Michigan Panthers Defeat Birmingham, Advance To UFL Finals

The Michigan Panthers and Birmingham Stallions faced off in another UFL playoff thriller on Sunday. To absolutely no one’s surprise, it was a back and forth affair.

Heading into this game, Michigan was searching for their first win in modern franchise history against the Stallions. Since the USFL returned in 2022, the Panthers were 0-7 against Birmingham – including three losses last year, one being in the postseason.

However, the eighth time is the charm – and Michigan finally was able to put together a complete game across the board. Let’s take a look at what all went down in Protective Stadium this weekend.

First Quarter

Michigan opened up with possession of the football, and immediately went three and out. It was a solid start for Birmingham’s defense – but it would be one of their few stops of the afternoon. The Stallions looked to be in a rhythm on their end with a 3rd and 11 completion to Deon Cain – but then stalled out and punted it back.

Xavier Malone has been a spark plug for Michigan all year long on special teams, and showed up once again with a big return – putting the Panthers inside Birmingham territory.

It was easy pickings for Bryce Perkins & Co. starting from the 39. Toa Taua ran it in for the first score of the day, and a PAT to Cole Hikutini made it 7-0 early.

A facemask penalty on Noah Dawkins gave the Stallions good field position – but they couldn’t capitalize. J’Mar Smith missed Amari Rodgers who was open deep, and then Harrison Mevis missed on a 56 yard field goal attempt.

Second Quarter

Birmingham struggled on third downs today, and that would be evident early. On 3rd and 12, Bryce Perkins found Siaosi Mariner wide open, who snuck down to the one yard line. Perkins would then run it in himself for the score, and Michigan had a 14-0 lead following another successful PAT.

Sparks would finally fly for Birmingham on offense. Smith connected with Deon Cain on 3rd and long, who took off on a 63 yard scamper.

A couple of plays later, J’Mar would fire a dart to TE Jordan Thomas, who made an excellent catch for a touchdown. Just like that, it was 14-6.

It felt like Birmingham was ready to take full control – as Michigan went three and out, punting it away. However, Smith would make a crushing mistake, throwing a pick right to Kai Nacua who house called it for six.

Skip Holtz then decided to bench Smith, putting Matt Corral in at quarterback. Corral has seen a lot of success against Michigan in the past – and immediately pushed the ball down the field to put the Stallions in a position to score. C.J. Marable capped off the impressive drive with a TD, and the two point try to Ricky Person Jr. made it 21-14.

Michigan had an opportunity to get into field goal range right before halftime, but a sack from Perrion Winfrey resulted in no points for the Panthers as time expired.

Third Quarter

With it being a one score game, Birmingham had an opportunity to get right back in it. While, it appeared that Michigan held them to a punt – offsides on the punt attempt gifted the Stallions five yards, and they instead saw Mevis come through on a long field goal attempt.

Unfortunately for Birmingham, their defense had zero answers for Bryce Perkins. Like, literally – zero answers. On 3rd and 14, Perkins had all the time in the world, and then escaped the pocket for the first down, making a few Stallions look utterly foolish on the play.

On 2nd and 10, Perkins would drop a dime deep to Devin Ross, setting Michigan up inside the 10 yard line. Toa Taua then ran it in untouched for his second touchdown of the day, and the Panthers led 28-17 following the PAT.

All hell broke loose for Birmingham on the ensuing couple of possessions. The Stallions had to punt it away – and then Bryce Perkins found Malik Turner across the middle, who made multiple DB’s miss en route to a 76 yard score.

Matt Corral wouldn’t go down without a fight. Down 17, he continued to push the ball down the field, also using his legs to extend plays. With 15 minutes left, Birmingham was knocking on the door in the red zone.

Fourth Quarter

Corral found Davion Davis in the back of the end zone for a score, dropping an absolute dime over the extended hands of Dee Delaney.

For a moment, it seemed like the Stallions were about to do what they always do: find a way to come back and win. Jaylon Moore fumbled for the Panthers, forced out by Steven Gilmore – and the Stallions pounced on it.

It was the Jordan Thomas show the rest of the way. He made an outstanding catch over hte middle to set up the Stallions in scoring position, inside the ten.

Thomas would come up clutch again, scoring a touchdown to make it 34-29 – and we had a ball game late.

Michigan wouldn’t let the noise get to their heads, though. Toa Taua was unstoppable on the ground, and Perkins continued to do his thing as the Panthers worked the clock down. Taua ran it in for his third score of the day – all on extremely similar play calls – and Michigan went up 41-29.

Matt Corral would make a brutal mistake on the next drive, which just about sealed the deal. Arnold Tarpley picked him off, giving Michigan possession with a 12 point lead with several minutes to go.

Playing it safe, Michigan settled for a field goal to make it 44-29. Breeland Speaks and Taylor Stallworth would combine for a sack on Corral, forcing a fumble – and Dee Delaney pounced on it for the Panthers.

