St. Louis Battlehawks (Photo by the St. Louis Battlehawks and the UFL)
Battlehawks can’t get off the ground against the Renegades
St. Louis 15, Dallas 31
Dallas got off to a hot start, and St. Louis was playing from behind from the very beginning. Only three minutes into the game, Dallas’ star quarterback Austin Reed threw a touchdown pass. Reed had a fantastic week one and picked up where he left off. It didn’t help things that the Battlehawks never sacked Reed, when pressuring the quarterback was so huge in their opening victory against DC. Midway through the first quarter, Dallas had a 9-0 lead.
The Renegades would answer every time the Battlehawks seemed to get anything going. St. Louis would get a Tucker McCann field goal to cut the Dallas lead to six points, but Dallas would respond to the score being 9-3 with a touchdown drive. Austin Reed would get his second touchdown pass of the day, and Dallas would lead, 17-3, at the half.
Second Half
St. Louis would again battle back in the third quarter with another field goal, but again Dallas would answer it with a touchdown. Reed’s third touchdown pass of the game would make it a 24-6 game going into the fourth quarter. The Battlehawks wouldn’t go quietly. They finally got a touchdown in the fourth quarter on a Brandon Silvers to Tyler Neville touchdown pass. They completed a three-point conversion, and it was on the verge of being a game again with the score 24-15.
Like they had been doing all game, though, Dallas answered the St. Louis success with a bigger one of their own. Austin Reed’s fourth touchdown pass of the day, with two minutes to go in the fourth quarter, was the final dagger in the heart of the Battlehawks. Dallas would win, 31-15. Not much went right for the Battlehawks offensively, with only 47 rushing yards and throwing two interceptions in the passing game.
Next, the Battlehawks are back home against Birmingham
St. Louis will host Birmingham on Sunday when the Battlehawks take on the Stallions. The Battlehawks will need to get their running game and pass rush back from the season opener. Those were very conspicuously absent on Tuesday night. St. Louis would be wise to find ways to get their star players the chance to make plays. Wide receiver Hakeem Butler had some notable plays against Dallas, and it wouldn’t be a bad idea to try to game plan him for a great game against Birmingham. The same for standout tight end Tyler Neville, particularly when getting in the Red Zone.
