New spring football league, same Birmingham Stallions.
Coach Skip Holtz's squad won the inaugural UFL Championship Game on Sunday, pulling away in the second half for a dominant 25-0 shutout of the San Antonio Brahmas at The Dome at America's Center in St. Louis.
The Brahmas had no answers for the Stallions' stifling defense, and an offense led by Adrian Martinez broke through just before the end of the first half and never looked back, as Martinez finished with three total touchdowns (one passing, two rushing.)
The victory marks the third straight spring football title for Holtz's Stallions after back-to-back USFL championships in 2022 and 2023, and provides a great Father's Day gift for the coach's legendary father Lou Holtz, whose mantra of toughness and physicality was on full display on his son's team Sunday.
Here are the highlights from a historic title game!
As the final seconds ticked off, the Birmingham Stallions scelebrated a dynastic third straight spring football title, including a trophy presentation helped by the UFL's Dany Garcia and FOX Sports' Tom Brady, and Gatorade bath for coach Skip Holtz with some help from FOX Sports' Brock Huard.
Birmingham kept rolling as things got chippy late.
Birmingham remains in full control of this one, adding on with Chris Blewitt's 49-yard field goal.
A frustrating second half for San Antonio continued when, after quarterback Chase Garbers mistakenly slid short of the first down, on third & 1, the ensuing fourth-down play was stopped short for another turnover.
The Stallions opened their lead up further on a fourth-down quarterback sneak for Adrian Martinez's second rushing score of the day.
Birmingham got the ball right back, with Kyahva Tezino stripping the ball and Kenny Robinson Jr. coming up with the recovery.
Birmingham's vaunted offense started to get in a groove coming out of halftime. Adrian Martinez scampered into the end zone for the Stallions' second touchdown, then Martinez found Jordan Thomas for a nice one-handed catch to make the score 16-0.
Heading into the break, both teams' head coaches checked in with the FOX Sports crew to give insight on the second half.
The Stallions finally broke through just before halftime, as Adrian Martinez connected with Gary Jennings in the end zone for the first points of the game. The ensuing two-point try was also good, giving Birmingham an 8-0 lead.
The biggest offensive play of the first half came on a 44-yard run from Ricky Person, who ignited a spark for Birmingham.
Tom Brady joined the FOX broadcast booth to give his take on the championship matchup thus far.
San Antonio's stout defense was able to force Birmingham to punt the ball away on its first drive, and the Stallions returned the favor by forcing the Brahmas to go three-and-out on their ensuing possession.
Just like that, two of the UFL's top defenses were living up to the hype early, as things remained scoreless in the first quarter.
The Brahmas won the coin toss and opted to receive to start the game. Despite a strong showing from QB Chase Garbers, their first drive didn't go as planned after picking up a mere 18 yards in nine plays before punting.
