UFL Week 8 Recap: The Playoffs Are Set

Another wild week in the UFL culminates with our four playoff teams officially securing their spots, although there aren’t any surprises as to who will compete for the UFL Championship next month. DC and St. Louis will compete to represent the XFL Conference, while Michigan and Birmingham will duke it out to represent the USFL Championship. Here’s a look back at Week 8 in the United Football League:

Showboats 24, Brahmas 22

This one was for the real football sickos out there — a matchup between two 1-6 spring football teams doing battle on a Friday night, going up against two game sixes in the NHL and NBA. All jokes aside, this turned out to be a pretty exciting game, all things considered.

Memphis jumped out to an early lead thanks to a Cameron Dantzler interception of beleaguered Brahmas QB Kevin Hogan, who just can’t seem to catch a break these days. Memphis picked off Hogan three times total in this game, including the Dantzler pick-six.

Not to be outdone, the Showboats' rushing attack put up 153 yards on the ground, including 66 yards on two second-quarter runs from HB Jalen Jackson. He capped his impressive drive with this 12-yard touchdown scamper: 

The Showboats' defense had two sacks and six tackles for loss, further creating the nightmare scenario for Hogan and the Brahmas. Ironically, San Antonio amassed almost 120 more yards throughout the game than Memphis, thanks in part to the great field position the Showboats' defense put their offense in consistently. 

For fans of passing games, this one wasn’t for you. Both teams combined managed just 164 yards of total passing, with Memphis QB Troy Williams throwing for just 36 total yards. No wonder both teams are 1-6. 

The game ended in OT with a back-and-forth battle of two-point conversions, of which Memphis was the victor in the end, thanks to this Kai Locksley catch: 

The Brahmas host the Battlehawks next week, while the Showboats host the Renegades.

Panthers 30, Roughnecks 18

If you had no idea this game was on, you weren’t alone. For some reason, the UFL scheduled a simultaneous kickoff between this game and the Battlehawks/Stallions matchup, but only aired this game in the greater Michigan and Texas markets. 

It’s a shame, because this was an outstanding game between two hot teams, albeit one without the league’s potential MVP, Bryce Perkins. Just a short time before kickoff, it was announced that Perkins would miss the game with an ankle injury, and Danny Etling would start for the Panthers.

While on the surface, this may have been just what Houston needed to pull an upset and make a playoff push, the talent discrepancy between these two clubs was just too much to handle for Houston. The Roughnecks struck first, but the Panthers hit back harder, going up 14-3 in the blink of an eye thanks to a grinding 11-play touchdown drive and a huge punt return by Xavier Malone:

OH MY MALONE 💨💨

88-yard punt return for Xavier Malone 🔥

📺: FOX | @Verizon pic.twitter.com/tOF5I54FPd

— Michigan Panthers (@USFLPanthers) May 17, 2025

From there, it was an easy pitch and catch for Etling and Samson Nacua to go up 11:

The Roughnecks wouldn’t go down that easily, as Jalen McClendon and Keke Chism linked up on an impressive 33-yard touchdown: 

MONEEEEEY!!

📺: FOX | @Verizon pic.twitter.com/IYDQ9PUACA

— Houston Roughnecks (@XFLRoughnecks) May 17, 2025

A field goal would put the game at 14-12 at halftime, and the Roughnecks seemingly had all the momentum. Unfortunately, the third quarter was a different story entirely. The Panthers blew the game open with the combination of a 35-yard touchdown catch by Devin Ross and a pick-six by Keni-H Lovely to put 13 points on the board in a matter of minutes.

Unfortunately, McClendon and the Roughnecks just couldn’t move the ball against the Panthers' defense in the fourth quarter and, despite a late touchdown, couldn’t keep their playoff hopes alive.

In Week 9, the Panthers travel to Birmingham to take on the rival Stallions, while the Roughnecks host the DC Defenders. 

Battlehawks 29, Stallions 28

A sloppy game between two powerhouses turned into a potential game of the year candidate. Saturday afternoon's matchup between the St. Louis Battlehawks and the Birmingham Stallions in what could be a UFL Championship Game preview. The Stallions struck first with a J’Mar Smith bomb to Deon Cain, silencing the crowd at the Dome, as fans worried if this was another instance of the Battlehawks shrinking in big games.

Fortunately for St. Louis fans, they have “Mad Max” Duggan at QB this time around, who used his superior athleticism to get into the endzone not once, but twice:

Despite Max's effort, the Battlehawks just couldn't shake the three-time champs, mostly due to the bevvy of sloppy play that marred what was expected to be a great game between two of the UFL's best.  Both teams turned the ball over three times and had their fair share of offensive struggles at different points of the game. Luckily, the Battlehawks caught their stride in the fourth quarter with the game on the line. 

Down 28-22 with about 5 minutes left, Duggan engineered his best scoring drive as a Battlehawk at the best possible time. He connected with Hakeem Butler for a 28-yard gain in a game where the two finally seemed to click. But it was Jacob Saylors who took over, put the team on his back, and scored the game-winner.

SAYLORS SIX

📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/WBMLA6zTEl

— St. Louis Battlehawks (@XFLBattlehawks) May 17, 2025

From there, it was up to the Battlehawks' defense to make a play — and after letting Birmingham deep into their own territory, they did. Travis Feeney forced his second fumble of the game with just 28 seconds left after Stallions' RB. C.J. Marable gained enough yards for what would have been a first down. 

Both teams clinched playoff berths following the game due to the Roughnecks and Renegades losing. Also of note for the Battlehawks, Rodrigo Blankenship missed his first kick of the season, a 58-yarder at the end of the first half. St. Louis linebacker Pita Taumoepenu added another sack to his league-leading 7.5 sacks on the season.

Read more about the Battlehawks’ Week 8 win on Sports Hub STL.

Defenders 33, Renegades 30

The final game of the weekend was great, but will unfortunately generate more social media buzz for getting bumped from ABC to ESPN2 for NBA pregame coverage. The biggest story of the game should be Jordan Ta’amu’s chase for the league’s Most Valuable Player award. Ta’amu put together yet another stellar passing game, with 240 yards and two touchdowns, including this dime to Cornell Powell:

Ta'amu to Powell TOUCHDOWN 🛡️

📺: ABC pic.twitter.com/2x61QU1mDn

— D.C. Defenders (@XFLDefenders) May 18, 2025

Ta’amu also caught a touchdown pass, courtesy of Chris Rowland, as one of the rare trick plays that have worked in the UFL:

DC never trailed in the game, despite Arlington’s best efforts, but the Renegades brought the game within one score late thanks to Holton Ahlers' one-yard touchdown run late in the game:

Arlington’s defense stepped up to force a DC three-and-out, and spring football legend Luis Perez got the ball back for one more shot to win the game. Unfortunately for Perez and the Renegades, the DC defense continued its dominance and came down with a clutch game-sealing interception:

WINNER!!!!!!!!!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/neeJjMAaAS

— D.C. Defenders (@XFLDefenders) May 18, 2025

DC will face the Battlehawks in the XFL Conference Championship game, but the two teams will meet in Week 10 for a tune-up. 

Week 9 UFL Schedule