UFL Michigan Panthers

Michigan Panthers Game Notes for Week 4 vs. the San Antonio Brahmas

Published on April 16, 2024 under United Football League (UFL)
Michigan Panthers News Release


The 2-1 Panthers will be riding into San Antonio for their first road game of the UFL campaign against a 2-1 Brahmas team that just dropped their first game of the season. Both squads have their different calling cards. San Antonio quarterback Chase Garbers leads the league in passing touchdowns (6) and completion percentage (70.8%) (minimum of 30 attempts), while Michigan QB E.J. Perry leads the league in rushing scores (4). After it was announced that Garbers will miss the remainder of the season due to injury, the Brahmas will likely turn to Quinten Dormady. Panthers wide receiver Marcus Simms is second in the league in receiving yards (218) but first in yards per catch (24.4) (minimun of 5 catches). San Antonio sports three receivers in triple digits, with Jontre Kirklin, Marquez Stevenson and Cody Latimer all above 150 yards each. The Brahmas defense is anchored by Jordan Mosley and Jordan Williams who are first and second in the league in tackles, respectively. However, the Panthers lead the league in tackles for loss (18-47 yards). The Panthers have the edge on special teams, as Jake Bates is 5-for-5 this season on field goal attempts with a season-long of 64 yards in Week 1. San Antonio has only attempted 2 field goals, with both being successful.

PERRY EFFICIENT THIS SEASON

Michigan quarterback E.J. Perry has progressively gotten more efficient to start the 2024 season. After going 12-of-24 for 176 yards and no passing touchdowns in Week 1 against St. Louis, Perry was 16-of-19 for 208 yards in Week 3 against Houston. In back-to-back weeks, he has connected with wide receiver Marcus Simms for two 76-yard scores. No other team has had a completed pass over 57 yards. Perry ranks fourth in the league with 587 passing yards but has also been a threat with his legs. He leads the league with four rushing touchdowns through three weeks and has 102 rushing yards on 19 carries, which ranks sixth in the UFL and second amongst quarterbacks.

BATES CONTINUES WITH THE BOOT

Michigan Panthers kicker Jake Bates kicked his way into football history after drilling a 64-yard field goal with three seconds left in the game against St. Louis in Week 1. The 64-yarder is tied for the second longest field goal in professional football history, only behind Justin Tucker's 66-yard field, which he connected on in 2021 at Ford Field. Bates tied Matt Prater, who hit a 64-yard field goal in 2013. What makes Bates field goal impressive is that he connected on it twice. The first attempt didn't count as the Battlehawks coaching staff called a timeout directly before the play, but Bates' was already in his kicking motion and the ball easily went through the uprights. After being iced by St. Louis, he calmly settled in and connected on the extremely long field goal once again and gave Michigan a 18-16 lead. Even more, the field goal was Bates first-ever made field goal in his football career at any level. The ball that Bates kicked is now representing the UFL in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. He followed that performance up in Week 2 going 2-for-2 against the Birmingham Stallions. He started by nailing a 62-yard field goal as time expired in the first half. He became only the second kicker to connect on back-to-back 60 plus yard field goals in back-to-back weeks. Brett Maher of the Dallas Cowboys is the only other who did it in Weeks 6 & 7 in 2019, connecting on 62 and 63 yard field goals. Bates continued his perfect start to the season by going 2-for-2 against Houston in Week 3, connecting from 46 yards and 55 yards. Bates served as a kickoff specialist from high school to college. However, the Texas native did go 2-for-3 on extra point attempts for the Houston Texans during the 2023 preseason. Bates field rightly went viral and was considered one of the top plays from the opening week of the UFL season. So far this season, he is 3-for-3 with field goals coming from 64 yards, 62 yards and 52 yards.

