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USA Today
21-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Former Kansas City Chiefs players team up to win the 2025 UFL Championship
The 2025 UFL Championship game ended with the D.C. Defenders defeating the Michigan Panthers 58-34. Three standout players who previously wore the Kansas City Chiefs' uniform led the new spring league champions. Quarterback Jordan Ta'amu led D.C. to victory with a fantastic performance. He passed for a league record 390 yards, four touchdown passes, and one rushing score. He earned title game MVP honors like his former Chiefs teammate and quarterback room starter, Patrick Mahomes. Ta'amu is one of several ex-Chiefs players on the championship-winning team, including wide receiver Cornell Powell and cornerback DeAndre Baker. "We're going to put up 80 points for disrespecting our quarterback," Baker said in an ESPN clip before the game about Michigan quarterback Bryce Perkins being named league MVP. "We know who the real MVP is." D.C. scored 58 points, the most ever scored in a UFL game in the league's short history. All three players made their mark on the league this season and could be candidates to return to the NFL with training camp around the corner.
Fox Sports
18-06-2025
- Sport
- Fox Sports
UFL 2025: Every Touchdown from Defenders-Panthers Championship Game
The 2025 UFL Championship Game had a little bit of everything and a lot of scoring. In the end, the DC Defenders took down the Michigan Panthers at The Dome at America's Center in St. Louis on Saturday in an action-packed game that featured 13 touchdowns and three field goals. Jordan Ta'amu and the Defenders' offense put on a show, scoring a UFL record 58 points. Let's take a look at every touchdown scored in Saturday's title game! DC Defenders 58, Michigan Panthers 34 Michigan got on the board first, going 67 yards in six plays on the game's opening drive to kick things off with a bang. Nate McCrary broke through a huge crease, beat his opponents to the sideline and turned on the jets for a 35-yard touchdown in the first few minutes of regulation. Just like that, the Panthers jumped out to a 6-0 lead. The Defenders answered on their first drive of the game, knotting things up at 6-all with a touchdown drive that took twice as long — 12 plays and over six minutes. Facing a third-and-10 from Michigan's 26-yard line, Ta'amu dropped back and found Jayden Mickens wide open on a seam route. Ta'amu lofted a pass into the bread basket, and Mickens corralled it with ease. The tie was short-lived, however, as Michigan scored again on a creative play-action pass on its second drive of the game just before the end of the first quarter. QB Bryce Perkins baited the Defenders' defense with a fake hand off to RB Toa Taua, which allowed WR Saiosi Mariner to break wide open on the right sideline. Without a defensive back in sight, Perkins lofted a softball to Mariner, who ran it in for an uncontested 8-yard touchdown and a 13-6 lead. The second quarter was pure fireworks. After the Defenders added a field goal first thing to close the gap slightly, 13-9, the Panthers went three-and-out on the following drive. That swung the momentum toward the Defenders, who went on to score 22 unanswered points and grab a double-digit lead in the process, 31-13. The first score was on a nice corner route from Cornell Powell. Ta'amu showed off his accuracy, lofting a pass to the spot where Powell would end up, and the receiver ran a perfect route to secure the 27-yard touchdown. A fumble by the Panthers on the ensuing kickoff gave the ball right back to the Defenders deep in the red zone. Ta'amu & Co. only needed four plays and roughly two minutes to hit paydirt, with the quarterback cashing in for the rushing score. Michigan went three-and-out on their next drive, and just like that, the Defenders were back on the field. Ta'amu led his squad downfield, and RB Deon Jackson finished things off with a 5-yard touchdown. The Panthers scored on the following drive, going 84 yards in just two plays to keep things close, 31-19. The drive was highlighted by Perkins' short pass to WR Malik Turner, who turned it into a dazzling 71-yard touchdown. What's better than a 71-yard score? A 73-yard score. The Defenders did just that, one-upping the Panthers with a jaw-dropping score of their own on the very next drive, as Ta'amu connected with WR Ty Scott to make it a 37-19 game at halftime. The Defenders opened the second-half scoring with a field goal to put them ahead by 20-plus points, but after the Panthers coughed the ball up on their first