Photo by the St. Louis Battlehawks of the UFL
St. Louis Battlehawks beat Arlington Renegades 12-6 on Friday night.
The St. Louis Battlehawks got their revenge on the Arlington Renegades. Two weeks ago, the Renegades beat the Battlehawks 30-15 in a rout in North Texas. Friday night, at home in the Battledome, St. Louis paid Arlington back with a hard-fought, 12-6 victory.
In a defensive struggle, the Battlehawks got offense and points from a perfect kicker and a receiver, who, as of late, only catches touchdowns. Max Duggan has picked up for Manny Wilkins in leading the Battlehawks’ offense. The TCU star has played well since Wilkins went down to injury. The Battlehawks have kept their formula simple. Play good defense, perfect special teams, with huge plays on offense. It’s gotten two wins in a row, and their record up to 4-2 in 2025.
Hakeem Butler
This game was a defensive struggle early, with neither team scoring until the Battlehawks broke the 0-0 tie late in the second quarter. Max Duggan hit Hakeem Butler for a 30-yard touchdown pass with less than two minutes to go in the first half. Butler has been the big-play man for the Battlehawks in the past two weeks. The star wide receiver from Iowa State has been as furious as a cyclone for the St. Louis offense. He’s had three catches for 154 yards and three touchdowns in the Battlehawks’ last two victories.
Rodrigo Blankenship
The rest of the Battlehawks’ scoring has come off the golden right foot of Rodrigo Blankenship. The Lou Groza Award-winning Georgia Bulldog will be kicking for an NFL team this fall. After adding two more today, he’s a perfect 14 of 14 this season. His first was once again right before halftime and was a 49-yarder. His second was in the fourth quarter to make the game’s eventual final score 12-6, and was from 53 yards out.
Next up for St. Louis is a Sunday afternoon game down the Mississippi River against Memphis. The Battlehawks will visit the Showboats for a 2:00 PM game on May 11th, in Liberty Stadium. The Showboats are 1-5 this season, so it’s a bit of a must-win for St. Louis as they try to keep pace with the D.C. Defenders for the top spot in the XFL Conference of the United Football League.
