, Texas, hub throughout the week, trips “home” are even more special.

“I definitely miss Birmingham,” Wright said. “I miss living in the city and miss all the fans. It’s great seeing them and just being out in the community.”

Dinner and a show

Gary Tancred glanced at his wife, Gertie, and gave her a wink before handing a card to the host at the Crimson Crustacean.

“Hi,” he said. “We’re here for the end-of-life planning seminar and complementary meal.”

The Tancreds had received an invitation in the mail a couple of weeks earlier, one sent by the Heavenly Meadows Memorial Gardens Mortuary. It stated that if they attended “an informative session concerning advance funeral planning options that allows you ask difficult questions and receive compassionate answers,” they would be rewarded with a delicious dinner.

Why not? Even though they were both in good health, they were also in their mid-70s. And one can be plowed over by a bus at any age, so there is never a bad time to prepare for the inevitable big sleep.

So, they put on their Tuesday best and headed out for date night.

The Crimson Crustacean was decorated in a distinct nautical theme, with life preservers and oars tacked to its ruddy red walls and a shipwreck display situated just outside the entrance to the main dining area. The host, wearing a sailor cap, navy blue pea coat, white slacks and black sneakers, cheerfully escorted the couple to an area designated “Grub Ahoy.”

Once inside, they joined several other couples at a long table – one adorned in a white, plastic tablecloth dotted with cartoon anchors. Standing at a podium a few feet from the table was the family service counselor at Heavenly Meadows.

“Hello, I’m Steadman Wilshire, and I’d like to welcome everyone to the Crimson Crustacean,” he said in a low, raspy voice. “I know that you’ll enjoy the wonderful dinner and I trust you’ll find our program quite informative.”

Gary raised his hand.

“Hate to interrupt, Steadman, but we don’t have any menus,” he said.

Mr. Wilshire forced a smile.

“Actually,” he said. “The meal is already pre-planned. Each of you will receive a fish filet, baked potato and dinner roll, as well as your choice of iced tea, soda or water.”

Gary furrowed his brow.

“Well, that’s unfortunate, Steadman,” he said. “I was gonna order the Endless Lobster Trap with fries, and one of those cheese and jalapeno biscuits they’re always talking about on TV. Now, the fish plate is fine for Gertie – this is my wife here, Gertie – because she’s allergic to shellfish. But even if she wasn’t, she wants no part of a lobster.

“See, when she and her sister, Agnes, were teenagers, they went on a family vacation to Maine. They were on a pier horsing around and the damnedest thing happened; a lobster somehow got loose and attacked Agnes. Bit off her left nipple. We never knew if it was a random attack or a targeted one, or how her nipple even found itself in harm’s way, but you never forget something like that. At least I haven’t, and I wasn’t even there. Just imagine … losing a nipple. Mine are getting tender just talking about it.”

Wilshire didn’t know quite how to respond.

“I, uh, I’m sorry about all that, sir,” he said.

Gary interrupted.

“Not your fault at all, Steadman,” he said. “I mean, unless that was your lobster that got loose. In that case you don’t need to apologize to me, you need to apologize to Agnes and her good nipple.”

Wilshire’s eyes widened.

“We really do need to get on with the program, sir,” he said. “And as you can see, the food is already being placed on the table.”

Gertie raised her hand.

“One thing real quick, Steadman,” Gertie said. “I know funeral homes will do things like embalm you and put you in a coffin, or shove you in a furnace and cremate you. I guess all those are standard. But do you have, like, a Thelma and Louise plan? I mean, say if Gary and I both die and we’re willing to pay for it, is there a way you could put us in a convertible and drive us over a cliff? That just seems like it would be a fun send-off. I know our family would get a kick out of it. Especially Agnes, poor thing. Oh, even better, maybe get Susan Sarandon or Geena Davis to do the eulogy. If you could just talk a few minutes about those options, we’d really appreciate it.”

Wilshire was now red-faced and his once low voice grew higher.

“You two are being very disruptive and, frankly, wasting our time,” he said, practically spitting out his words. “We’re here to have a serious discussion and you … well, I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you both to leave.”

Gertie produced a couple of Styrofoam containers from her oversized purse, and she and Gary raked the food inside them.

“Well, Steadman, you’re the one who sent the invitation saying we were in for an informative session concerning advance funeral planning options that allowed us to ask difficult questions and receive compassionate answers,” Gary said. “And you never even answered the question about the Thelma and Louise option. We’ll just be taking our complementary food to go, thank you very much.”

The pair hurried out of the dining area and made a beeline to their car. After Gary cranked it up and pulled out of the parking space, both of them erupted in laughter.

“That was fun, Gertie,” Gary said. “Date nights with you are the best. And I gave ‘em a fake email address and phone number, so we don’t have to worry about any follow-up. What do we have next?”

Gertie opened the glove compartment and pulled out a small stack of invitations.

“Let’s see,” she murmured. “OK, next Tuesday at Cowpokes there’s a financial seminar. Free steak dinner.”

Gary smiled.

“Financial seminar, huh?” he said. “That’ll be fun … I’ll do the bit where I start talking about the Irish Republican Army when he brings up IRAs.”

Gertie howled.

“I love that story,” she said. “Especially the part where your cousin loses his right nipple in a friendly fire incident. Anyway, let’s get home and eat before the fish gets cold.”