Week eight in the UFL will continue on Saturday. The St. Louis Battlehawks (5-2) host the Houston Gamblers (2-5) in a game that has plenty of playoff implications.
The St. Louis Battlehawks are rolling, winners of three straight. They’re the only team in the UFL to beat both Orlando and DC, and have been climbing their way to the top consistently as of late. Meanwhile, the Houston Gamblers cannot buy themselves a win, despite being incredibly close the last few weeks.
With a lot on the line at The Dome, let’s take a look at what we can expect in this one.
Quarterback Play
The Battlehawks went with Luis Perez last week, and it paid off. Perez is shaking off some rust, as he hasn’t played all year long, but he did more than enough to get the win for St. Louis over Columbus. Luis is not just a game manager, he’s also a coach on the football field. Having that experience at the helm, paired up with A.J. Smith as the offensive coordinator, is putting St. Louis in a position to be a true Championship caliber team. Perez is just getting started in The Lou.
Hunter Dekkers made a few mistakes in the loss to Orlando, there’s no mistake about that. However, one cannot deny that the offense looked at its best all year with Hunter in command. He’s very accurate on slants and short-medium range throws, which is exactly the type of offense Eric Price wants to run. Dekkers also has some sneaky mobility, but does a great job keeping his eyes down the field on RPO play calls. Dekkers has only played in two full games this season – he’s got legitimate upside.
Standout Playmakers
Can I just copy and paste this paragraph from last week? Hakeem Butler is in here every single game, as he should be. The “Megatron” of the UFL has been quite literally unstoppable this season. St. Louis continues to feed him targets, and they will continue to win football games. Even when the coverage is superb, Hakeem almost always finds a way to make the play.
Jarveon Howard is leading the UFL in rushing yards. He’s been explosive when St. Louis has needed it, and look for more of that against a Gamblers defense that has been inconsistent up front. TE Tyler Neville has quieted down a bit, but against linebackers who tend to lose sight in coverage, he could be in for a strong outing.
Houston is loaded with talent. Their backfield has been fun to watch all year long, even with some of the mistakes as of late. Jalen White, Marcus Major, and Marcus Yarns are a three headed monster. They’ll be challenged this week, but with their abilities to catch out of the backfield, Houston has options.
“We’re ready for the challenge, we’re going to take it head on. The main thing is just staying together, I feel like games are won in the trenches. We want to build upon that success from last week.” – RB Jalen White
Having a healthy Jalen Moreno-Cropper back in action has been huge for Dekkers’ confidence. The former NFL draft pick continues to flash as a specialist and offensively – he’s got speed, and his route running abilities are second to none on this football team.
The Injury Report
Houston is relatively banged up, as several of their players are limited in practice this week. One notable “DNP” is OT Jalen McKenzie, who hasn’t practiced at all. Missing McKenzie would be very unfortunate for Houston’s O-Line unit, as he has started most of the year.
St. Louis is pretty clean, with a couple small knicks and knacks. Expect the Battlehawks to be mostly healthy this week.
Depth Chart Notes
Updated when it goes live.
Houston vs. Houston
The Houston Gamblers are giving shades of the Gamblers of old…aka, the team that Kevin Sumlin coached in 2022. Despite all of the leads, the momentum (at times, at least), and the talent on this football team – they cannot get out of their own way.
Week after week tells the same story. All three phases cannot play a complete game. This past week, it was special teams that were a bit of a let down, with John Hoyland missing a couple of kicks (in his defense, they were long – but the attempts weren’t even close).
Houston finally moved the ball efficiently, with over 400 yards of offense – but untimely mistakes, stupid penalties, and two turnovers were the nail in the coffin. Marcus Yarns coughed up the football inside Orlando’s 20 yard line. Hunter Dekkers threw an early pick six to D.J. James. Late in the game, with a chance to win on a field goal, Dekkers missed two wide open receivers – which resulted in a missed 63 yard attempt from Hoyland.
The list goes on. These are correctable things. Houston punishes themselves every game, which is why they have the 2-5 record that they do. As Kevin Sumlin said post-game, “we cannot beat our opponent, and Houston, at the same time”. The Gamblers, at this point, are their own worst enemy. With three games left on the docket, and zero room left for error, the time is now for this coaching staff to put it all together.
