2026 UFL: THE UNITED FOOTBALL LEAGUE POWER RANKINGS WEEK SIX

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The face of the UFL & CEO of the league, Mike Repole, loves horse racing. He put a team in Louisville & calls them the Kings with a horse head as the logo. Repole has a horse racing this weekend in the Kentucky Derby named Renegade. Named after the Dallas Renegades perhaps? In the picture above, he certainly is not just whispering in Renegade’s ears and saying, “Hello, Mr. Ed.” Renegade is favored to win the big horse race this weekend. Meanwhile the team Repole put in Louisville is on the climb in the standings and power rankings. However the Renegades of the UFL are falling and can’t get up. Hopefully Renegade the horse, can do better than the Dallas team. We have another week of power rankings coming right around the turn as we sort out all the uppers and downers of the league with week 6.

UFL POWER RANKINGS WEEK SIX

Starting with the best and ending with the worst in the league.

#1. DC DEFENDERS (4-1) In the same spot from last week.

The Defenders fan base looks like a college frat party at Comic Con. I want to go there. In only the last two weeks the Defenders have finally unleashed their aerial attack in full force. Should the rest of the league be nervous the Defenders were scoring high numbers with only a skeleton fraction of their passing game working? The Defenders defense and the running game were key in the early part of the season. The defending champions Defenders have won 4 straight since taking a loss to the BattleHawks in the opening week. In the last two games, the Defenders star quarterback, Jordan Ta’amu, is finally playing his best football. Versus the Stallions he completed 15-22 for 275 passing yards and 4 touchdown passes. No interceptions. GREAT SCOTT!!

Ty Scott caught three balls for 84 receiving yards and hauled in two touchdown passes. In the running game we know the Defenders have a stud in the back field named Deon Jackson. Who the hell is Xazavian Valladay? Another weapon in the backfield. Valladay had 8 carries for 50 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns. The Defenders put up their 3rd game of the season where they have scored 40 or more points in one game. The Defenders defense greeted Dorian Thompson-Robinson in his first ever spring start of his career in the UFL with two picks. Thompson Robinson came over from the Storm in trade with the Stallions and played in the NFL not too long ago. The Defenders defense gave up 28 points, but the game was out of reach for Birmingham as they score some of those in garbage time.

#2. ST.LOUIS BATTLEHAWKS (3-2) Moved up three spots from last week

Frosty the Frostman is still leading the BattleHawks parade even though St.Louis hammered out a trade to get the King of the Spring Fling, Luis Perez from the Dallas Renegades. Harrison Frost bounces back with a better game than he had in week 4. He’s still making mistakes as he had two interceptions vs the Orlando Storm. The BattleHawks were facing their old head coach Anthony Becht, who were undefeated 4-0 until St.Louis came to town. Frost completed 64.5% of his passes. He tallied up 185 passing yards, threw a touchdown pass, and used his legs to score a touchdown.

Steven McBride led all BattleHawks with 4 catches for 53 yards. McBride with Hakeem Butler and Jahcour Pearson have formed into a deadly trio of wide receivers for this St.Louis team. To fully use all these weapons, they need to scrape the frost off their windshields and start Perez at quarterback. The BattleHawks held a great Storm team to 17 points. They can play some solid defense. They are the only team to beat the Defenders. Perez is the last ingredient in this BattleHawks stew.

#3. ORLANDO STORM (4-1) Same spot from last week

The Storm lost their first game of the season last week. I have the Storm staying right where they are because Dallas is in a free fall right now. The Storm’s head coach Anthony Becht could not beat his former team, the BattleHawks. The Storm have played well so far winning 4-5 games in the first half of the season. The Storm have one of the best quarterbacks in the league with Jack Plummer. He threw 44 balls last week for only 143 passing yards. He completed only 24 of those. That’s a lot of dinking and dunking with short passes last week. Plummer does not make mistakes and can make big plays happen. The BattleHawks defense contained him from delivering the big play. The Storm is coming in the second half and I expect plenty of thunder and lightning from Plummer.

The Storm defense has been a major Payne for opposing offenses this season.

Pheldarius Payne racked up 2 sacks last week versus the BattleHawks offense. Becht teams have always played solid on defense. I can see that defense with Plummer at QB the Storm will be one of those 4 teams standing in the post season when the sun finally comes out.

#4.LOUISVILLE KINGS (2-3) Moved up two spots from last week

Are the Kings this good demolishing the Renegades 47-25 ? Or is Dallas just this bad right now? The Kings have won 2 straight games. In this game it was not Jason Bean’s replacement at quarterback that killed it for Louisville. Bean they traded to the Defenders after week 4. Chandler Rogers completed 72% of his passes versus the Renegades defense. His numbers were 13-18 for only 150 passing yards. No touchdown passes & no interceptions. He did not need it. The Kings had their running game firing on all cylinders.

Ian Wheeler did his Al Bundy, 4 touchdowns in one game, impersonation. Who is Ian Wheeler?

If you thought of Bobby Wheeler’s son on that old sitcom Taxi, you were wrong. Ian Wheeler was part of the Chicago Bears like the Renegades quarterback Austin Reed. Wheeler had 13 carries for 62 rushing yards and 4 scores as he was King for this game at least. The Kings piled up 4 interceptions on the Renegades. Two of them were pick sixes. That Kings defense has been feisty all year long. Louisville is on the rise.

#5. HOUSTON GAMBLERS (2-3) Moved up the ladder two spots from last week

The Gamblers get their second win of the year as they escape a defensive battle versus the Aviators to perhaps save their season. This was not Jake Plissken pulling out a wonderful mission to escape New York or LA.

This was a sloppy offensive game by both teams. Missed kicks by both sides. Definitely the missed kicks helped Houston salvage this one for the win column. What we know is Nolan Henderson is the better option at QB than Tua’s brother Taulia Tagovailoa. Henderson found the end zone with his legs for a score. I give the Gamblers defense here lots of credit. That defense played lights out and was their best performance of the season so far.

Former Defender now Gambler Malik Fisher registered one sack versus the Columbus offense. The Gamblers forced two turnovers and recorded 4 sacks in 17-13 outcome. The Gamblers offense had a total of 266 yards. A win is a win. This one was an ugly one.

#6. COLUMBUS AVIATORS (1-4) Dropped two spots from last week

The Aviators did pull out an ugly last week versus a bad Houston squad. I figured on a sober Ted Ginn as the head coach. A spicy Todd Haley as the OC and Jalan McClendon going up against his former team. Coming off a good win versus the Renegades. I thought along with many fans, that the Aviators would fly high in this one. The Aviators only mustered up 13 points against one of the worst secondaries in the league. In a defensive stand still when you lose the turnover battle, you’re going to lose the game. This was an ugly game with plenty of missed kicks on special teams. The Aviators defense held Houston to a total of 266 yards of offense. They only needed 17 points to pull off the victory. Both teams needed this victory. Both teams came in with identical records of 1-3. Being 2-3 after half the season gives your franchise hope at least. Columbus will have to win out or take 4-5 games to get in the post season. Those are not guarantees.

Up next for the Aviators is the sequel versus the Gamblers. Let’s hope it’s better than Weekend at Bernie’s two.

#7. DALLAS RENEGADES (3-2) Dropped 5 spots from last week

It feels like the Renegades season just took a plunge off a tall building. The Renegades started this season 3-0 and everyone had their quarterback Austin Reed being some NFL team’s number 2 QB in this upcoming season. The Renegades were destroying teams now that they are the team that is getting kicked around. First it was the Aviators that knocked them off their perch high in the sky. Last Sunday the wheels of the Renegades came off the bus as they were manhandled by the Louisville Kings. Reed threw 4 interceptions. Two of them were run back for pick sixes by the Kings. The Renegades were playing well on both sides of the football in the first three weeks. Besides the offense hitting skid row, their defense picture is on milk cartons as they have been missing in action the last two weeks. The Renegades traded away probably the best quarterback in the league that was holding a clipboard all season long for Dallas. Luis Perez now with the BattleHawks. If Reed does not turn it around, that may go down as one of the worst trades in history of the league. Reed’s play definitely has him staying in the UFL for years to come.

