The 2023 USFL Championship Game matchup is set.
After a thrilling finish in Saturday’s North Division Championship, an overtime victory for the Pittsburgh Maulers, all eyes turned to the South on Sunday, as the powerhouse Birmingham Stallions hosted the New Orleans Breakers in a battle for the South Division Championship.
The Stallions proved to have superior horsepower, posting a USFL-record 47 points en route to a 47-22 victory.
The Stallions, who boast the best offense in the league, will face the Maulers, who have the top-ranked defense, in the championship game in Canton, Ohio (July 1 at 8 p.m. ET). Birmingham defeated Pittsburgh 24-20 when the squads played in the regular season.
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Here are the top moments!
FINAL: Birmingham Stallions 47, New Orleans Breakers 22
Our ball!
Brian Allen is a ball hawk, and he jumped in front of a short pass to buy his squad the ball back in solid field position.
Over the top!
The Stallions got three following the turnover, but New Orleans responded in a big way, striking pay dirt on this nifty back-shoulder fade.
Get ’em back!
Jace Sternberger broke out in a big way on the Stallions’ second drive, hauling in a big 32-yard grab before Alex McGough found him again in the flat for their first score. And this drone cam provided an awesome alternate angle of the play.
Two times the charm
The horses were out of the stable following the first TD, as Birmingham followed up its first TD with another, as Davion Davis made magic over the middle with a wondrous catch-and-run. The speedster’s scamper put his squad up 19-7 midway through the second quarter.
Deuce for Davion!
The first half was all Birmingham, as Davis punched his ticket for his second TD to cap off a 13-play, 88-yard drive just before halftime.
And though McGough finished the half on an aboslute burner, his head coach revealed that things aren’t always peaches and cream with him on the sidelines.
Hey, CJ
You’ve seen the Stallions do it through the air, and they showed their multidimensionality in the third, as CJ Marable got his gains in the ground game with a TD to his name.
Go, McGough Go!
McGough has been showing his athletic prowess all game, and he reared it with force in the third, plowing his way into the end zone for his first rushing score. His scamper put 40 on the board for Birmingham, as the Stallions waltzed into the fourth quarter with a mammoth advantage.
Signs of life
New Orleans went radio silent after its first TD in the first, but it poked its head early in the fourth, as Cyrus Habibi-Likio took a toss to the left side and rumbled 27 yards to the pylon.
Record-breaker!
No team in USFL history has scored more points than Birmingham did in this game. And who better to break the record than McGough. He broke loose from the pocket and fired a rocket to Josh Johnson, who took care of the rest to mark Birmingham’s 47th point of the affair.
More life
New Orleans broke free again, going 75 yards in 11 plays to up their ante. The squad came up successful for the season’s first three-point conversion, slimming the margin to 25.
N.O. earned the ball back in an onside attempt, but turned the ball over on downs with just over a minute to play, effectively sealing the win for Birmingham.
McGough finished with 310 passing yards and four TDs in one of the best games of his career. He’s the first player to pass for 300 yards and rush for 75 yards in the last two years. Meanwhile, his offense has averaged 37 points per game in the postseason over the past two seasons.
United States Football League
Birmingham Stallions
New Orleans Breakers
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