drive of the third quarter, DC was back in the driver's seat. Jackson picked up his second rushing score of the day, this time from 17 yards out, to make it 46-19 midway through the third quarter. DC opened the fourth quarter with another explosive scoring play. Ta'amu led his team downfield, capping off a lengthy 10-play drive with a 1-yard touchdown pass to TE Briley Moore. With that, the Defenders were leading 52-19. The Panthers scored back-to-back touchdowns — both coming from the dynamic duo of Perkins and Turner — after opting to go for an alternative kickoff. With those scores and a field goal, they were able to pull within 18 points, 52-34, midway through the fourth quarter. It was too little too late, however, as the Defenders added one last score for good measure. With 3:40 to play, RB Chris Rowland punched in a 19-yard touchdown to seal the game, 58-34. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily! FOLLOW Follow your favorites to personalize your FOX Sports experience United Football League DC Defenders Michigan Panthers recommended Get more from United Football League Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
Fox Sports
18-06-2025
- Sport
- Fox Sports
UFL Championship Game By The Numbers: Defenders win with near-perfect game
The 2025 UFL Championship Game was a thriller from start to finish. In the end, Jordan Ta'amu and the DC Defenders took down Offensive Player of the Year and regular-season MVP Bryce Perkins and the Michigan Panthers , 58-34. Here are the numbers to know after Saturday's tilt: 6: Shannon Harris was named interim head coach of the Defenders just six days before the first game of the regular season after Reggie Barlow accepted the head coaching position at Tennessee State. That didn't stop Harris from earning UFL Coach of the Year honors or winning the 2025 championship title. 11: The Defenders were nearly perfect on offense in Saturday's title game. They had 11 offensive drives and didn't punt once. They scored on their first 10 drives, as they put up eight touchdowns and two field goals before finishing the game kneeling on the final drive. Overall, the high-scoring game featured 23 drives and only had three punts. 46-6: The Panthers were leading 13-6 after the first quarter, but the game turned drastically in the second quarter when the Defenders rolled off 25 unanswered points. Following a Michigan score, DC then rolled off another 21 unanswered points, ultimately going on a 46-6 run from the start of the second quarter to the start of the fourth. 58: The Defenders provided plenty of offense in the title game, as their 58 points scored shattered the UFL record for most points in a single game (regular or postseason). The previous record was held by the Arlington Renegades, who put up 47 points in a regular-season game in 2024. 92: The 92 combined points between Michigan and DC also set a UFL single-game record, breaking the mark set just last week in the USFL Conference title game (73 points) between Michigan and the Birmingham Stallions. 168: Michigan receiver Malik Turner set a UFL single-game record with 168 receiving yards on 10 catches. He also became the first UFL player with three receiving touchdowns in a game. 190: While the Defenders had the top-ranked passing offense in the league during the regular season, their run game was a big part of their playoff success. After running for a season-high 187 yards on the ground vs. the St. Louis Battlehawks in the XFL Conference title game, the Defenders topped that mark with 190 yards on Saturday night. 338: While it came in a losing effort, regular-season MVP QB Bryce Perkins set season highs with 338 passing yards and four passing touchdowns on Saturday. Perkins was able to overcome a late-season ankle injury to help Michigan put up 44 points in the Panthers' USFL Conference title game win and 34 points in their UFL title game loss. 390: UFL Championship Game MVP Jordan Ta'amu set a UFL record with 390 passing yards. The former Ole Miss QB went 21 for 28 for 390 yards and four touchdowns en route to leading his team to the title. He finished the season with 22 touchdowns and only five interceptions over the course of his 11 starts during the season (regular and postseason). 1,014: The 2025 UFL Championship Game was the first game with over 1,000 yards of offense in league history. DC's 580 yards of offense was a single-team record and the game's combined 1,014 yards also set a new bar for the UFL. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily ! FOLLOW Follow your favorites to personalize your FOX Sports experience United Football League DC Defenders Michigan Panthers recommended Get more from United Football League Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