One bright side of the Renegades is wide receiver Drake Stoops, who is the son of the former Dallas head coach Bob. Drake had 4 catches last week in the blow out for 47 receiving yards. Drake is emerging as one of the top targets for Reed and the Renegades passing game. Maybe he should ask his dad to come back to work the side lines for the Renegades.

#8. BIRMINGHAM STALLIONS (1-4) In same spot from last week

Dorian Thompson-Robinson’s UFL debut as a starting quarterback definitely jump-started the Stallions offense. DTR threw the ball 43 times and tallied up 313 passing yards versus the Defenders defense. DTR is a duel threat quarterback who led all Stallions running backs with 43 rushing yards on the ground and found the end zone with his legs. He was better than Matt Corral, the Stallions old starting QB, who then was shipped to Orlando to get DTR. He threw 2 touchdown passes but did his best Corral impersonation with two picks. The Stallions were shut out the previous week. This was the second highest points this team has scored in one game this season. DTR brought life back to the Stallions wide receivers who went MIA. Jayden Mickens had 9 catches. Deon Cain tallied up 57 yards of receiving including a touchdown.

Is it too late for the Stallions that have dug their own grave with a first half record of 1-4? What happened to their defense? They gave up 45 points. The Stallions will need to win out or take 4 out of the 5 games they have remaining and maybe sneak through the doggie door of the post-season with a 5-5 record.

BILLY DONOVAN IS BETTER OFF WITHOUT THE BULLS DRAGGING HIS COACHING CAREER INTO THE SEWER

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After six seasons with the Chicago Bulls, Billy Donovan is stepping down as the team’s head coach. This comes after the cleaning out of the Bulls front office. The Bulls Vice President of Basketball Operations, Arturas Karnisovas, and the General Manager, Marc Eversley, got their walking papers. The Bulls owner, Jerry Reinsdorf, and his son Michael, who is the CEO & President of the Bulls, wanted to retain Donovan as the team’s head coach. Whoever you hired would have to pretty much agree to keeping Donovan instead of hiring their own guy. Donovan may have felt handcuffed continuing down the road with the Bulls organization. Relying on buffoons to hire top notch front office people to help the sinking ship which is this basketball organization. This is the organization that has given Donovan nothing but dark clouds over his coaching legacy. You know he wants to revive his coaching career somewhere else in the NBA or back on the hardwood floors of the college game. He will be in big demand. They say it was mutual agreement, but you know Donovan wanted out of this shipwreck where he was treading water instead of jumping off the ship earlier with the women and children.

Billy Donovan is 60 years of age and has been a head coach in the NBA for 11 seasons. Before taking the Chicago Bulls job, he made the post-season every year as the head coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder, which was 5 straight seasons. His record with the Thunder was 243-157. In 6 seasons coaching the Bulls, Donovan had a losing record of 226-252. This past season the Bulls record was 31-51 and as usual, the franchise missed the post-season once again. Under Donovan the Bulls only made the post-season once, in 2022. The Bulls were quickly eliminated only winning one game in that 2022 opening round of the post-season. Overall Donovan still has a winning record in the NBA as a head coach because of what he did in Oklahoma City. In 11 seasons he has a 469-413 record. In post-season he has certainly failed there. In 46 games in post-season he has a 19-27 record

Billy Donovan may want to go back to the college game where he really had more success as a coach than he did in the pros. His college record is insane!!! His record is 502-206 in 19 seasons with the University of Florida and two seasons with Marshall. For the Gators his record was 467-186. He led the Gators to back to back NCAA National Championships back in 2006 & ’07. He has guided 14 teams to the March Madness NCAA tournament. He has gotten 4 teams to the Final 4. You could see some of the basketball power houses wanting Donovan’s services. If only this had occurred earlier, Donovan could have landed the North Carolina University gig that went to Mike Malone instead. There were questions about whether Billy Self was coming back to Kansas University next season. Self did say he is returning to the Jayhawks next season. Donovan would be an upgrade over Self if Kansas decided to make a change. In the college game, coaches are more hands on and get the say on which players they do want. The NBA has a general manager and a team that creates the roster which the head coach may have some say or majority of the say on roster moves. Certainly Donovan would still know how to recruit the talent which would be like riding a bike for him. He may have to get used to the transfer portal where these players are like free agents.

The Chicago Bulls have not really done much on the court since Michael Jordan left the building. Yes, the Bulls had some solid years with Derek Rose. Then after Rose wrecked his knee, the team returned to subpar basketball. It does not surprise me that Billy Donovan’s house in Chicago went on the market like the next day when the news came out he was stepping down. You take the Jordan years away from this franchise & it would be totally pathetic. Phil Jackson has the most wins ever in Bulls franchise history with 545. Which makes sense because he had Jordan and that group winning 6 titles. Dick Motta in the late 60’s and 70’s is second all-time on the Bulls head coach list with 356 wins. Then the guy the Bulls fired because they blamed Tom Thibodeau for destroying Rose’s knee. Thibs had 255 wins. Then comes Donovan with his 226 wins, a guy who only took 1 team to the post-season. The Bulls franchise still employs John Paxton who was promoted after a dismal run operating the front office for years. You wonder why Donovan has fled the scene. He knows how this dysfunctional franchise operates as he saw it up close and personal for 6 years. I would not blame Donovan for going back to the college game. What the NBA game has become is a joke. No defense. Shooting three pointers all night long running up high scores. Going back to the college game is what made guys like Donovan fall in love with the sport. The recruitment process. Building the program from scratch. Then watching your program turn over talent like a basketball power house factory. The game itself. With defense. Sure the three pointer is still popular. Feeding the ball down to the big man and letting him do his stuff is an art that seems to die off on the NBA courts. My gut feeling is Donovan will have some university coming soon to the March Madness tournament. I hope it’s some kind of small potatoes school where he revives the program. See the love of the game back on his face instead of hus NBA career ending with dark clouds in Chicago. With a train wreck of a franchise that is not going anywhere any time soon.

2026 UFL: THE UNITED FOOTBALL LEAGUE POWER RANKINGS WEEK 5

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The Dallas Renegades have fallen from the number 1 spot with their first loss of the year. The DC Defenders are back on top of the UFL power rankings and received good news from the league on their quest to repeat as champions. During the week we have many quarterbacks on the move. The King of the Spring Fling, Luis Perez, has a new home. Will his presence punch a ticket for his new team on their quest for a championship? The Orlando Storm are still undefeated. Are we not giving the Storm the credit they are due? The Stallions have officially hit rock bottom. Let’s sort it all out with Week 5 UFL Power Rankings starting with the best and ending with the people under the stairs.

WEEK 5 UFL POWER RANKINGS

#1. DC DEFENDERS (3-1) Moved up one spot from last week

Once again the beer snake in DC is well and growing along with being back on top of the league. The defending champs get revenge against their division rival, the BattleHawks, last weekend which were the only team that beat them so far this season. It was week 1 when the BattleHawks defense blanketed the Defenders offense and held them to 10 points in St.Louis. Since that loss, the Defenders have won 3 straight games and have been blowing out the competition despite not getting the productivity this team is used to. This is in the passing game with their star spring football quarterback, Jordan Ta’amu.

The Defenders have been winning with a solid running game and defense getting turnovers. Jordan has done okay. In week 4 Ta’amu had his best game completing 22-36 passes for 204 yards. He had two touchdown passes & no interceptions. He also averaged 5.5 yards per carry with 11 runs for 61 rushing yards. The Defenders defense racked up one interception off the BattleHawks’ new quarterback Harrison Frost who pulled out a few miracles the week before. Frost only completed 28% of his passes against that Defenders defense. The Defenders upgraded their QB room by acquiring the Louisville Kings’ starting quarterback Jason Bean in trade. The Kings will get long time Defenders back up Mike Diliello. Diliello has played in 7 games over the last two seasons and had two touchdown passes for the Defenders. The league also announced that the UFL championship game this season will be played in DC. The Defenders could have a home game if they get there and could win back to back championships.

