Stars vs. Stallions live score, updates, highlights from 2022 USFL championship game

2 years ago

The Birmingham Stallions have been considered the best team in the USFL for most of the league’s inaugural season. They will have a chance to prove that once and for all on Sunday.

The Stallions are facing the Philadelphia Stars in the 2022 USFL championship game at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. The contest is a rematch of a Week 5 meeting that the Stallions won 30-17, but they will face a stiffer test from a Philadelphia team that has found its stride in recent weeks.

The Stars have one of the USFL’s most explosive offenses headlined by quarterback Case Cookus. Philadelphia averaged a league-high 26.2 points per game during the regular season while Cookus threw the second-most touchdown passes in the league (12) despite making just seven starts.

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Cookus and the Stars will be without their top running back, Matt Colburn II, so Philadelphia will certainly rely heavily on their passing game to carry their offense. Meanwhile, on defense, the Stars will need their run defense to play as well as it did in their playoff win over the Generals; the team’s typically strong pass rush and secondary play — headlined by cornerback Channing Stribling — also must put forward a solid effort against Birmingham.

The Stallions have one of the most balanced teams in the USFL. Their defense — led by star linebacker DeMarquis Gates — could make it difficult for Cookus to move the ball, especially if they can eliminate the threat of a running game. As for the offense, the highly efficient attack is led by quarterback J’Mar Smith, who is in his sixth year with coach Skip Holtz. He will be able to distribute the ball accurately to his receivers and will help to open up running lanes for the likes of Bo Scarbrough.

Birmingham is expected to beat Philadelphia, but the Stars upset the Generals and snapped their nine-game winning streak last weekend. Can the Stars do it again?

The Sporting News is tracking live scoring updates and highlights from Stars vs. Stallions on Sunday. Follow along for the latest highlights, updates and results from the 2022 USFL championship game.

MORE: Cookus, Scarbrough among USFL players who could make NFL rosters in ’22

Stars vs. Stallions score

  Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
Stars 3 — — — —
Stallions 10 — — — —

Stars vs. Stallions live score, updates from USFL championship game

All times Eastern.

9:01 p.m. — Scarbrough gets another carry and takes it two yards to the 4-yard line. We have now reached the two-minute warning with the Stallions up eight and threatening to extend their lead.

8:57 p.m. — Bo Scarbrough breaks a 70-yard run that was originally called back due to offsetting penalties. However, both are overturned on a review by Mike Pereira, so the Stallions now have the ball at the Stars’ 6-yard line.

8:54 p.m. — The Stars stall out after crossing midfield. The Stallions sack Cookus on a third-and-7 to force a punt. Birmingham will get the ball back around its own 10-yard line.

8:51 p.m. — The Stars generate back-to-back big plays to flip the field. Paul Terry catches a pass out of the backfield to get near midfield and then Christ Rowland takes a carry across midfield and into Stallions territory.

8:50 p.m. — Birmingham’s special teams continue to bottle up Maurice Alexander on kickoff returns. This time, they stop him at the 23-yard line, giving the Stars a longer field than usual.

8:49 p.m. — How did J’Mar Smith make that touchdown throw to Marlon Williams? “I played right field,” he tells Brock Huard on the Fox broadcast.

Score: Stallions 17, Stars 9

8:46 p.m. — TOUCHDOWN. J’Mar Smith finds Marlon Williams wide open down the left sideline for a touchdown. The throw was timed perfectly and had just enough to get it over the outstretched hands of Mazzi Wilkins. Aubrey converts on the extra point and the Stallions extend their lead to eight.

8:45 p.m. — Bolden makes a nice, shoestring catch off a low bullet from Smith to get into Philadelphia territory. First down, Stallions.

8:44 p.m. — Bolden breaks his return to the right again and gets to the 40-yard line. The Stallions will look to answer the Stars score and build on their lead with 8:02 left in the second quarter.

Score: Stallions 10, Stars 9

8:39 p.m. — TOUCHDOWN. Cookus finds Suell in the end-zone on a perfect pass for a 25-yard touchdown. The Stars cut the deficit to one, but can’t tie it, as Aguilar doinks the extra point off the right upright thanks, in part, to a high snap on the try.

