Michigan Panthers quarterback #19 Brian Lewerke warms up before a game against the Memphis Showboats at Ford Field, Detroit, MI, on May 18, 2024. (Twitter)
Memphis Showboats (1-6) at Michigan Panthers (5-2)
This game was the second meeting between Memphis and Michigan this season. In the first game, during UFL Week 5, the Panthers won 35-18 in Memphis.
The Memphis Showboats were looking to snap a six-game losing streak. Meanwhile, the Michigan Panthers were looking to continue their winning streak of three games, and further solidify the spot in the USFL Conference Championship Game they earned in last week’s win.
Memphis kicker Matt Coughlin kicked off 65 yards and Terry Wright returned the ball to the Michigan 40. Michigan quarterback Brian Lewerke handed to running back Matthew Colburn who did not gain a yard, and then passed to Devin Gray for a 9-yard gain. On third and 1, Lewerke passed to Samson Nacua who rambled for a 29-yard gain to the Memphis 22.
Lewerke handed to Colburn for a 2-yard run, and then passed to Cole Hikutini who ran for a 20-yard touchdown. The one-point conversion attempt failed, making the score 6-0 for Michigan. Running back Wes Hills was injured on the conversion play.
Jake Bates kicked off 70 yards and Titus Swen returned the ball to the Memphis 35. Memphis quarterback Case Cookus passed deep right to Daewood Davis who ran down the sideline for a 65-yard Showboats touchdown. The two-point conversion failed, making the score tied 6-6.
Bryce Perkins came in at quarterback. After an encroachment penalty against Memphis spotted Michigan 5 yards, Perkins handed to Colburn for a 3-yard run, and then handed again to Colburn for 3 more yards and a first down.
Perkins passed to Colburn for a 7-yard gain, and then was pressured but managed to run out of bounds for another first down. Perkins passed 7 yards to Gray, and then handed to Colburn for a 14-yard rush to the Memphis 12. A pass intended for Gray fell incomplete, and then a Perkins rush lost 1 yard. On third and 11, a pass into the end zone was almost intercepted. However, a defensive pass interference penalty gave Michigan a first down on the 1-yard line.
Perkins handed to Colburn for a small gain, and then handed to Colburn one more time, and he fought into the end zone for a touchdown. The one-point conversion failed, making the score 12-6 for Michigan.
The Bates kickoff was returned by Swen to the Memphis 40-yard line, and a Memphis holding penalty brought the ball back to the Memphis 25. Cookus rushed for 3 yards, and then handed to Darius Victor for a 2-yard gain. On third and 5, Cookus passed 7 yards to Sage Surratt to move the markers. On first down, Cookus passed deep, and the underthrown ball intended for Vinny Papale was picked off by Michigan’s Nate Brooks at the Panther’s 36-yard line.
Brian Lewerke scrambled for an 8-yard gain, and then passed to Gray for a gain of 8 yards and a first down. Lewerke handed to Colburn for a 3-yard run, and then passed to Marcus Simms for a gain of 5 yards. On third and 2, Lewerke was pressured and had to throw the ball away. Michigan was forced to punt.
Vinny Papale returned the punt to the Memphis 21, and then Cookus passed to Papale for a 2-yard gain as the first quarter ended.
Cookus handed to Victor for a 1-yard gain, and then had a pass intercepted by Nate Brooks. A Defensive offside penalty negated the play, making it third and 2. Cookus passed 5 yards to Papale to move the chains.
A handoff to Victor was fumbled, and Cookus knocked the ball out of bounds. Memphis received a 10-yard penalty for illegally batting the ball, but retained possession. On second and 20, Cookus could not complete a pass to Papale, and then a neutral zone infraction against Michigan gave the Showboats five yards. Cookus was able to scramble for 5 more yards, but the Showboats were well short of the first down and had to punt.
The Matt White punt was returned to the Michigan 23 by Terry Wright. Bryce Perkins passed short to Gray and he was quickly tackled for only a 3-yard gain. A handoff to Colburn lost 3 yards, and then Perkins ran left and gained no yards. An offensive holding call was declined as the Panthers were forced to punt.
Vinny Papale returned the punt to the Memphis 21. However, a holding call brought the ball back 10 yards, to the Memphis 11-yard line. Case Cookus scrambled for a 1-yard gain, and then passed to Surratt for a 9-yard gain and a first down. A false start penalty set the Showboats back 5 yards, and then a pass intended for Jay Jay Wilson was batted down by Breeland Speaks. Cookus passed 7 yards to Daewood Davis, and then on third and 8, passed deep to a well-covered Davis, and the ball fell incomplete. The Showboats were forced to punt.
The Matt White punt was taken by fair catch at the Michigan 27. Lewerke handed to Colburn for a 6-yard run, and then scrambled for 2 yards. On third and 2, Lewerke ran for 3 yards and a first down. Lewerke attempted a pass that was batted down by Greg Reaves, and then passed deep and was nearly picked off. On third down, Lewerke was sacked for a 6-yard loss, and the Panthers were forced to punt.
Papale returned the punt to the 3-yard line. Cookus was pressured and passed incomplete to Darius Victor, and then handed to Victor for a 7-yard rush as the two-minute warning was announced.
On third down, Cookus was sacked for a 10-yard loss and Memphis was forced to punt. The punt was taken via a fair catch by Wright on the Michigan 25. Bryce Perkins escaped tackle and scrambled for 13 yards, and then Perkins passed to Wright for a 12-yard gain at midfield.