Michigan would go on to take this one home, with a 44-29 victory over the Birmingham Stallions – ending their three year reign.

Standout Playmakers

QB Bryce Perkins: Perkins was on a heater in this game, completing 20 of 25 passes for 238 yards and a touchdown, including a score on the ground. Make no mistake about it: Perkins is the piece Michigan needed to finally take Birmingham down.

RB Toa Taua: Taua continues to shine, bolstered by an offensive line that has played some really good football. Toa rushed for 85 yards and three touchdowns, averaging 4 YPC.

WR Malik Turner: Turner was a difference maker, no surprise. He racked up 99 receiving yards and a score, with his 76 yard score giving Michigan plenty of cushion late.

TE Cole Hikutini: Hikutini has consistently been a force to be reckoned with against Birmingham, and continued that trend today. We highlighted him as someone who should be targeted – and Cole did his thing with 53 yards on six catches, including a couple that set up scores.

S Kai Nacua: The veteran safety was on fire in this one, posting six tackles, one TFL, a pick six, and two PBU’s as the Panthers’ defense finally put an end to the Stallions.

QB Matt Corral: Matt did his best today for Birmingham, being thrown into the fire after not playing a snap since week four. Corral threw for 147 yards, a touchdown, and an interception in the loss – but he provided Birmingham with stability offensively during the second half.

CB Steven Gilmore: Gilmore led the Stallions with nine tackles, taking some of the toughest assignment matchups of the afternoon. He also forced a fumble late that gave Birmingham some hope.

Key Takeaways

In this affair, the script was flipped a bit compared to previous affairs. Birmingham, who’s been very efficient on third downs the last few weeks, allowed Michigan to go 7-12 – unable to get stops in key situations even though they desperately needed them. Skip Holtz commented post-game on how they leaned into the defense for most of the year – but they had some “uncharacteristic mistakes” in this one.

Tackling, or lack thereof, was a key factor. The amount of missed tackles on Bryce Perkins was at least a dozen, as he danced his way into success the entire day. It was a lack of discipline on Birmingham’s part, and it cost them. Corey Chamblin’s defense was good this season, but they laid an egg at the worst possible time.

Additionally, it was a bit strange for Holtz to bench J’Mar so quickly after the pick six. Of course, you have to take into account Matt Corral’s status – and the job he’s done in the past against Michigan. In fact, it was Corral who led the comeback in the playoffs exactly a year ago. However, the team had rallied behind J’Mar the last few weeks, and he was the reason they were there in the first place.

“Matt is a natural thrower, he throws it very well. He was 12-25 today, and J’Mar was 4-10 – neither quarterback played really well. I pulled the trigger when we threw a pick six, and we threw it to the guy who’s our movement key. It’s not like we never saw him, that’s the only guy that we’re reading. I just said, you know what, we need a boost and a spark, so I put Matt in. I thought he did a good job getting us back in the football game. Today was his first day back on the field in seven weeks. Maybe you say, we shouldn’t have played him, but J’Mar has only played three. That’s one of the struggles we’ve had all year at quarterback.” – Skip Holtz

Meanwhile, the Michigan Panthers were finally able to make it happen. Defensively, it was an impressive collective effort – despite all the missing pieces. CB Keni-H Lovely was inactive, and starting CB Adonis Alexander went down with injury during warmups, leaving them extremely thin. Not to mention, Bryce Torneden went out with injury midway through the game as well.

Despite this, Collin Bauer’s unit came together and created two late turnovers – something they’ve struggled to do all year long.

“We’ve been thin at corner as of late, but other guys stepped up their game. Dee Delaney, who’s only been here with us for a week, I thought he played a great game on short notice. I thought the other guys stepped up, I love the way D.J. played at corner. He’s a tough son of a gun. If you wanna compete, he’s going to compete. Miller did not back down one bit. We held them enough to get a victory, really proud of that group.” – HC Mike Nolan

On offense, this team is truly unstoppable when they can run the football. Up front, their offensive line is playing outstanding football as they have all year long, and they paved the way for a 44 point performance out of Perkins and Taua.

“That O-Line man, they’re an example of resiliency. When you can just walk into a touchdown like that untouched, that’s nobody but them. I just gotta not be blind enough to see it. It’s a great day collectively as an offense.” – RB Toa Taua

Time of possession was a factor as well. Michigan held the ball for nine more minutes than the Stallions did, with multiple long scoring drives that wore down that defense. Michigan was an outstanding 4-5 in the red zone on Sunday.

Final Thoughts

It’s official: the dynasty is over. At least, for now. The Birmingham Stallions have fallen, and who else to do it than Mike Nolan’s Michigan Panthers. It was a gritty win on the road, but one that showed that this offense truly is the best in the UFL when they’re firing on all cylinders.

The Michigan Panthers will now shift their focus to the UFL Championship game, facing off against DC on Saturday.

What are your thoughts on this game between the Birmingham Stallions and Michigan Panthers? Which UFL players impressed you? Let us know down in the comments below, or join the conversation on Discord!