2022 Birmingham Stallions season

The 2022 Birmingham Stallions season was the first season for the Birmingham Stallions as a professional American football franchise. They play as charter members of the United States Football League, one of eight teams to compete in the league for the 2022 season. The Stallions play their home games at Protective Stadium and Legion Field and are led by head coach Skip Holtz.

2022 Birmingham Stallions season
General managerSkip Holtz
Head coachSkip Holtz
Home fieldProtective Stadium
Legion Field
Results
Record9–1
League place1st in South Division
Playoff finishWon Division Finals (vs. Breakers) 31–17
Won USFL Championship (at Stars) 33–30

In week 8, the Stallions clinched the South division.

Background and history

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As is the case with all eight teams competing in the league, the Birmingham Stallions take their name and color scheme from a franchise of the same name that competed in the original USFL.[1] The original Birmingham Stallions, who competed in the USFL from 1983 to 1985, finished at or above .500 in each of their three seasons and were led by head coach Rollie Dotsch for the duration of their existence.[2]

The identical team names were the subject of a lawsuit brought to Fox by the owners of the original USFL, who claimed trademark infringement and false advertising on the part of the new league.[3]

Personnel

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Final roster

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2022 Birmingham Stallions final roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists


Practice squad


Rookies in italics
41 active, 2 inactive, 10 practice squad

The Stallions, like all other teams, have a 38-man active roster with a 7-man practice squad.[4] Their first picks in the 2022 USFL draft included quarterback Alex McGough (round 1, pick 6), defensive end Aaron Adeoye (round 2, pick 11), and offensive tackle Chauncy Haney (round 3, pick 22).[5]

Staff

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The Stallions' first head coach and general manager is Skip Holtz, who will also lead Birmingham's offense.[6] Holtz, who served in various positions on college coaching staffs from 1987 to 2021, served most recently in head coaching positions at East Carolina, South Florida, and Louisiana Tech.[7] After finishing the 2021 season at Louisiana Tech with a record of 3–9, he was fired.[8] The Stallions' defense will be led by John Chavis, whose most recent coaching positions include defensive coordinator spots at Tennessee, LSU, Texas A&M, and Arkansas.[9]

2022 Birmingham Stallions staff

Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches



Schedule

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Regular season

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The Stallions' 2022 schedule was announced on March 7. They opened the season against the New Jersey Generals in the league's inaugural game,[10] which did simulcast by both NBC and Fox, with an additional broadcast on NBC's Peacock streaming service.[11] This was the first simulcast of a live sporting event by rival television networks since 1967.[12] Because the regular season is being held in its entirety at Protective Stadium and Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama, the Stallions will play all of their games at their home stadium.[13] The schedule format has each team playing a ten-game regular season, consisting of two games against each division opponent and one game against each team in the opposite division.[14]

WeekDateTime (ET)OpponentResultRecordTVRecap
1April 167:30 p.m.New Jersey Generals*W 28–241–0NBC/Fox/PeacockRecap
2April 237:00 p.m.Houston GamblersW 33–282–0FS1Recap
3April 308:00 p.m.New Orleans BreakersW 22–133–0FoxRecap
4May 77:00 p.m.Tampa Bay Bandits*W 16–104–0FoxRecap
5May 1512:00 p.m.Philadelphia StarsW 30–175–0NBC/PeacockRecap
6May 217:30 p.m.Michigan Panthers*W 33–176–0NBC/PeacockRecap
7May 292:00 p.m.Pittsburgh MaulersW 26–167–0FoxRecap
8June 43:00 p.m.New Orleans Breakers*W 10–98–0FoxRecap
9June 116:00 p.m.Houston Gamblers*L 15–178–1USARecap
10June 184:00 p.m.Tampa Bay BanditsW 21–189–1FoxRecap

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. * mean that they host the game, since all eight teams play at the same stadium

Game summaries

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Week 1: vs. New Jersey Generals

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Week 1: New Jersey Generals at Birmingham Stallions – Game summary
Period1234Total
Generals7701024
Stallions7071428

at Protective Stadium, Birmingham, Alabama

  • Date: April 16, 2022
  • Game time: 7:30pm EST
  • Referee: Larry Smith
  • TV announcers (NBC/Fox/Peacock): Curt Menefee, Joel Klatt, Brock Huard
  • Recap
Game information

The Stallions started their first season in the inaugural opener for the USFL against the New Jersey Generals. The Stallions won the coin toss and elected to defer. The Generals scored on their first drive to put the Stallions down 0–7. The Stallions answered with a 35-yard touchdown pass to Osirus Mitchell to tie the game 7–7. The rest of the quarter saw the teams trade punts. The Generals scored the only points of the second quarter with a touchdown after an Alex McGough interception, putting the Stallions behind 7–14. The Stallions then scored the only points of the third quarter with a C. J. Marable 3-yard rush, tying the game 14–14. In the fourth quarter the Generals scored first, putting the Stallions down 14–21. The Stallions would respond with a 6 play 67-yard touchdown, tying it up again at 21–21. The Generals responded with a 38-yard field goal drive, ending in a 47-yard field goal, putting the Stallions at 21–24 with 1:54 remaining. The Stallions responded by driving 59 yards downfield for a touchdown that would give them their first lead at 28–24, which would be the final score.