Fox Sports
14-06-2025
- Sport
- Fox Sports
UFL Championship Game live updates: Highlights from Defenders vs. Panthers
The 2025 UFL Championship Game is here! It all comes down to this, as Jordan Ta'amu and the DC Defenders take on Bryce Perkins and the Michigan Panthers at The Dome at America's Center in St. Louis on Saturday night (8 p.m. ET). Live Coverage for this began on 7:02p ET recommended Get more from United Football League Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
Fox Sports
12-06-2025
- Sport
- Fox Sports
FOX Super 6 UFL contest: Chris 'The Bear' Fallica's Championship picks
What's better than watching football? Watching football and winning money! You can partake in the best of both worlds while watching the UFL championship game this weekend with our free-to-play FOX Super 6 game. How do you play? Enter the UFL Super 6 contest by predicting the correct answers to six questions before the game starts for your chance at weekly cash prizes. All you have to do is finish in the top six to win a prize. It really is that simple, and again, it's free. And if you need a little help before heading to the app to make your picks, I have you covered this week. Read below for my thoughts on the 2025 UFL championship weekend. Let's dive into the questions and predictions below. 1. Which team will throw for the most PASSING YARDS in the UFL Championship? D.C. Defenders or Michigan Panthers The answer here for me is D.C. Jordan Ta'amu at quarterback for the Defenders has been exactly what they needed. In nine games this season, he has 2,153 passing yards and 17 passing touchdowns. The only player with better stats than this is Arlington's Luis Perez, who'll be sitting at home this weekend enjoying the championship game from the couch. Prediction: D.C. Defenders 2. Rank the receivers by who will have the MOST RECEIVING YARDS (highest to lowest): Siaosi Mariner, Chris Rowland, Cornell Powell, Malik Turner Tough one here between Mariner and Rowland to lead this group. Actually, it's almost a coin flip because when you look at the seasons that both of them have had, it's hard to give one a leg up over the other. Prediction: Siaosi Mariner, Chris Rowland, Malik Turner, Cornell Powell 3. Which player will have the MOST RUSHING YARDS in the UFL Championship? Toa Taua, Deon Jackson, Nate McCrary, Abram Smith Deon Jaackson has been an absolute beast this year. In 10 games played (five starts), he racked 417 yards on the ground. His longest rush of 57 yards is tied for the best in the league this season. Hard not to back him here. Prediction: Deon Jackson 4. Predict the TOTAL POINTS SCORED by both teams in the UFL Championship game: (12 points for one segment (ie; 0 to 40), 6 points for two segments (ie; 0 to 50), 3 points for three segments (ie; 0 to 55), 1 point for four segments (ie; 0 to 60+)) 0-40 or 0-50 or 0-55 or 0-60+ 40-50 or 40-55 or 40-60+ 50-55 or 50-60+ 55-60+ Last week, for conference championship weekend, I thought the games would be lower scoring. And wow! Talk about lighting up the scoreboard and proving me wrong. I'll adjust my position slightly for this championship game. Fireworks, anyone? Prediction: 40-50 points 5. Which of the following will occur? Michigan: 120+ rushing yards Bryce Perkins: 200+ passing yards Jordan Ta'amu: 240+ passing yards None I can't say with confidence that Michigan will get more than 120 yards rushing or that either Perkins or Ta'amu will eclipse those passing yards. If anything, I could see myself leaning toward Michigan getting over 120 yards on the ground, but I'm not sold. Prediction: None 6. What will be the outcome of the UFL Championship game? D.C. Defenders win, or lose by 2 points or fewer Michigan Panthers win by 3 points or more If you had told me at the beginning of the UFL season that these would be the last two teams standing, I wouldn't have believed you. Even if you'd told me that three weeks ago, I still would've said that it would be the Stallions or the Battlehawks. But here we are. And of these last two worthy squads, I'm going to back the Defenders to at least keep it close. Prediction: D.C. Defenders to win or lose by 2 points or fewer Tiebreaker: What will be the final score? Prediction: Panthers 30, Defenders 28 Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account , and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily! recommended Get more from United Football League Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