#2. DALLAS RENEGADES (3-1) Drop 1 spot from last week

In week three the Renegades just survived an Aviators comeback that came up short. In the rematch between these two teams, the Aviators bombarded Dallas’ defense and gave the Renegades their first loss of the season. The Renegades score a season low of 14 points. The Renegades star quarterback Austin Reed did throw two more touchdown passes in the loss with an interception. He only completed 48% of his passes as it was pretty much his worst game of the year. The Renegades defense could not stop the Aviators running game. It was a poor outing overall for the entire Dallas team which results in their first loss of the year.

It may not be the smartest move, but news came that the Renegades have dealt their back up QB, the King of the Spring, Luis Perez to St.Louis. The Renegades get an offensive lineman Corey Stewart in return from the BattleHawks.

The Renegades can sure up that offensive line with Stewart. Perez helped the Renegades win a championship years ago back in the XFL. Austin Reed has been solid this year. A guy like Perez, who has always been a top passer in these spring leagues, could be an instant ticket for St.Louis to win it all.

#3. ORLANDO STORM (4-0) Moved up 1 spot from last week

The Storm have been feasting on the two other teams like themselves that relocated to another city for wins this season so far. Orlando brought dark clouds to the Stallions; home opener last week as the Storm’s defense registered the first shut out of the season in the UFL. Jack Plummer did not have his usual big day, but he did have a touchdown pass. The Storm scored 16 points of which 9 points came from the kicker.

Anthony Becht has proven he may be the best head coach right now in the UFL. In St.Louis he always had a solid defense, and now in Orlando he does even thought he’s an offensive-minded HC. The Storm held both Stallions quarterbacks to 130 passing yards. The Stallions averaged 2.4 yards on the ground versus this Storm defense. Orlando made an interesting trade this week with the Stallions, the team they just beat. They gifted them a quarterback they were not using with NFL experience in Dorian Thompson-Robinson. The Storm get the Stallions’ first QB in their recent history, who could not cut the mustard in Matt Coral who will back up Plummer in Orlando.

The headliner in this trade with the Stallions, the Storm will also get defensive end Amani Bledsoe in this deal. Bledsoe has 13 tackles and 1 sack this season. He will give the Storm another defensive piece for Anthony Becht’s squad.

#4. COLUMBUS AVIATORS (1-3) Moved up 1 spot from last week

A sober Ted Ginn as the Aviators’ head coach back on the sideline, equals Columbus’ first ever win in the UFL. It’s a biggie. The Aviators knocked off the Dallas Renegades, a team that was perfect 3-0 until this point.

The Aviators faced the Renegades in week 3 with Ginn being absent from that game due to a DUI in the wee hours of the night. The Aviators made a comeback in that one that fell short. This go-around the Aviators ran the ball down the Renegades’ throat with their three-headed monster they have in their back field. Toa Taura and Zaquandre White each had rushing touchdowns.

John Lovett led all Aviators backs with 80 rushing yards. Jalen McClendon was solid behind center completing 10-15 passes for 126 passing yards with a touchdown and no interceptions. The Aviators held one of the high scoring teams in the league to 14 points. Columbus has not really done well on defense until this point. Flying aces for the Aviators right now as they can easily win two in a row playing the Gamblers this weekend.

#5. ST.LOUIS BATTLEHAWKS (2-2) Dropped two spots from last week

If you take away the 75 yard touchdown catch by wide receiver Hakeem Butler last week, Harrison Frost’s numbers would have been much worse last week. In his first start as the BattleHawks quarterback, things did not go well for Frost. In week three after a few hiccups, he had ice water in his veins as he led a epic comeback to upend the Stallions. Versus the Defenders he completed 6-21 passes for 144 passing yards with 1 touchdown and another interception.

His QB rating was 51.7 as he completed only 28% of his passes. Frost looked like the better option than the veteran spring QB Brandon Silvers. That may not be the case as St.Louis makes a trade during the week and land the King of the Spring Fling, Luis Perez from the Renegades. The BattleHawks give up one of their offensive linemen in Corey Stewart to get this deal done. This is a trade that could completely turn around the BattleHawks season right now if they bench Frost and insert Perez. The BattleHawks head coach, a former wide receiver in the NFL, Ricky Proehl, wants a high powered aerial attack which Perez can give them. Perez got beat out by Austin Reed in training camp and has been holding the clip board ever since. Last time Perez was traded in his career, it was to the Renegades in mid-season a few seasons ago. The results were he guided the Renegades to an XFL championship.

#6. LOUISVILLE KINGS (1-3) Same spot from last week

It’s the second week in a row that the Kings had to play overtime to decide their faith. In week 3 a penalty by the Kings’ defense gave the Storm the victory. During the week, the UFL decided they should make a rule change where a penalty does not decide the faith of a team. Especially in overtime. The Kings had a halftime lead. Then in the 3rd quarter, they saw that lead disappear as the Gamblers put up 16 unanswered points. This game had 8 field goals. For the Kings, it was Tanner Brown who had 5 field goals. It was Brown’s 48 yard boot that tied the game that sent this one to the OT.

It was James Robinson, the Kings’ new running back &former Jacksonville Jaguar of the NFL, who scored the only touchdown of the game for Louisville. It was Jason Bean in his last start for the Kings that hit tight end Tre McKitty for the 2 point try in over time in a hockey-style shoot out the UFL uses to decide games. It was Bean hitting McKitty with a pass that gives head coach Chris Redman his first victory as a head coach. It also gives Louisville their first ever UFL victory.

Bean went 1-3 as the Kings’ starter this season as he will head to DC and be the back up QB for the Defenders. Bean completed 58-122 passes for 819 passing yards with 4 touchdown passes and 1 interception. The Kings get the Defenders’ back up QB back in the deal, Mike Diliello. That means Chandler Rogers will become the new starting QB for the Kings in week 5.

#7. HOUSTON GAMBLERS (1-3) Moved up 1 spot from last week

I have the Gamblers moving up 1 spot because they played a solid game versus the Kings even though they come away with a loss in OT. The Gamblers’ only win this season is still from the Stallions. The Gamblers scored two touchdowns & most of their scoring comes on field goals. The Gamblers went with two quarterbacks once again. Nolan Henderson was back in action as he completed 4-7 for 43 passing yards. Taulia Tagovailoa was better as he completed 7-14 passes for 64 passing yards. Taulia had a rushing touchdown. Both QBs did not throw any interceptions.

It was the Gamblers’ running back Marcus Yarns who gave Houston some juice in that 3rd quarter versus the Kings with a 68 yard rushing touchdown. He finished the 8 carries for 111 rushing yards and that TD. The Gamblers went scoreless in the 4th and did not succeed in OT for another loss on their record.

I’m surprised the Gamblers did not get another quarterback like many teams did this week. They have two solid veteran spring wide receivers in Justin Hall and Jontre Kirlin, which both combined for 5 catches in the loss versus the Kings. Waiting on the QBs they do have, I just don’t see Houston having a good second half like they did last year.

#8. BIRMINGHAM STALLIONS (1-3) Dropped 1 more spot from last week

The Stallions are officially at rock bottom in the UFL. It’s either the glue factory or making horseradish out of AJ McCarron’s Stallions. The Stallions were shut out versus the Storm, 16-0. Their offense was horrific. They are also the first team to get shut out in the UFL this season. Perhaps help is on the way. McCarron may have found a fix at the quarterback position and got rid of their current problem at the position. The Stallions unload Matt Corral to the Storm for former Cleveland Browns QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson, who has seen NFL action the last few seasons.

The Stallions also had to trade away one of their defensive stars, Amani Bledsoe, to seal the deal on the trade. Now McCarron is not stuck with marching Corral back out there to get the same results. The Storm has done well with Jack Plummer this season, which makes Thompson-Robinson expendable. The Stallions get a duel threat QB that hopes playing time can get him back to the NFL. This move is a definite upgrade for Birmingham, who has struggled since their week 1 win over the Kings. The Stallions have lost 3 straight games which has been unheard of for them over the years.

