The St. Louis Battlehawks will welcome the Houston Roughnecks to The Dome at America’s Center for the first time Saturday, after the teams faced each other in Houston while playing the XFL in both the 2020 and 2023 seasons. The Roughnecks took the 2020 matchup, 28-24, and the Battlehawks returned the favor, 24-15, in 2023.
The Roughnecks are making their first trip to the Gateway City, having played both games in Houston. The Battlehawks are undefeated through two games at home this season, and they have won four straight games at The Dome dating back to the 2023 campaign.
Incidentally, Roughnecks Head Coach CJ Johnson enters the game 1-1 in games played at The Dome at America’s Center. The win came during the 2009 NFL season, in which his New Orleans Saints went on to win Super Bowl XLIV.
What do we know?
With a 45-12 road victory over the D.C. Defenders last week, the Battlehawks are starting the second half of the regular season on a franchise-best four-game winning streak. This victory was the largest margin in franchise history, surpassing a 25-point, 53-28 victory over the Orlando Guardians in Week 10 of the 2023 XFL season.
The Battlehawks steamrolled the Defenders, scoring 28 unanswered points in the second half, and the defense shut out an opponent in the final 30 minutes for the second consecutive week. With 1:20 left in the third quarter, kicker Andre Szmyt drilled his team-record fourth field goal of the game to extend St. Louis’ lead to 20-12 after the team entered halftime with a five-point advantage.
From that point forward, the Battlehawks offense rolled with four touchdowns in a 25-point fourth quarter. RB Wayne Gallman II scored on a 1-yard rush to give St. Louis a 26-12 lead. WR Hakeem Butler caught the longest pass in team history from QB A.J. McCarron for an 80-yard touchdown that extended the lead to 32-12. RB Jacob Saylors added a nine-yard rushing touchdown, followed by a one-point conversion catch by Butler, to bring the margin to 39-12. QB Manny Wilkins finished the scoring with a 5-yard rush to give St. Louis its fifth and final touchdown of the day.
McCarron was 14-for-24 with 213 passing yards and no interceptions against the Defenders. His 10-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio leads the league, and he has a 34-7 rate for his career with St. Louis. Against D.C., McCarron delivered his fourth game of the season with multiple touchdown passes, as he found WR Hakeem Butler for a pair of scores. McCarron leads the UFL with 10 touchdown passes and 11 touchdowns overall, including his 10-yard touchdown run in Week 3 at San Antonio.
Last week, Houston entertained the undefeated Stallions at Rice Stadium, and since the Roughnecks were coming off their first win of the season, they expected a better outcome than the 32-9 drubbing they received.
Within the first 6 minutes of the match, Birmingham scored the first set of points on the board, succeeding in a 6-yard touchdown by RB Ricky Person, bringing the score to 6-0. The Roughnecks started the second quarter off with a 36-yard Molson field goal, closing the score to 6-3, but the Stallions responded with majors from RB Larry Rountree, TE Jace Sternberger, and RB Ricky Person to put the Stallions way ahead. Roughnecks QB Reid Sinnett closed the gap with a pass to TE Braedon Bowman for a 1-yard touchdown, bringing the score to 26-9 going into halftime.
The Roughnecks never scored in the second half, while the Stallions coasted to their win. During the fourth quarter, Houston made a QB change, testing backup Nolan Henderson as a pivot. However, on his first drive of the game, Henderson was intercepted in a deep pass to the Birmingham endzone, sealing their fate before the two-minute warning.
Sinnett completed 27 passes on 38 attempts for 203 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Henderson completed three passes on four attempts, resulting in no touchdowns and one interception. Sinnett also made 3 rushes for 6 yards.
The Roughnecks offense was relatively stagnant, except for Justin Hall, who caught 11 passes for 93 yards, and Keke Chism, who caught 7 for 88 yards. On the ground, the Roughnecks could not do much with T.J. Pledger carrying the ball six times for 15 yards and Mark Thompson rushing four times for only 11 yards.
That was last week. This week, the hapless Roughnecks face the St. Louis Battlehawks, another team that has been having their way with opponents.
The Roughnecks depth chart indicates they will start Reid Sinnett at quarterback. Since Jarrett Guarantano’s season-ending injury sidelined him, Sinnett has been Houston’s starting quarterback. Sinnett has done well, as he is more adept at getting rid of the ball quickly and has the ability to make long passes. Of course, Sinnett has one win under his belt, a thumping of the Arlington Renegades two weeks prior.
What should we expect?
The Battlehawks are on a roll with a four-game winning streak. They have offensive weapons that are becoming even more potent as the season goes on, leading the UFL in points per game by over 30. RB Jacob Saylors has become a serious threat that complements A.J. McCarron’s passing attack.
Meanwhile, the Roughnecks don’t have any of these things. These are not the same Roughnecks from the 2020 and 2023 XFL seasons, and if you search online, you’ll find many disappointed former Roughnecks fans making this argument. Keep in mind that Houston has a good quarterback in Reid Sinnett, but they are missing other weapons. On the ground, the return of running back Mark Thompson has been encouraging for Houston, but he has yet to return to the same form he had last season in the USFL.
In this game, oddsmakers have made the Battlehawks 12.5-point favorites, the largest spread in any UFL week-six game. This game will be in the Dome, where fan noise has befuddled many St. Louis opponents. The Roughnecks will likely give the Battlehawks all the points and more.
