Ex-Detroit Lions DE Michael Brockers breaks down culture change
Former NFL player Michael Brockers offers insights into the Detroit Lions’ locker room and when things started to change for the team.
The Michigan Panthers and Birmingham Stallions already have clinched playoff berths and are set to meet in the USFL conference championship game because of it.
UFL fans will get an early preview of that matchup as the two contenders jockey for playoff seeding in a critical Week 9 contest.
The Panthers (6-2) currently have the inside track for the No. 1 seed. They can clinch it with a win over the Stallions (5-3), over whom they currently hold a one-game advantage in the standings.
However, a Birmingham win would complicate the race. The Stallions already beat the Panthers 21-12 in Week 2, so a season sweep of their rival would give them a tiebreaker edge entering the final week of the season.
Will the Panthers be able to wrap up the top seed, or will they continue to struggle to knock off the three-time reigning champion Stallions? Here’s a look at the odds for the contest, as well as a prediction for the game.
Michigan Panthers vs. Birmingham Stallions odds, moneyline, over/under
The Panthers are slight underdogs against the Stallions in UFL Week 9, according to the BetMGM UFL odds. Here is a look at the spread, moneyline and point total for the game.
- Spread: Stallions (-1.5)
- Moneyline: Stallions (-120); Stallions (+100)
- Over/under: 44.5
Panthers vs. Stallions prediction
- Panthers 29, Stallions 26
Michigan has faced Birmingham four times since the USFL and XFL merged for the 2024 season. The Panthers have not won any of those games. It may be time for that history to change.
The Panthers have arguably the UFL’s best offense, as they are averaging a league-high 26.4 points per game this season. Impressively, they have scored at least 26 points in all but one game this season. That was the Week 2 matchup with the Stallions during which they scored just 12 points.
Some may view that as a sign Birmingham is built to stop Michigan. In reality, the Panthers were mixing and matching their quarterbacks at that point in the season, which didn’t allow either Bryce Perkins or Danny Etling to get fully into rhythm.
Since then, the Panthers have largely stuck to one signal-caller playing the entire game at quarterback. That allowed Perkins to emerge as a star and a legitimate UFL MVP candidate. He might not play in Week 9 because of an ankle injury, but Etling has proven to be a capable replacement when asked to operate as the team’s starting quarterback.
If Etling can perform well out of the gate, it will be hard for Birmingham’s defense to contain Michigan’s offense. That will make it imperative for the Stallions to score often, which they are certainly capable of doing.
Despite being down to their third- and fourth-string quarterbacks, the Stallions have scored 26-plus points in three consecutive games. J’Mar Smith has performed particularly well since coming out of retirement and completed 14 of 27 passes for 262 yards, three touchdowns and one interception in Birmingham’s Week 9 loss to the St. Louis Battlehawks.
With that in mind, this game figures to be far more of an offensive shootout than the lower-scoring battle between the teams in Week 2. The Panthers should have a chance to emerge victoriously, wrap up the No. 1 seed in the USFL conference and give themselves some confidence as they prepare to face the Stallions in the preseason.