2026 NHL STANLEY CUP POST-SEASON 1ST ROUND PREDICTIONS

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I think the NHL post-season is one of the best in sports. The Lord Stanley Cup is the best trophy in all of sports. The first round features some epic match ups. This season will not have a repeat of the Panthers and Oilers in the finals. Florida did not make post-season play while the Oilers are not that same team they were the last few seasons. We have selected a winner out of each series. We have thrown in some intel on each series. We even threw in a guess like a dart throw on how many games it take the team to win the first round series. We have some guesses. We have some educated guesses. We have some hunches that may be just a bit outside. I would not bet any money on our predictions. Maybe go the opposite. We may dazzle. We may sink like all the teams that did not make it into Lord Stanley’s post-season. We will predict each round. After the conclusion of each round. Our early thoughts have us getting behind the Buffalo Sabres. We may get ducky about Anaheim especially because we have them knocking off the Oilers of Edmonton. Read it. Enjoy it. That’s all we got.

EASTERN CONFERENCE

(WC 1) BOSTON BRUINS (45-27-10) 100 POINTS VS (D1) BUFFALO SABRES (50-23-9) 109 POINTS

The Boston Bruins have been a regular staple in these Lord Stanley Cup playoffs for years. The Buffalo Sabres broke a 14 year drought as they finally get back to the playoffs. Both teams have played well in the last several months. The Sabres have had one of the best records in the league since the month of December and grabbed the top spot in the Eastern conference. The Bruins have played well since January and have had one of the better records in the league since that time.

In the NHL, a goalie could certainly cool off the other team and help your team get deep into the post-season. The Bruins goaltender needs to get hot as Jeremy Swayman is coming off a career year where he won 30 games.

Everything is a mission for one of the Sabres leaders in Alex Tuch, who has tallied up 33 goals and 33 assists in this magical season for Buffalo. He may be the team’s rally along with being the backbone of this Sabres team.

The Sabres come into the post-season with a lack of playoff experience. The Bruins rookie head coach Marco Sturm will get a taste of his first post-season experience as the man. The Sabres have an elite group of skaters. They have a solid defense and solid goal tending. The Bruins have created a stronger second line by moving Casey Mittelstadt from center to wing. He has played alongside Pavel Zacha and this line has created some noise for the Bruins. I like the Sabres’ Tage Thompson who has at least one point a game this season. He has played in 81 games and has tallied 40 goals while dishing out 40 assists. With the other young skaters the Sabres have and the confidence this team has had, I like them moving on from the first round.

OUR PREDICTION: SABRES IN 5 GAMES

(D3) MONTREAL CANADIENS (48-24-10) 106 POINTS VS (D2) TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING (50-26-6) 106 POINTS

The Canadiens and the Lightning are very good at putting the biscuit in the basket. Both teams finished with the same amount of points in the standings. The Lightning average 3.52 points per game. The Canadiens had a monster year from Nick Suzuki who went over the 100 point mark for the season.

Suzuki had 29 goals while dishing out 72 assists for 101 points. You have to go back 40 years since a Montreal player eclipsed 100 points. The Lightning have the Russian Rifle Nikita Kucheron who had 130 points this season. He had 44 goals and 86 assists.

Is 40 year old Corey Perry the lucky rabbit foot to get the Lightning back to finals? The only problem is he has been in the finals 5 out of the last 6 years and his teams have lost them all like the Edmonton Oilers last year. Perry has won a cup in 2007 with the Ducks. Last year he was valuable for the Oilers scoring 10 goals in 22 games in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Let’s not forget the Canadiens have Cole Caufield who scored 50 goals in the regular season. Montreal is a top 10 scoring team on the power play. The Lightning’s weakness is their power play. The experience goes to the Lightning. The goal tending goes to the Lightning as Andrei Vasilevskiy has been here before and has done very well. I like a long series as Lightning strikes in game seven to end Montreal.

OUR PREDICTION: LIGHTNING IN 7 GAMES

(WC2) OTTAWA SENATORS (44-27-11) 99 POINTS VS (D1)CAROLINA HURRICANES (53-22-7) 113 POINTS

When are the Hurricanes going to get over the hump in these Stanley Cup playoffs? Carolina is probably the team that experiences the most heartbreak losses in the Stanley Cup post-season the last few seasons. They say defense is a great recipe to win in the post-season as the Ottawa Senators have one of the best defensive squads in the tournament. The Hurricanes have the second best overall offense in the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs. The Hurricanes have talent on defense as well with a few guys that can shut down some of the bigger parts of your opponent’s offense.

The Hurricanes used a tandem unit in the net with Frederik Anderson and Brandon Bussi. Anderson has done a nice job over the last few seasons in the post-season for the Canes. Bussi had 31 wins for the Hurricanes during regular season. He could certainly become a factor.

The Senators have a pair of skaters that have lit the lamp with 30 goals this season. Tim Stutzle and Drake Batherson makes up the Senators’ two-headed monster on offense for Ottawa.

The Hurricanes have the post-season experience. The Senators come in with a lethal power play. The Hurricanes’ special teams on the penalty kill is a top 10 unit. The Hurricanes have some great skaters in Sebastin Aho who lit the lamp 27 times during regular season. Seth Jarvis can cause problems for the Senators. How will the Senators goalie Linus Ullmark do during this post-season with a legit offense the Hurricanes have? I like defense that could help the Senators goalie play better. My X-factor is the younger Tkachuk Brady, who played for the USA team during the Olympics. His brother is a big deal with the Florida Panthers. I think Brady will come up big in this tournament. This is a series destined to go the full tilt.

OUR PREDICTION: SENATORS WIN IT IN 7 GAMES

(D3) PHILADELPHIA FLYERS (43-27-12) 98 POINTS VS (D2) PITTSBURGH PENGUINS (41-25-16) 98 POINTS

It’s the battle of Pennsylvania in the first round between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. You have to always think the Pittsburgh Penguins are a threat in the Stanley Cup playoffs. It’s the first time the Flyers have been in the post-season since 2020. The Flyers were 9 points out of the second wild card spot on March 10th. The Flyers finished the season strong with a 13-4-1 record to get into the tournament. The Penguins head coach Dan Muse has done a solid job in his first year. Muse was never a head coach before and has his team playing the game without free flowing and not a care in the world. The Flyers are a young team & their star have overachieved this season. The Flyers veteran goalie is coming off his best NHL season as well.

Dan Vladar is 28 years of age and has played for three franchises in the NHL. In his 6th season between the pipes, Vladar’s first season as a Flyer won a career high of 29 games as the starting goalie.

The three time Stanley cup winner Sid the Kid Crosby for the Penguins can still light up the lamp as he had 29 goals this regular season.

The Penguins season was on the brink with some injuries. The Penguins General manager made some nice savvy moves to keep this team afloat. The Penguins acquired Egor Chinahov along with Elmer Soderblom. Two guys that helped this team in the second half of the season. The Flyers younger stars get their taste of the post-season which could be a building process for the future. The Flyers have 3 upcoming stars in Porter Martowe, Tyson Foerster and Matvei Michkov could really make a name for themselves in these playoffs. The Penguins have the experience and super powers like Evgeni Malkin who can be dangerous for Vlader, who is inexperienced in post-season play. The Penguins’ highly paid defensemen former Shark Erik Karlsson can do some damage on the offensive side of the ice. I like the experience as a whole for Pittsburgh. I think the Flyers will steal a few games as the Penguins’ goal tending is not very special. The Penguins will be able to dispatch the Flyers rather easily.

OUR PREDICTION: PENGUINS IN 6 GAMES

WESTERN CONFERENCE

(W2) LA KINGS (35-27-20) 90 POINTS VS (D1) COLORADO AVALANCHE (55-16-11) 121 POINTS

It seems like the LA Kings always have to face the best team in round 1. The Colorado Avalanche roster has plenty of depth. Last year the Kings got off to 2-0 over the Edmonton Oilers & then hit the big slide in the game of Chutes and Ladders.