8:38 p.m. — The Stars convert on third-and-16. The Stallions bust a coverage on Jordan Suell, and Cookus finds him wide open for a 25-yard gain. Philadelphia is now in field goal range.

8:36 p.m. — Cookus has to throw the first-and-20 throw away after a bad snap. He took a big hit on the play, which is worth watching because he has been dealing with a back injury in recent weeks.

8:35 p.m. — Cookus kept the ball for a 19-yard game, but the Stars are called for holding on the play. That will make it first-and-20 for Philadelphia.

8:34 p.m. — Case Cookus talked about what the Stallions are doing well with Brock Huard during the last drive. We’ll see if this leads to any adjustments on the next drive.

8:32 p.m. — The Stars get the stop. Smith looks for Marlon Williams on third down but he can’t get it to him in traffic. Colby Wadman gets a good punt away, but Maurice Alexander brings it back to the Birmingham 45. The Stars have good field position as they look to answer, down 10-3 in the second quarter.

8:31 p.m. — J’Mar Smith made a dangerous throw to Victor Bolden while throwing from his own end zone. Mazzi Wilkins nearly jumped the route for a pick-six, but Bolden caught it for a gain of six to set up a third-and-2.

8:26 p.m. — Philadelphia elects to punt, as they are on the edge of field goal range. The decision pays off, as Chris Rowland saves the ball from going into the end zone. That will make the Stallions start with the ball at their own 1-yard line.

8:25 p.m. — The Stallions finally come up with a third-down stop. Cookus looked for Maurice Alexander deep, but the elusive receiver wasn’t able to make the catch through contact from Brian Allen. This time, there is no flag.

8:23 p.m. — Another third down for the Stars, another penalty for the Stallions. Jonathan Newsome is drawn offside on a hard count from Case Cookus. Philadelphia is at the 38-yard line and is very close to field goal range.

8:20 p.m. — Cookus targets Jordan Suell on third-and-7 and the 6-5 receiver can’t come up with it through contact. However, Stallions corner Brian Allen is whistled for pass interference. That gives Philadelphia a first down.

End of first quarter: Stallions 10, Stars 3

8:16 p.m. — Cookus just overthrows an open Devin Gray across the middle of the field on a second-and-7. The Stars were nearly whistled for a delay of game on third-and-7, but the clock runs out on the first quarter before that can happen.

8:14 p.m. — Another solid return by Maurice Alexander gets the ball out to the 35-yard line. Cookus will look to answer Scarbrough’s score.

Score: Stallions 10, Stars 3

8:10 p.m. — TOUCHDOWN. Bo Scarbrough breaks one up the middle for the Stallions, and he goes into the end zone untouched as a result. Aubrey converts on the extra point following the 36-yard run to give the Stallions a seven-point lead.

8:09 p.m. — Marlon Williams makes a nice play on a third-and-7. He catches a pass short of the sticks after bobbling it, but he made some nice jukes on the play to make the line to gain. First down, Stallions.

8:06 p.m. — Victor Bolden Jr. is one of the best return men in the USFL, and he just proved it. He broke a kick return to the right and was able to bring it back to the Philadelphia 48-yard line. The Stallions will start their second drive with great field position.

8:03 p.m. — Worth noting: before the last play from scrimmage, Case Cookus just yelled “turn it on” while Bart Andrus was trying to call a play into him. Evidently, Andrus may be on the hook for any potential headset communication issues between the two.

8:02 p.m. — FIELD GOAL. The Stars ran the ball on a third-and-1 in the red-zone and the Stallions were ready for it. Dexter Williams was tackled for about a four-yard loss and that forced Philadelphia to try a field goal. Luis Aguilar’s 32-yard attempt is good.

7:59 p.m. — After a six-yard completion on first down, some communication issues force the Stars to take their second timeout before second down.

7:57 p.m. — The Stars have shaken their early-game jitters. Cookus completes consecutive passes to Chris Rowland and Devin Gray to get down to the Birmingham 19-yard line. They are well within range for a game-tying field goal.

7:56 p.m. — Dexter Williams, making his Stars debut, takes a second-and-5 handoff and reverses field — like Scarbrough did — to pick up a first down for Philly. The Stars are near midfield, trailing by three.

7:55 p.m. — Once again, the Stallions special teams do well to contain Maurice Alexander on the kick return. The Stars offense comes back on the field looking for its first, first down of the game.