Week 2: at Houston Gamblers

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Week 2: Birmingham Stallions at Houston Gamblers – Game summary
Period1234Total
Stallions10313733
Gamblers993728

at Protective Stadium, Birmingham, Alabama

  • Date: April 23
  • Game time: 7:00 p.m.
  • Referee: Duane Heydt
  • TV announcers (FS1): Kevin Kugler, Joel Klatt, Brock Huard
Game information

For a second time in as many weeks, Stallions quarterback J'Mar Smith led Birmingham to three consecutive second half drives that ended with touchdowns. The reigning USFL Offensive Player of the Week, Smith went 19-of-29 for 214 yards on Saturday. His 34-yard, third quarter touchdown pass to Osirus Mitchell gave the Stallions a 19–18 lead. His 64-yard strike to Marlon Williams stretched Birmingham's lead to 33–21 with just over 13 minutes left.

Houston, who took an 18–13 halftime lead on the strength of Will Likely's 63-yard pick-six, made it a one-possession game when Clayton Thorson connected with Tyler Simmons for a 44-yard touchdown with 12:24 left. The Gamblers comeback bid came up short, however, when Lorenzo Burns recorded his second pick of Thorson with 1:13 left.[15]

Week 3: at New Orleans Breakers

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Week 3: Birmingham Stallions at New Orleans Breakers – Game summary
Period1234Total
Stallions01001222
Breakers067013

at Protective Stadium, Birmingham, Alabama

  • Date: April 30
  • Game time: 8:00 p.m. EST
  • Referee: Larry Smith
  • TV announcers (Fox): Curt Menefee, Joel Klatt, Brock Huard
Game information

The 2–0 Stallions played against division rival, the 2–0 New Orleans Breakers. In what started off as a slow offensive performance for both sides, the Stallions got a 7–0 lead on a J'Mar Smith screen pass to Marlon Williams. Later into the 2nd quarter, the Breakers scored on a 10-yard pass from Kyle Sloter to Johnnie Dixon which made the Stallions lead trim down to 7–6. With 7 seconds left in the half, Brandon Aubrey made a 33-yard field goal to give Birmingham a 10–6 lead at the half.

Coming out of the half, the Breakers conducted an 8:50 17 play drive to regain the lead at 13–10 on an 11-yard pass from Sloter to Dixon. This would be the last time the Breakers would score all game. Birmingham would score 12 points in the final quarter of play. A touchdown from Smith to Victor Bolden Jr, a safety forced by Dondrea Tillman, and a Brandon Aubrey field goal. Birmingham would end up winning 22–13, which put them in sole possession of first place in the South Division with a 3–0 record.

Standings

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South Division
#WLPCTGBDIVPFPASTK
1(y) Birmingham Stallions91.900-5–1234169W1
2(x) New Orleans Breakers64.60033–3196164L1
3(e) Tampa Bay Bandits46.40052–4162195L2
4(e) Houston Gamblers37.30062–4196208W2
(x)–clinched playoff berth; (y)–clinched division; (e)–eliminated from playoff contention

Postseason

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RoundDateTime (ET)OpponentResultRecordTVRecap
Division FinalsJune 258:00 p.m.vs. New Orleans BreakersW 31–171–0NBC/PeacockRecap
USFL ChampionshipJuly 37:30 p.m.at Philadelphia StarsW 33–302–0FoxRecap

References

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  1. ^ Florio, Mike (22 November 2021). "USFL will return with eight original team names". Yahoo!. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  2. ^ Stephenson, Craig (12 June 2018). "Players: USFL's Stallions were 'top-notch' organization". AL.com. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  3. ^ Camenker, Jacob (1 March 2022). "USFL lawsuit, explained: Why Larry Csonka, old USFL teams and owners are suing the new league". The Sporting News. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  4. ^ "USFL to have a "player selection meeting" on February 22–23". Pro Football Talk. January 4, 2022. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  5. ^ "USFL 2022 Draft Results". USFL Newsroom. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  6. ^ "USFL taps Birmingham as host city, Skip Holtz introduced as Stallions coach". WVTM-13 NBC. 26 January 2022. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  7. ^ Stephenson, Craig (20 January 2022). "Skip Holtz named coach of USFL's Birmingham Stallions". AL.com. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  8. ^ Jeyarajah, Shehan (November 26, 2021). "Louisiana Tech fires Skip Holtz: Bulldogs opt for coaching change after nine years amid 3–8 season". CBS Sports. Retrieved November 26, 2021.
  9. ^ Harralson, Dan (17 March 2022). "John Chavis to serve on Birmingham's coaching staff". USA Today Sports. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  10. ^ "2022 Birmingham Stallions Schedule". FBSchedules. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  11. ^ Hipes, Patrick (26 January 2022). "USFL Season Opener To Be Simulcast On Fox And NBC In Rare Double-Team". Deadline. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  12. ^ Hayes, Dade (January 25, 2022). "NBC And Fox Will Both Air USFL Opener In April, In First TV Network Sports Simulcast Since 1967". Deadline. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  13. ^ "USFL announces Birmingham as official headquarters, host city for 2022 season". WVTM-13 NBC. 26 January 2022. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  14. ^ "USFL 2022: Everything you need to know". Fox Sports. 29 March 2022. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  15. ^ "USFL Week 2: J'Mar Smith, Stallions sprint past Gamblers to move to 2–0; Stars top Maulers". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 2022-04-24.