With 0:47 remaining, a pass to Simms went out-of-bounds, and then Perkins passed to a wide open Devin Gray who ran 50 yards for a Michigan touchdown. On the two-point conversion attempt, Michigan took both a false start penalty and a delay of game penalty. Finally, a 15-yard pass to Simms fell incomplete and the conversion failed. The score was now 18-6 for Michigan.
Titus Swen took the kickoff to the Memphis 24. With 0:27 remaining, Cookus passed to Victor for a 6-yard gain, and then took a false start penalty. Case Cookus passed deep to Sage Surratt for a 33-yard gain to the Michigan 42, and then a 6-yard pass to Victor set up a 55-yard field goal attempt by Matt Coughlin, which was good.
At halftime, the score was Michigan Panthers 18, Memphis Showboats 9.
To begin the second half, Jake Bates kicked off 72 yards and Titus Swen returned the ball to the Memphis 37. Case Cookus was sacked for a 10-yard loss, and then passed deep to Dee Anderson for a 39-yard gain. Cookus was hit on the play and left the game clutching his ribs.
With the ball on the Michigan 34, backup quarterback Josh Love took a high snap and handed to Darius Victor for a 1-yard loss. Love passed to Surratt for 4 yards, and then passed incomplete to Diondre Overton, which drew a defensive pass interference call, giving Memphis a first down on the Michigan 16-yard line.
Love handed to Swen for a 2-yard gain, and then completed a 14- yard touchdown pass to Daewood Davis. The two-point conversion failed, making the score 18-15 for Michigan.
The Memphis kickoff was returned by Wright to the Michigan 31. Lewerke handed to Colburn for a 1-yard run, and then went back to Colburn for a 10-yard rush and a first down. Lewerke went back to Colburn for a 4 yard gain, and then passed deep to Trey Quinn, but an offensive holding penalty brought the ball back to the Michigan 35. On second and 16, a pass intended for Devin Ross was dropped, but a defensive offside penalty gave Michigan 5 yards. After a 10-yard catch by Nacua, on third and 1, a handoff to Colburn was stopped short of the first down. However, a Memphis face masking penalty gave the Panthers a first down on the Memphis 35.
Lewerke handed to Colburn for a 2-yard gain, and then a pass to a well-covered Marcus Simms fell incomplete. On third and 8, Lewerke could not complete a pass to Colburn, and Michigan was forced to attempt a 51-yard Jake Bates field goal, which was missed.
Starting on the Memphis 41-yard line, Josh Love Handed to Victor for a 3-yard rush, and then passed to Papale for a gain of 5 yards. On third and 3, Love passed to Papale for a 4-yard gain and a first down. Love passed short to Papale who picked up 8 yards, and then a fumbled exchange hit the turf, but was recovered by Love for a 3-yard loss. On third and 5, Love passed to Dee Anderson for 5 yards and another first down.
Josh Loved rolled right and could not find a receiver, and had to throw the ball away. Then, Love passed 12 yards to Jonathan Adams for a first down on the Michigan 26. Love handed to Victor for a 9-yard run as the third quarter ended.
Another handoff to Victor gained no yards, and then Love handed to Victor again for a 2-yard run that moved the chains. On first down, Michigan blitzed, but Love passed quickly to Victor for a 2-yard gain. A pass to Adams in the end zone was defended, and the ball could not be caught. On third and 8, Love’s pass to a wide-open Vinny Papale was batted down. Matt Coughlin kicked a 37-yard field goal to tie the game 18-18.
Wright returned the kickoff to the Michigan 38. Bryce Perkins passed 20 yards to Quinn, and then handed to Colburn for a 1-yard run. Then, Perkins scrambled 10 yards to move the markers to the Memphis 32.
A handoff to Colburn gained 14 yards, and then another handoff to Colburn gained 10 yards to the Memphis 8-yard line. Perkins rolled right and passed to Devin Gray in the end zone. However, an illegible player downfield penalty negated the play. Perkins kept the ball and ran to the Memphis 3-yard line, and then handed to Colburn who fought the remaining 3 yards into the end zone for a Michigan touchdown. The three-point conversion attempt failed, making the score 24-18 for Michigan.
Titus Swen returned the Jake Bates kickoff to the Memphis 38. Josh Love handed to Darius Victor for a 6-yard run, and then went back to Victor for 6 more yards to move the chains. A false start penalty pushed the Showboats back 5 yards, and then Love was sacked for a 9-yard loss. On second and 23, Love completed a 3-yard pass to Surratt, and then was sacked for an 8-yard loss. Memphis was forced to punt.
Wright muffed the punt, but recovered the ball on his own 18-yard line. Bryce Perkins handed to Colburn for a 6-yard run, and then went back to Colburn for another 6-yard run to move the sticks. Perkins handed to Colburn for 2 more yards, and then completed a 6-yard pass to Devin Gray as the two-minute warning was announced.
On third and 1, Perkins kept the ball and gained enough for a Michigan first down. Perkins handed to Colburn for a 5-yard gain, and then kept the ball, gaining one-yard. On third and 5, Colburn ran for a 4-yard gain, which was 24 inches short of the first down marker. On fourth and 1, Perkins kept the ball and made the first down.
Michigan went into victory formation and ran out the remaining time.
The final score was Michigan Panthers 24, Memphis Showboats 18.