HISTORY OF THE MICHIGAN PANTHERS

The history of the Michigan Panthers goes back to the 1980s when the team was a charter member of the original United States Football League. Jim Stanley would serve as the team's head coach for the two years they were in Detroit. In their opening season, the Panthers won their first game, a 9-7 win over the Birmingham Stallions, but then dropped their next four games. Michigan then rattled off six straight games before falling to Birmingham. They finished the regular season with a 12-6 record and hosted the Oakland Invaders in the playoffs. The team advanced to the inaugural USFL Championship game following a 37-21 victory over Oakland. Michigan would win the USFL's first championship with a 24-22 win over the Philadelphia Stars after quarterback Bobby Herbert found receiver Anthony Carter for a 48-yard touchdown late in the fourth quarter. The team picked up in 1984 where they left off in 1983, winning their first straight games, but following an injury to Carter, the Panthers dropped eight of their next 10 games. Michigan qualified for the playoffs after winning their last two games of the year. In the first round of the playoffs, the Panthers were on the losing end of the longest professional football game, falling 27-21 to the Los Angeles Express.

It ended up being the last game for the Panthers for over 30 years as they merged with the Oakland Invaders. The current iteration of the team began play in 2022 with Jeff Fisher as its head coach and general manager. The team dropped their first two games of the season, falling to the Houston Gamblers and New Jersey Generals, but was able to shut out the Pittsburgh Maulers in their third game of the year. The team would go on to drop six of its last seven games, winning its final game against Pittsburgh, to finish the season with a record of 2-8. Ahead of the 2023 season, Jeff Fisher stepped down as head coach and general manager and Mike Nolan was named the Panthers head coach. The team started the season 2-0 after defeating the Houston Gamblers and Philadelphia Stars. Michigan then dropped four straight games, all by 14 points or more. The Panthers stopped the skid with a three point win over the New Jersey Generals, but followed that up with two more losses. Needing a win to qualify for the playoffs, Michigan defeated the Stars 23-20 to finish the season 4-6 and earned a playoff berth by having a 3-3 divisional record. The Panthers would face the Pittsburgh Maulers in the division finals, but lost in overtime 31-27.

MICHIGAN CONNECTIONS

A total of five Michigan Panther players have connections to the Great Lakes State. Running back Nate McCrary (Muskegon) and linebacker Kenny Willekes (Rockford) are natives of the state, while three additional players played college football in Michigan. The full list of players, their hometowns and universities are below: 19 QB Brian Lewerke Phoenix, Arizona Michigan State

28 RB Nate McCrary Muskegon, Michigan Saginaw Valley State

48 DE Kenny Willekes Rockford, Michigan Michigan State

79 OL Jarrett Horst Middleton, Wisconsin Michigan State

84 TE Gunnar Oakes Swanton, Ohio Eastern Michigan

NEW YEAR, NEW RESULTS AT FORD FIELD?

Last season in the USFL, the Michigan Panthers won only one of their five games while playing at Ford Field. After starting 0-4 in the "friendly" confines, the Panthers defeated the Philadelphia Stars 23-20 and earned a playoff berth with their first home win. In five games, Michigan was outscored 127 to 66 by its opponents. In 2024, though, the Panthers have surpassed their win total in the Motor City with an 18-16 win over St. Louis in Week 1 and a 34-20 win over Houston in Week 3. The 16 points against the Battlehawks are the fewest points ever allowed by Michigan while playing at Ford Field.

ALL GAMES NATIONALLY TELEVISED

This season, all 43 games (40 regular season games, two playoffs, one championship) will be featured on a combination of ABC, FOX, ESPN, ESPN2 and FS1. Games on ESPN and ABC will be streamed on ESPN+ and FOX games will stream on the FOX Sports App. 72% of all UFL games will air on broadcast television (ABC or FOX): ABC (10), FOX (21), ESPN (10), ESPN2 (1) and FS1 (1). Michigan will appear on FOX six times this season, ESPN three times and on ABC once. This week's Michigan game will air on FOX with the announcing team of Jason Bennett (play-by-play), Mark Sanchez (analyst) and Devin Gardner (sideline analyst). The entire Week 2 schedule is listed below:

Saturday, April 20 - Memphis Showboats @ St. Louis Battlehawks at 12:30 p.m. ET on ABC

Saturday, April 20 - DC Defenders @ Birmingham Stallions at 7 p.m. ET on FOX

Sunday, April 20 - Michigan Panthers @ San Antonioa Brahmas at 7 p.m. ET on FOX

Sunday, April 21 - Arlington Renegades @ Houston Roughnecks at 2 p.m. ET on FS1




United Football League Stories from April 16, 2024


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