Week 9 of the UFL season brought the biggest surprise yet, as the Birmingham Stallions suffered their first loss in more than a calendar year in what was a statement 18-9 win by the San Antonio Brahmas ahead of the playoffs.
Meanwhile, the Arlington Renegades also pulled off an upset for their second win of the season in a surprise 36-22 victory over the St. Louis Battlehawks.
On Sunday, the DC Defenders emerged victorious against the Memphis Showboats, stumping them 36-21, while the Michigan Panthers slid past the Houston Roughnecks in a tight affair, 26-22.
Here are the top plays from Week 9!
10. CB Keylon Kennedy, Battlehawks
It resulted in just one point, but Kennedy’s efforts on this interception return cannot be understated. He stepped in front of Renegades QB Luis Perez‘s one-point conversion attempt, and returned the pick 99 yards the other way for a successful defensive conversion.
9. QB Jordan Ta’amu to WR Alex Ellis, Defenders
The Defenders took a 22-7 lead into halftime thanks to Ta’amu’s dime to Ellis in the back of the end zone. The grab marked Ellis’s second touchdown of the season.
8. QB Luis Perez to WR Isaiah Winstead, Renegades
Perez’s first appearance on this list was an interception, but he made up for it on a perfectly placed pass to Winstead on a fly down the right sideline.
7. QB Jordan Ta’amu to WR Chris Rowland, Defenders
At 5-foot-8 and 179 pounds, you probably will not see Rowland trucking over defenders any time soon — but the Defenders receiver can certainly run away from opponents. The speedster scooted his way into the end zone to stamp the Defenders’ first touchdown of the game on a fourth-and-2 play.
6. WR Siaosi Mariner, Panthers
It is rare to see a 4-yard reception on a list of top 10 plays, but Mariner’s combination of hustle and headiness to prevent this interception effectively saved Michigan’s drive, and helped the Panthers to a 26-22 victory.
5. CB Teez Tabor, Brahmas
“We win! We win! We win! We win!” Legendary Brahmas head coach Wade Phillips was absolutely ecstatic after Tabor’s game-clinching interception to seal the game and hand Birmingham its first loss.
4. QB Nolan Henderson to WR Justin Hall, Roughnecks
Hall’s speed was too overwhelming for Michigan’s defense on this 63-yard house call to open the third quarter.
3. S Joe Powell, Renegades
Arlington collected three interceptions to seal the game vs. St. Louis, the second of which was Powell’s 49-yard pick-six.
2. WR Jonte Kirklin to WR Justin Smith, Brahmas
Double-pass alert! Birmingham head coach Skip Holtz’s squad has proven that it’s a tough opponent to beat, and it took a little trickery from San Antonio’s bag to conquer the Stallions.
1. QB Luis Perez to TE Sal Cannella, Renegades
How about a little more trickery at the No. 1 spot? A reverse play is taxing enough on a defense, but when Deontay Burnett pitched the ball back to Perez, that was all she wrote for St. Louis’s defense. Perez had no trouble connecting with Cannella, who did not have a defender near him as he reeled in the 46-yard score.
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