This is the last post-season for the Kings’ long time captain, Anze Kopitar, who is hanging up the skates after one more chance at Lord Stanley’s Cup. He has won two Cups with the Kings.

The Avalanche goalie Scott Wedgewood this regular season achieved his first 30 win season between the pipes.

The Avalanche have 4 lines that are solid. They have three defensive pairings that can get the job done on defense. They have two solid goalies. They average 3.65 goals per game while allowing the fewest at 2.43 per game. The Kings traded for Artemi Panarin who came over from the Rangers & helped LA playoff push down the threat. Panarin, who played for the three biggest market in the states now, in Chicago, New York and LA, will have to come up big if they can find a way to upset the Avalanche juggernaut. The Avalanche superstar Nathan Mackinnon, unlike in the Olympics, will come up huge in this series to prevent an LA upset.

OUR PICK: AVALANCHE IN 4 GAMES

(D3) MINNESOTA WILD (46-24-12) 112 POINTS VS (D2) DALLAS STARS (50-20-12) 112 POINTS

This match up you have to call it the North Stars series.

How does a hockey team move away from the state of Minnesota where hockey and ice fishing is everything, to the state of Texas? The Minnesota North Stars moved to Dallas and dropped the North in their nickname, becoming just the Stars. The Wild would replace the North Stars as an expansion team later on. The Stars of Dallas made it to the Western Conference finals last year and lost to the Edmonton Oilers. The Wild were ousted in the first round by the Golden Knights. Both teams you have to believe improved from last year.

The Wild relied heavily on their defense last year. This year they improved their scoring as they are one of the strongest teams in the offensive zones at lighting the lamp. The team still has a great defense and a tandem of goalies that can get the job done on any night. Or ride the hotter hand. The Wild have two studs between the pipes in Filip Gustavsson and Jesper Wallstedt. They are 4th in the league with 2.87 goals against per games.

The Dallas Stars have finished the regular season with over 100 points in the standings 4 straight years. After the loss to the Oilers, the Stars thought they needed a new direction at head coach and fired Pete DeBoer during the summer. The new hire has already paid off what Pete did last regular season as the new face and head coach is Glen Gulutzan who worked with the Oilers coaching staff. The team that knocked out the Stars. The Stars are hoping with a new face and different post-season adjustments and knowledge of one of the best teams in the conference, it will pay off this go around. Many questioned the move DeBoer made in game versus the Oilers benching their franchise goalie Jake Oettinger.

I think this series may be one of the hardest ones to determine a winner. The Wild are better than last year and could give these Stars an early exit. The Stars are just so talented and have survived plenty of first rounds in post-season and went deep in the playoffs. I see the Stars aligning in survival and somehow coming through in a series that goes the distance like Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed’s epic bout.

OUR PREDICTION: STARS WIN IT IN 7 GAMES

(WC1) UTAH MAMMOTH (43-32-6) 92 POINTS VS (D1) LAS VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS (39-26-17) 95 POINTS

This is the first time the Utah Mammoth have made the post-season since the Arizona Coyotes franchise moved to Mormon territory. The Las Vegas Golden Knights have been a staple in post-season since they arrived in the league as an expansion team. The Golden Knights won it all in 2023 and fired the head coach of that team in Bruce Cassidy only weeks ago. They gave the job to John Tortorella, who won 7 out of 8 games down the stretch for Vegas.

The captain of the Mammoth, a guy who played several years with the Coyotes the team that drafted him, had another good year. In year two with Utah he scored 26 goals and dished out 62 assists for 88 points. His leadership with some additional veterans this team added this off-season means they hope can go beyond the first round.

When it comes to the post-season, Mitch Marner does it all for the Golden Knights. He plays heavy minutes. He helps on defense. He averages at least 1 point per contest in the last 3 post-seasons. He scored 24 goals and dished out 56 assists this regular season.

The Mammoth can light the lamp and have many guys that can get the puck in the net. The Mammoth have 6 players that have 20 or more goals this season. They have 10 players that have double figures in goals scored.

Since John Tortorella took over, the Golden Knights save percentage went up. Carter Hart had .887 save percentage for the Golden Knights. Then he made six starts with the new head coach down the stretch & he was stellar in the net with .930 save %.

The Mammoth additions of veterans equals out to 4 Cups and 59 post-season games. The Mammoth are in the top 10 allowing the few shots on net and scoring chances. I feel like the Mammoth will make some noise in this first round by dispatching this Golden Knight team even though they are playing better with the new coach.

OUR PREDICTION: MAMMOTH WINS THIS IN 6 GAMES

(D3) ANAHEIM DUCKS (43-33-6) 92 POINTS VS (D2) EDMONTON OILERS (41-30-11) 93 POINTS

The Edmonton Oilers have lost in back to back Stanley Cup finals two straight seasons. The bright side is they will not have to worry about the Florida Panthers because they did not make the Stanley Cup post-season this year.

It did not take Joel Quenneville very long to get the Anaheim Ducks into the post-season. This is the first post-season action for the former Blackhawks head coach since he was banned from the league. He helped Chicago win three Stanley Cups. Then went to Florida & had to step away from the game because he helped cover up a sexual assault investigation back in his Chicago days.

The Oilers have the best hockey player in the league in Connor McDavid. The supporting cast is in question for this year’s Oilers squad. McDavid is Batman and Leon Draisaitl is a better Robin. However Leon may not be available for this playoff run due to an injury.

Meanwhile the Ducks have built around the youth players like Leo Carlsson who notched 29 goals and dished out 38 assists this season. The Ducks brought in veterans like John Carlson who has done wonders for that Ducky defense. Others they brought in that have made a difference are Mikael Granlund, Radko Gudas, Alex Killorn, Chris Kreider and Jacob Trouba.

The supporting cast around the Oilers super heroes is different this season. They have lost veterans like Connor Brown, Evander Kane, Brett Kulak, John Klingberg, and Corey Perry who are all playing elsewhere. The Oilers have dug themselves in holes the last few seasons and others on the roster would step up and help the superstars get back on track. Edmonton may not be so lucky this year. I think the Oilers time is up this season like the Panthers. Joel Q is a mad scientist. His game plan will help the Ducks get by the power of McDavid. They will move on to the second round because they have more depth on their entire roster than Edmonton has to offer.

OUR PREDICTION: DUCKS IN 6 GAMES

2006 UFL: UNITED FOOTBALL LEAGUE POWER RANKINGS WEEK 4

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Have the almighty Birmingham Stallions fallen from their status as spring football royalty? The Gamblers are back to their familiar grounds. The Aviators and Kings look like they are turning things around. The BattleHawks find themselves a new quarterback. The Defenders are looking like they are the defending champions. Let’s hope we have a clearer perspective of the entire league with our newest addition of the UFL Power Rankings. It starts with the best ends with the Gamblers. Enjoy!!!

#1. DALLAS RENEGADES (3-0) Same spot from last week

Did the Renegades feel a kink in their armor as the winless Aviators gave Dallas a sweat late in that contest? The Columbus Aviators comeback came up short as the Renegades experienced their first close game of the season. The Renegades defense gave up 23 points which was a season high. No team has scored 20 points or more versus the Renegades’ solid defense.

The Renegades spring veteran defensive stud Donald Payne Jr. led this Dallas defense with 9 tackles. The Renegades defense did rack up two interceptions on Jalen McClendon, the Aviators quarterback. The offense scored 28 points, but Austin Reed’s numbers in the passing game were down from his first two games when he lit up the skies in the UFL world. Every great team wins a few ugly games or find ways to win the close ones when they are not playing at the highest level. When you get your first kink in the armor, teams may be figuring out what the Renegades are doing. Will their adjustments keep this team’s record perfect?

#2. DC DEFENDERS (2-1) Same spot from last week

Either the Defenders defense are playing like the champions they were last year or the Houston Gamblers’ Taulia Tagovailoa, Tua’s brother, is a complete disaster. The Defenders gave the Gamblers a beat down for their second impressive victory in a row after losing the first game to the BattleHawks.

