Stallions vs. Panthers Preview

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UFL Birmingham Stallions

Stallions vs. Panthers Preview

May 22, 2025 - United Football League (UFL)
Birmingham Stallions News Release


THREE STALLIONS TO WATCH ON OFFENSE

J'Mar Smith: It's well documented that the Stallions veteran took jobs detailing cars and doing whatever was needed at Dunkin' Donuts in Vestavia, Alabama was part of the way he filled his hours in between time on the football field. Now he's back throwing the football for the Stallions. Smith wasn't perfect in his first start since the opening game of the 2023 season but he did some really good things in the Stallions loss to St. Louis last week. Smith was 14-of-27 for 262 yards with three long touchdown passes and one interception.

Deon Cain: When the Stallions need a big-chunk play, they call on the 6-foot-1, 194-pound Clemson graduate. Cain has four touchdown receptions of 50 yards or more this season and is averaging 19 yards per catch on his 23 receptions. Two of his touchdowns came in last week's loss to St. Louis. Those two catches - which were his only two of the game - totaled 115 yards.

Cade Johnson: The 5-foot-10, 194-pound South Dakota State product is one of the smaller players on the Stallions roster but he specializes in big plays. Johnson had the game-tying reception in the final minute of the third week of the season against the Arlington Renegades when he gathered in a 20-yard scoring pass from Matt Corral. The Stallions won the game on the conversion attempt when Corral scored on a run. Johnson had the go-ahead score in the fourth quarter this past week in St. Louis when he teamed with J'Mar Smith for a 47-yard touchdown pass. Overall, Johnson has 10 catches for 188 yards in five games.

THREE STALLIONS TO WATCH ON DEFENSE

A.J. Thomas: The versatile safety is making a strong case to be a repeat selection on the All-UFL team. Thomas, who started at linebacker in the opener before returning to safety, has 44 tackles, three tackles for loss, two interceptions and four pass breakups on the season. One of his interceptions came in last week's loss at St. Louis.

Mario Goodrich: The playmaking cornerback started the first two games of the season before missing the next four games due to an injury. He's been outstanding since returning two weeks ago in a win over the Houston Roughnecks. Goodrich, who is also one of the Stallions best players on the kick coverage units, forced a fumble in each of the past two games. He leads the team with three forced fumbles this season.

Maximilian Roberts: The Stallions added the 6-foot-1, 242-pound Boston College product to the roster after standout edge rusher Ronnie Perkins went out with an injury. Roberts responded in his first game by sharing the team's lone sack in the loss to St. Louis. Roberts played 10 games for the Memphis Showboats last season and finished with 18 tackles, four tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, a forced fumble and fumble recovery. Look for Roberts to play a key role the rest of the way.

PLAYOFF BOUND

The UFL playoffs are settled with two weeks left in the regular season. But regular season conference championships are still up for grabs. Birmingham and Michigan will meet in the USFL Conference Championship Game for the second consecutive season and St. Louis will play host to the D.C. Defenders in the XFL Conference Championship Game. Michigan enters Saturday with a one-game lead over the Stallions. However, Birmingham does currently hold the tiebreaker after winning at Michigan earlier this season. The teams are not playing for home field advantage, though, because Ford Field, where Michigan plays its home games, has a scheduling conflict on that day. The Stallions and Panthers will return to Protective Stadium on June 8 for the playoff game.

Birmingham and Michigan played in the 2024 regular season finale at Protective Stadium with the Stallions escaping with a 20-19 victory. The teams returned to Protective Stadium the following week with Birmingham scoring the final 28 points in a 31-18 victory.

SCOUTING THE MICHIGAN PANTHERS

Quarterback Bryce Perkins has emerged as perhaps the league's most dangerous offensive player. The 6-foot-2, 215-pound Perkins is a legitimate UFL Player of the Year candidate. Thus far, he's 109-for-158 passing for 1,342 yards with nine touchdowns and two interceptions. Many of those passing yards came after he bought time with his scrambling ability until his receivers got open. Perkins also has 269 rushing yards on 47 carries with five touchdowns. He played in four games last season, the final one coming in the regular season finale against the Stallions when he rushed for 37 yards before leaving the game due to an injury. Perkins missed last week's win over the Houston Roughnecks after suffering an ankle injury the prior week. Danny Etling stepped in to lead the Panthers to the win.

Pressuring the quarterback has been a strength of the Panthers but they haven't produced the sacks at their customary rate this season. Michigan is sixth in the UFL with 13 sacks entering Saturday's game. Part of that is the absence of standout edge rusher Breeland Speaks, who only played in two games before being injured. The Panthers do have some dangerous rushers in defensive ends Kenny Willekes (3.5 sacks) and Mika Tafua (3 sacks) and linebacker Frank Ginda (2.5 sacks). Michigan is first in the UFL in rushing defense after allowing 86.3 yards per game on the ground through eight games.

The emergence of rugged running back Toa Taua has been important in the Panthers' offensive success. The 5-foot-8, 204-pound Taua, who played collegiately at Utah, has 310 rushing yards on 69 carries with five touchdowns. Malik Turner, a veteran of 44 NFL games, is the team's most dangerous receiver with 35 catches for 334 yards and four touchdowns.

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