Score: Stallions 3, Stars 0

7:51 p.m. — FIELD GOAL. The Stallions stall out after their early success. Smith just overthrew Victor Bolden in the end-zone on a third down for what would have been a touchdown. Instead, Brandon Aubrey comes on to attempt a 42-yard field goal and nails it. Birmingham strikes first.

7:49 p.m. — Skip Holtz pulled out the triple option on second-and-short on the first drive. J’Mar Smith pitches the ball forward to wide-out Marlon Williams to get a first down across the 30-yard line. The Stallions are now in field goal range and nearing the red zone.

7:48 p.m. — The Stallions are in business early. Smith finds his fullback/tight end hybrid Bobby Holly down the field for a huge gain. The Stallions are across midfield and are nearing field goal range.

7:47 p.m. — Birmingham’s first play is a 12-yard run by Bo Scarbrough for a first down. Scarbrough was wrapped up in the backfield before he switched directions, and quarterback J’Mar Smith had a massive block on the play to get Scarbrough loose.

7:45 p.m. — Make it three straight incompletions. Cookus is nearly sacked by Jonathan Newsome but he manages to get the ball away to save some yards. The Stars are forced to punt but Victor Bolden Jr. can’t do much on the return. J’Mar Smtih and the Stallions’ offense will now take the field.

7:44 p.m. — Philadelphia is having some jitters on the opening drive. Cookus starts with two incompletions — one was due to good coverage and one was due to pressure — and the Stars have to burn a timeout on third down.

7:43 p.m. — Maurice Alexander takes the opening kickoff back to the 30-yard line. Case Cookus and the high-powered Stars offense now take the field.

7:41 p.m. — The Stars win the coin toss and they will receive. Brandon Aubrey and the Stallions will kick off to start the game.

7:38 p.m. — The national anthem just wrapped up, which means the game will begin in short order.

7:33 p.m. — The Stars and Stallions have both come onto the field in front of a solid crowd at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium. The Stars are wearing their red uniforms while the Stallions will be decked out in white.

7:27 p.m. — J’Mar Smith was 3-0 as a bowl game starter for Skip Holtz at Louisiana Tech. Can they translate that success to the USFL level?

7:25 p.m. — Case Cookus is getting warmed up. Can he lead the Stars to a victory?

7:20 p.m. — Stars safety Ahmad Dixon was a big playmaker in Philadelphia’s win over New Jersey last week. Here he is getting loose as he looks to do the same against the Stallions.

7:17 p.m. — “Let’s have some fun!” Skip Holtz is bringing a lighthearted attitude into the USFL championship game.

7:11 p.m. — J’Mar Smith is set to start for the Stallions tonight as he has in almost every game since taking over for Alex McGough in Week 1 of the USFL season. He recently spoke to The Sporting News about how his relationship with Birmingham coach Skip Holtz, who coached Smith for six years at Louisiana Tech, has helped turn the Stallions into one of the league’s best teams.

7:05 p.m. — Matt Colburn II might not be playing for the Stars tonight because of an injury, but he did take home some hardware recently. The Philadelphia running back was named the USFL’s Sportsman of the Year while at the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

6:52 p.m. — Case Cookus has been one of the USFL’s most explosive quarterbacks during its inaugural season. The former Northern Arizona star recently spoke to The Sporting News about his journey to the USFL after stops with four NFL squads and a CFL team over the last two seasons.

6:45 p.m. — Looks like the USFL might get a solid crowd in Canton tonight. There are plenty of fans already in the stadium while others are lined up waiting to get in to see the Stars play the Stallions.

What channel is Stars vs. Stallions on today?

  • TV channel: Fox
  • Live stream: fuboTV

The USFL championship game between the Stars and Stallions will be broadcast on Fox in 2022. Fox and NBC both own the USFL, but Fox is the network that gets to broadcast the first notable spring league championship game in almost 40 years.

Curt Menefee and Joel Klatt have served as Fox’s No. 1 broadcast team during the USFL regular season and called the Generals vs. Stars playoff game last week. They are expected to team up again for Stars vs. Stallions matchup.

Cord cutters will be able to watch Sunday’s game with fuboTV, which provides access to all of the USFL playoff games in 2022 and comes with a free trial.

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