The Defender defense have their own Boogie Man. In Boogie Basham, the former Buffalo Bills defensive line man. He racked up 4 tackles and a sack in their beat-down win. The Defenders had 4 sacks and racked up 7 tackles for a loss. They Defenders scooped a fumble from Taulia who also threw an interception that turned into a pick six. The Defenders running game once again was the story on offense as they had three backs with one rushing touchdown. The Defenders star quarterback Jordan Ta’amu has really not done well in any of these games this season as he only completed 55.6% of his passes. He threw a touchdown pass and an interception. If Jordan finds his groove, this Defenders team with that defense and running game could easily repeat. Good news for future beer snakes slithering in the stands of Defenders games.

#3. ST.LOUIS BATTLEHAWKS (2-1) Moved up 1 spot from last week

The BattleHawks made a switch at the quarterback position in mid game that really looked like a disaster for Ricky Proehl and his St. Louis team. With Ricky Proehl as the head coach in St. Louis, we expected the passing game to take off. He benched veteran spring starter Brandon Silvers after he completed 6 passes for 76 yards and an interception after the first half. Silvers is more of a back up QB in this league as he was the last few seasons. In the second half, Proehl unveiled his new guy, Harrison Frost, who looked like he was going to melt away in his first two drives throwing two interceptions.

In the 4th quarter, Frost turned into Sub-Zero with ice in his veins leading a full comeback over the Stallions in a wild one. Frost threw three touchdown passes and BattleHawks tallied 21 point to end the Stallions, 34-30. Frost finished his day completing 9-15, 148 passing yards, & 3 touchdown passes to two interceptions. Maybe the tallest receiver in the UFL, Hakeem Butler, hauled in a 64 yard touchdown strike from Frost. He had 4 catches for 146 receiving yards with that touchdown. Maybe Frost will get Ricky’s passing game off the ground from here on out.

#4. ORLANDO STORM (3-0) Drop 1 spot from last week

The Storm are 3-0 and I have them dropping one spot from last week. The Storm beat Louisville in overtime which was because of two penalties by the Kings defense in the extra period which gave the Storm the win. The UFL does the hockey style shoot out in their overtime games going for a 2 point conversions. This shoot out went to sudden death. By ruling the second penalty, it made the Storm’s final attempt good even though it was not executed. The Storm won back to back weeks versus the Kings. They beat the Aviators in week 1 as they are 3-0 versus the other relocation teams from last year.

The season is still in the early stages of UFL so far. The Storm may have the second best QB in the league in Jack Plummer. One of his touchdown passes came when he was on the run and just flipped ten yards down the field for a score. He finished the day with solid numbers going 21-24 for 249 passing yards and 3 touchdown passes. No interceptions. His number 1 weapon is Chris Rowland, who had 9 more catches for 112 receiving yards and a touchdown catch.

#5.COLUMBUS AVIATORS (0-3) Moved up 2 spots

I have the Aviators moving up the Power Rankings despite not winning a game as they have shown improvement.

The improvement of the Aviators comes after their head coach was thrown in the clink before Saturday’s game with the Renegades. Ted Ginn Jr., former wide receiver in the NFL, was arrested for a DUI in the wee hours of the morning. That left former USFL and NFL head coach Todd Haley as the guy that took over the duties of Ted Ginn Jr. The Aviators came up short on an upset versus the undefeated Renegades as their comeback fell short. The Aviators defense held the Renegades to their lowest score of of the season at 28 points.

Haley was head coach of the Tampa Bay Bandits in the USFL reboot & then did a season with the Memphis Showboats. The Aviators lost 28-23 versus the Renegades. We will see next week if this is a permanent gig for Haley.

#6. LOUISVILLE KINGS (0-3) Moved up 2 spots from last week

The Kings are showing me some improvement and could be on the brink to rack up their first victory. The Kings lost to the Storm in overtime during which they shot their selves in the foot with two penalties in the extra frame. The 2nd penalty made the Storm’s try successful in the shoot out sudden death style of football the UFL has going for two point conversions. By rule, the second penalty gives the opponent the successful conversion even though it was not. The Kings offense scored the most points this season. Jason Bean has his best game at QB for the Kings. He completed 23-46 passes for 352 passing yards and three touchdown passes along with no interceptions.

Another former Buffalo Bills player tight end, Zach Davidson, caught two touchdown passes from Bean. He had 4 catches for 79 yards and those two touchdowns. If the Kings can get this kind of offense every week with their defense, this squad could turn things around.

#7. BIRMINGHAM STALLIONS (1-2) Dropped 1 spot from last week

The Stallions were resurrected in the USFL reboot and have been one of the prestige power houses of spring football. Now this franchise is sinking into the football abyss and are at the bottom of the league as they lost two wild games.

AJ McCarron has taken over the Stallions from their legendary head coach, Skip Holtz. McCarron is a former NFL quarterback who has played two seasons with the BattleHawks, put up great numbers, and won plenty of games for them. He may want to suit up for the Stallions because he is not getting solid quarterback play from his guy, Matt Corral.

You never know what you will get from Matt Corral as he reminds you of the villain in Batman, Two Face. Like a flip of a coin he can throw two touchdown passes and then throw two interceptions. Corral completed 16-33 passes for 253 passing yards with 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. You take away the picks & I guarantee the Stallions would be sitting pretty at 3-0 right now to start the season. The Stallions defense has been very optimistic so far this season as this unit has been able to get takeaways. As a team, they are not overcoming the mistakes by Corral.

#8. HOUSTON GAMBLERS (1-2) Dropped 3 spots from last week

The Gamblers notched their first win of the season versus the Stallions in week 2. They had a nice rebound from week 1’s blow out versus the Renegades. The Gamblers hit the biggest slide in week 3 in the game of Chutes and Ladders. Another blow out. More QB headaches. A defense that is giving up more action than the local whorehouse in Texas.

Tua’s little brother Taulia Tagovailoa was a disaster in his first start with the Gamblers. I don’t think we will be seeins a brother reunion in the NFL anytime soon. First of all Taulia had to pass 40 times in last week’s game because the Gamblers dug themselves a gigantic hole early in this game. Taulia’s numbers were not impressive as he completed 21-40 passes for 171 passing yards, 1 touchdown, & 1 interception. The interception was a pick six. He also fumbled the ball in which the Defenders pounced on. He was sacked 4 times. His lone touchdown pass came in the 3rd quarter for the only points of the day for the Gamblers as they lost 45-7. Can the Gamblers bring back Jim Kelly who played for them back in the original USFL? He could probably do better than what they have in the QB room right now.

2026 UFL (UNITED FOOTBALL LEAGUE) POWER RANKINGS WEEK 3

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Could the old Oklahoma Outlaws be reborn in the UFL? The UFL has plans of expanding and they have awarded Oklahoma City with a team coming in 2028. Could they use the old USFL nickname, Outlaws, for the expansion team? The three teams that relocated this season changed their names to other nicknames, not from either old leagues of the XFL or USFL. I would love to see them go with the Outlaws in those black uniforms that would give the Gamblers a run for their money as good guys wear black. The league already has the Renegades with that bad dude in a cowboy hat covering his face with a bandana.

I don’t think we have to worry about the Minneapolis Ice coming any time soon since we’re talking face coverings. More to come on what Oklahoma expects to call themselves as it is a few years away as well. Oklahoma should be a solid venue for this league. Speaking of the present day desperadoes, the Renegades are still on top of the food chain in week 3’s UFL Power Rankings. We have horses heading into the glue factory direction. Have the Kings crowned themselves as the league’s bottom feeder? Here is the latest version of the UFL Power Rankings starting with the good & ending with just ugly.

