St. Louis Battlehawks Logo (Graphic by the St. Louis Battlehawks and the UFL)
The Battlehawks picked up 2026 where they left off in 2025, once again battling their rivals, the DC Defenders!
St. Louis Battlehawks 16, DC Defenders 10
The Battlehawks overcame a slow first quarter to eventually defeat their rivals from DC. The Defenders got going early when their kicker, Matt McCrane, made UFL history with the first-ever four-point field goal. McCrane’s 60-yard kick, in accordance with new UFL rules, was worth four points and gave DC the early 4-0 lead.
St. Louis, who has always had solid special teams, going back to Rodrigo Blankenship last season, got an early field goal of their own. A 58-yarder from Tucker McCann made it a 4-3 game. DC would respond quickly, though. Their touchdown drive of 66 yards would put them up 10-3 after the first quarter. The Battlehawks’ defense would lock down and never let the defenders out of the grip of their talons after that. A Tucker McCann 27-yard field goal would finish the scoring in the first half, and the Defenders would lead 10-6 at the break.
Second Half
The St. Louis defense wouldn’t budge after the first two Defenders’ drives. DC would get 101 yards of offense in their first two possessions for 10 points. After that, the Battlehawks only gave up 52 yards of total offense for the rest of the game. St. Louis would sack DC seven times and intercept them twice.
Offensively, St. Louis got things moving in the passing game. They had a 64-yard pass from quarterback Brandon Silvers to wide receiver Gary Jennings Jr., but it was the running backs in the passing game that did the most damage. Jarveon Howard and Kevin Latulas had a combined seven catches for 85 yards receiving to go with their 21 carries and 68 yards rushing.
Silvers and McCann
Brandon Silvers would find tight end Tyler Neville for a 10-yard touchdown pass that would prove to be the decisive score and give St. Louis a 13-10 lead. That was later supplemented by another Tucker McCann field goal, his third of the day, to give St. Louis the 16-10 lead and victory. Silvers would finish the game 16 of 28 for 198 yards and a touchdown with no turnovers.
Next Week
The Battlehawks will hit the road and head to Dallas, Texas. Away from the comforts of home in the Battledome, St. Louis will battle the Renegades in Toyota Stadium. The Ricky Proehl Era begins 1-0 and is undefeated in St. Louis!