St. Louis Defensive Dominance
Make no mistake about it: Corey Chamblin isn’t playing around this season. St. Louis continues to shine as one of the top defensive units in the UFL, stifling offenses every single week. Truthfully, without their defense, the Battlehawks very well could be 2-5 on the year – as their offense is just now figuring things out seven weeks into the year.
St. Louis is allowing just 18.4 points per game (2nd). Their defense is giving up less than 250 yards per game – the only unit in the entire league that can boast that statistic. Getting pressure on the quarterback has been their forte, leading the UFL with DC at 21 sacks heading into week eight.
“They’re a good football team. They’ve beat some other good teams. It’s kind of funny, because a lot of the guys on this team were talking about the environment there, for their home games. Loud stadium, loud venue. Really passionate fans. Our guys are looking forward to this weekend.” – Gamblers HC Kevin Sumlin
Because of their ability to generate pressure, it causes quarterbacks to make mistakes. St. Louis has seven interceptions this year (T-3rd), as their corners have had the ability to take advantage of opposing QB’s having to get rid of the ball quickly.
This matchup feels like one that Corey’s defense should win this week. Hunter Dekkers showed promise against Orlando, but when he gets rattled, the mistakes start to flow. It’s going to be an uphill battle all afternoon long, as this offensive line has to protect against the likes of Pita Taumoepenu, Travis Feeney, Demone Harris, Carlos Davis, etc. – the Battlehawks are incredibly scary up front, because their defensive tackles can also create pressure. Davis, an interior stud, has 5.5 sacks on the season.
While St. Louis has statistically been one of the most stout defenses in the UFL, Houston’s offense has been mediocre at best. Maybe their 400 yard performance will get them on track to close out the year – but right now, they’re averaging just 174 passing yards per game. Their ability to run the ball has kept things close (114 rushing yards/game, 3rd in the UFL) – but again, St. Louis boasts the best rush defense in the league.
Marvin Sanders vs. Luis Perez
After what was a tough start to the year, Marvin Sanders has turned this Houston defense around. They’ve been playing more cohesive football since the midway point of the season. Up front, Houston has some tremendous weapons. Malik Fisher is one of the top pass rushers in the UFL, while Kyon Barrs and Rashard Lawrence have been tremendous on the interior.
This week, however, will be a challenge. They’re facing off against Luis Perez, who isn’t just one of the smartest QB’s in this space – but, he also got to go up against Sanders’ defense for a few seasons with the Renegades. No one knows Marvin’s schemes and calls better than Luis.
Sanders intends to throw in a couple new wrinkles this week, but even he admitted that it’s going to be difficult. Luis is a high-IQ quarterback, whose photographic memory will absolutely remember the majority of Sanders’ calls.
“I’ve known Luis for a long time, too. He’s a veteran player. He’s added to them [St. Louis] because he knows what it looks like. There’s some familiarity with Marvin and him, but this team has a completely different identity than Dallas, in what they do.” – Kevin Sumlin
Coaching Matchup
Houston Gamblers, Kevin Sumlin: Truthfully, Sumlin has not had much success in spring football. His teams almost always find new ways to come up short, even when they completely outplay their opponent (i.e., last week against Orlando). It’s time for Kevin to take some accountability – this team needs his leadership in order to get over the hump.
St. Louis Battlehawks, Ricky Proehl: We talk about it every week, and we’ll talk about it again – Ricky Proehl has done an unbelievable job in St. Louis. It’s his first head coaching opportunity, and he’s aced with flying colors so far. The culture that Anthony Becht built hasn’t crumbled – instead, it’s gotten even stronger. St. Louis is a true Championship contending team this season.
Final Thoughts
Houston has been competitive over the last couple of games, and as we’ve seen in the UFL time and time again – anyone can beat anybody on any given day.
With that said, St. Louis feels like the clear favorite in this affair. They’re at home, and they are playing excellent football. With Luis Perez now in charge, the offense should be putting up 25-30+ points agame, and truthfully, Houston probably can’t compete with that.
They’re going to have to hope for a miracle, because falling to 2-6 would essentially eliminate them from any hope at making a postseason push.
The action all kicks off this Saturday, at 3pm ET on ABC. You can secure your tickets for the game here.
Full Roster Breakdowns: St. Louis, Houston
What are your thoughts on this upcoming matchup between the St. Louis Battlehawks and Houston Gamblers? Who do you think will win? Let us know down in the comments below, or join the conversation on Discord!