#1. DALLAS RENEGADES (2-0) Same spot as last week

The Dallas Renegades right now are the best team in the UFL as all three phases of their game are humming. They have dispatched two post-season teams from last year, when the Defenders won it all in 2025. This week St.Louis found out how good the Renegades were, being held to 15 points. The Renegades defense held the Defenders to only 10 points. The Renegades defense snatched two more interceptions to add to the take away list that is off to the races. On special teams, the kicker Colton Theaker hit a 48 yard field goal and converted his extra points. Let’s talk offense. The Renegades in two games are averaging over 30 points per contest so far. In his second start of his early UFL career, Austin Reed threw 4 touchdown passes & now has 7 for the year. He tallied up 240 passing yards and the one blemish was an interception. It was Austin’s and old Luis Perez’s number 1 target wide receiver Tyler Vaughns who stole the show in week 2 versus the BattleHawks defense. Vaughns has played for the Renegades the last 4 seasons. He caught 11 balls for 146 yards and had three touchdown catches in week 2. Tyler has played in 31 spring games for his career and caught 135 passes for 1,570 receiving yards with 11 touchdown catches.

#2. DC DEFENDERS (1-1) Moved up 3 spots from last week

The Defenders laid a clunker in week 1 versus the BattleHawks as they were held to 10 points. Last year’s champs back on the road in back-to-back weeks got off the bus and ran the ball down the throats of the Aviators. In 36 attempts as a team, the Defenders tallied 230 rushing yards with 4 touchdowns running the ball. The Defenders averaged 6.4 yards per carry.

The leading running man for the Defenders was Deon Jackson who racked up 97 rushing yards and found the end zone three times. Abraham Smith who’s been running with the Defenders for years tallied 40 rushing yards. The Defenders scored 44 points even with their star quarterback Jordan Ta’amu only throwing for 99 yards. The Defenders defense gave up 26 points, however they racked up two interceptions. The Aviators scored points in each quarter, but they were really never in this game that was dominated by DC. After two road games to start the season, DC now will get a little home cooking from the beer snake and Defenders nation. Once the Defenders get that aerial attack working along with the running game, they will be one of the best teams in the league like last year.

#3. ORLANDO STORM (2-0) Moved up one spot from last week.

If the UFL is having a tournament on just the three teams that relocated, the Storm are WINNING !!! In week 1 the Storm beat the Aviators. Last weekend the Storm had their way with the Louisville Kings for their second straight victory. The former BattleHawks head coach Anthony Becht in 4 seasons in spring football now is 23-8 in regular season. Becht has a solid QB in Orlando in Jack Plummer, a guy who leads the league in completion percentage. Plummer had two more touchdown passes in week 2. His favorite target is wide receiver Chris Rowland, who had 8 catches for 59 yards including a touchdown.

Rowland is a veteran of the spring leagues as he started with the Philadelphia Stars in the USFL reboot a few years back. Last two years before suiting up for the Storm, he played for the Defenders. He’s the Storm’s top receiver and has been a great return man his entire career in spring football. The Storm held the Kings offense to a total of 227 yards and shut them out completely in the 2nd half. Next week they have a rematch with the Kings in Louisville. I would like to see how this Storm rides out with the other teams in the league more than the relocation teams. We will have to wait until week 4.

#4.ST.LOUIS BATTLEHAWKS (1-1) Dropped 1 spot from last week

Is the recipe to beating the BattleHawks grinding their running game to a halt and keeping the Pita chip Taumoepenu from penetrating your QB dip bowl? The Renegades kept the Pita away from their QB as he did not record a sack in week 2. The BattleHawks running game averaged 3.1 yards per carry.

Now the BattleHawks have to rely on the arm of spring veteran quarterback Brandon Silvers. Silvers was not the starting QB last year for these BattleHawks. He is a serviceable quarterback that I think needs a solid running game behind him.

Silvers lacks the silver he needs to deliver when it comes down to his arm. He does not have that silver sword like Abraham Setrakian in the series the Strain to deliver the kill shots all over the field. Silvers is under 200 passing yards and threw two interceptions. The BattleHawks have solid receivers in Hakeem Butler and Jahcour Pearson. You wonder who is QB 2?

#5. HOUSTON GAMBLERS (1-1) Move up 3 spots

If you are a leg man, John Hoyland may be your guy. If you are a boob guy, John may not be your guy unless you know. The Gamblers kicker last week leaned on the leg of Hoyland who kicked 5 field goals to put Houston over the top of the Stallions. Houston scored 22 points and 16 of them were from Hoyland. Houston rebounded from their humiliating loss they suffered in week 1 versus the Renegades as they beat the Stallions 22-20 in an early season shocker. The Gamblers QB play along with the defense was better than what happened in that week 1 beat down. The Gamblers used two QB’s, Nolan Henderson and Hunter Dekkers. Both were turnover free. The Defense picked off the Stallions QB twice.

Gamblers running back Jalen White scored the only touchdown of the game for Houston. He tallied up 82 yards on the ground for the Gamblers. You’d like to see one of the Gamblers QB’s take the job and run with it. The Gamblers are loaded at the wide receiver position. You hope their defense has turned the page from being bombarded by the Renegades aerial attack.

#6. BIRMINGHAM STALLIONS (1-1) Dropped 4 spots from last week

Former Stallions head coach Skip Holtz mastered the Houston Gamblers who rebranded to the Roughnecks last season. The Stallions suffered their first loss of the year and scored only 20 points which was 5 more points then week 1 when they needed the last minutes of regulation to put away the Kings of Louisville. The defense in two games has done well for the wild horses. Only 13 points allowed in week 1. Then 22 points in week 2 of which 15 of those points were from field goals. The Stallions defense is not giving up touchdowns.

It all depends what you get with the Stallions QB, Matt Corral. You can get good, bad, or ugly with him. Versus a defense that the Gamblers have is not very good. He completed 21-27 passes for 226 passing yards. He threw 2 touchdown passes. Good numbers. However he was also picked off twice. The running game only averaged 3.4 yards per carry which is not very good. The Stallions may have help on the way for their quarterback position. Taylor Elgersma, who is Canadian, has been inactive because they can’t iron out his work visa for him to play in the states. Could he be the answer for the roller coaster ride Corral gives the Stallions on a weekly basis?

#7. COLUMBUS AVIATORS (0-2) Same spot from last week.

The Aviators may have one of the best committees of running backs in the UFL. Former Panthers running back Toa Taua had 5 carries for 44 yards which is 8.8 a carry. Last year he was a scoring machine for the Panthers down by the goal line. The Aviators also have former Brahmas running back John Lovett. Then the starting running back is Zaquandre White. Throw in their quarterback Jalan McClendon last week when the team averaged 6.4 yards per carry. The problem is the Aviators defense is giving up the same average as the Defenders ran all over Columbus last week. Over 200 yards and the Defenders hung a 40 berger on them.

The Aviators defense is a problem. The aerial attack is a concern as well. The Aviators are not flying in the air as good as they are on their ground attack. McClendon threw the ball 37 times and tallied up only 156 passing yards. In week 1 he may have thrown the football 40 times and the numbers are about the same. The Aviators did score 26 points off the Defenders last week, but it seemed like they were out of that game from the first whistle. The Aviators along with the Kings have not won a game yet while everyone else in the UFL has at least notched 1 victory.

#8. LOUISVILLE KINGS (0-2) DROPPED 2 SPOTS FROM LAST WEEK

I think it will be a long season for the Kings because they have issues at the number 1 spot on the field. The quarterback. The Kings offense has been dreadful the first two games. In week 1 they scored 13. In week two they mustered up only 9 points. Their starter Mr. Bean in Jason Bean is not even completing 50% of his passes. The Kings have thrown Chandler Rogers some playing time and really got nothing from him. The Kings defense has been a different story. They have kept Louisville in both games. In week 1 they gave up 15 points to the Stallions. Then they kept the Storm under 20 points last week.

The Kings have a tackling machine in their middle linebacker Jaheim Thomas who racked up 10 tackles in the loss to the Storm last week. If the Kings head coach Chris Redman can fix his QB situation this team will win some games. Until then they will be cemented to the bottom of the league in the standings and these power rankings.

THE FIGHTING ILLINI MEN’S BASKETBALL TEAM HAVE BEEN MORE “HEARTBREAK CITY” THAN “LIVING THE DREAM”

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On Saturday night, March 28th, the University of Illinois beat one of their big ten rivals to advance to the Final 4 for the first time since 2005 in the NCAA March Madness tournament. It’s the Fighting Illini’s 6th time in school history making it to the Final 4 which doesn’t come very often. Unlike most of the other basketball factories that hold a spot in the tournament like owning Boardwalk on the Monopoly board. Illinois was awarded a 3 seed in the tournament and late on Thursday night in the sweet 16 game, they dismantled the number two seed of Houston who made it to the big dance last season. On Saturday night they had to play the highest seed left in the tournament, the number 9 Iowa Hawkeyes who got to the Elite 8 because they knocked off the first number 1 seed of the tournament, the Florida Gators. Watching University of Illinois sports is similar to watching all the Chicago professional sports in life which is more heartbreak than championships. To add more misery to my already wounded inner self, I’m a big fan of the Buffalo Bills. I don’t pick the winners very often and I never ride the bandwagon. Sniffing glue and drinking have been mechanisms to get through the roller coaster of emotions watching the local Chicagoland sports. The Fighting Illini basketball program making it to the Final 4 only comes around about the same amount of time that Haley’s Comet lights up the skies. It takes the comet 17 years where it takes Illinois University over 20 years to do so. Iowa played Illinois tough throughout most of that game, but the Fighting Illini prevailed 71-59 at the end. When they do make it to the Final 4, it’s special. Around the bend afterwards is just more heartache as it always ends badly.

Before the 2004-05 college basketball season began, Illinois had to get a new head coach because Bill Self left the program for Kansas University. Bruce Weber had his work cut out for him. Billy Selfish did leave him a solid program to work with. The starting five featured Dee Brown, Luther Head, Deron Williams, Roger Powell, and James Augustine. In 2005 University of Illinois had an epic comeback win versus Arizona in the Elite 8. The Fighting Illini were down 16 points with less than 4 minutes to play. Many people will tell you about the game of basketball that if you wait to the last two minutes of the game, anything can happen. Why bother watching the rest of the game? Just tune in for the last two minutes. With less than 60 seconds Illinois was able to overcome the Wildcats’ 8 point lead. It was Williams’ three point shot that sent the game to over tie. In OT Williams added another two 3 pointers with an impressive Powell dunk to skin the cats and advance to the Final 4 with a 90-89 win. Illinois came into the 2005 tournament as number 1 seed. In the Final 4 they beat up on the Cardinals from Louisville University to make it to the championship. They were 37-1 when they played the Tarheels of North Carolina in the championship. As most of the time in college basketball, the powerhouses always come away with the hardware as NC ended the dream season of Illinois beating them 75-70. I remember Illinois had all kinds of foul trouble in that one, which was my biggest take on that game. Yes, it could have been different if some of their top guys did not have to sit long periods of that game.

Let’s flashback to 1989 and talk about the “Flyin’ Illini” that Dick Vitale called that squad back in the late 80’s. With another talented dream team assembled by the University of Illinois that featured some guys that went on to play in the NBA for years after college. Like Nick Anderson and Kendall Gill. They were solid from 1-5 with guys like Kenny Battle, Lowell Hamilton, and Stephon Bardo with Anderson and Gill, so this team was amazing. In 1989 Illinois squared off against their division arch rival the Wolverines from Michigan in an epic battle. It was a game that had 33 lead changes. Before the Wolverines played a single game in the NCAA March Madness tournament in ’89, they had to deal with the University firing their head coach. Steve Fisher took over and Michigan played some inspired basketball. Back then Michigan’s star was Glen Rice who went on to the NBA. For Illinois, Battle had a huge game scoring 29 points while snatching 11 rebounds. The fighting Illini were coached by Lou Henson in ’89. It was a great season that came up short in a heartbreaking loss of 83-81. Two stinking points that kept a solid team from getting to the National Championship. The Fighting Illini would finish 31-5 for the season.

The present day Illinois program definitely has the European flavor throughout the roster. Brad Underwood is the head coach of the Fighting Illini and he recruited some top star talent across the pond. Guys like David Mirkovic and Andrej Stjakovic. Andrej’s father is NBA legend Peja Stojakovic who played for those great San Antonio Spurs teams with Tim Duncan. Since Underwood has taken over as head coach, the Fighting Illini have been a staple in the March Madness tournament. In 2021 Underwood had assembled a different class of talent and the team came into the tournament as a number 1 seed. In the 2nd round, they unfortunately lost to number 8 Loyola Chicago. This year’s team was one of the tallest teams in the tournament. They were very good at shooting the three pointer along with being solid rebounding the ball. Especially all the second chances they got on the offensive boards. The Illini defense was very solid during the tournament as if Underwood turned a switch. They finished the season with a 29-9 overall record and made it to the Final 4. The defense played well versus UCONN, a basketball powerhouse. The Huskies would prevail 71-62 as the Illinois team’s shooting went cold. The thing you have to like about this present day Illinois team is they are young and if Underwood keeps his core together and adds talent, they could be back in the Final 4 in 2027.

I thought with the University of Michigan in the Final 4, it would have been awesome to see two teams in the National Championship. The Wolverines ended up being the champs as they beat UCONN in the championship. The last time Michigan won the tournament was when they beat Seton Hall in 1989. I thought perhaps the basketball gods were paving the way for Illinois to slay their past demons and beat the Wolverines this go around. Once again Illinois being part of the Chicago sports landscape means you don’t get to live those kind of dreams. In 1989 I was in 8th grade and when Michigan beat Illinois, I let my emotions get the best of me and kicked the couch, hurting my ankle doing it. Not very smart. When Illinois beat Arizona in that crazy comeback, I was at an Easter party on my dad’s side of the family. Seeing my Dad’s sister meant my Aunt Dorie lead the family to the main bar of the restaurant where the television was to root on the Illini was priceless. She was a huge basketball fan. In any sports as a fan, we get great memories but also have to deal with the bad endings. This year’s Final 4 team saw the Illini shot suddenly went cold. It is always something. You hope this team will get back to the Final 4 next season. As we hope all our teams we root for rebound and get back to win it all. However history tells us we see men’s Fighting Illini basketball back in the Final 4, about 20 years from their lost to UCONN. Maybe that will be the team to win the first ever National championship for basketball for the Fighting Illini. Maybe by then the refs will be replaced by robots. Remember when you thought for a fraction of about 30 seconds that this Illini team had a chance to win it all? You were thinking of even purchasing a shirt or something that said your team won. Like a snap of someone else’s fingers, the dream is dead. I don’t think it’s even heartbreak anymore. I think you’d be accustomed to it like a police detective solving murders and seeing bloody corpses all the time. If you stop dreaming, you stop watching. You have to really be getting sick of waiting until next season.

2026 UFL, UNITED FOOTBALL LEAGUE POWER RANKINGS WEEK 2

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After one week of the UFL, it looks like the name change has helped the Renegades as they look like the top team in the league. The Defenders lay a clunker in week one defending their title from last year. Relocation, relocation, and relocation… only one team prevails from the off-season move. The BattleHawks defense looks legit. The Stallions are still riding in the top of the league. We have contenders & we have pretenders. We will sort it all out with the week two UFL power rankings. We start with the best and work our way down to the mess of the league. Hope you enjoy!!!

#1. DALLAS RENEGADES (1-0) Moved up 4 spots from last week

The Renegades coming into this season on paper have one of the best quarterbacks in the UFL in veteran Luis Perez. Now this franchise may have two of the top 5 quarterbacks in the UFL with Austin Powers, who got the start over the King of the Spring Fling which was Perez.

Austin Reed was SHAGADELIC in his first ever start in the UFL. Reed lit up the Houston Gamblers setting a new single regular season record in the UFL with 376 passing yards while throwing three touchdown passes. The former USFL QB Rick Neuheisel, now the head coach of the Renegades, looks like a quarterback whisperer going with Reed over Perez. The Renegades scored the most points in week 1 with 36. They played well in all 3 phases of the game. The Renegades the last few years always had a defense that can contribute to the score board. As they had a pick six early in the game that set the tempo. They may be the team to beat with solid defense and a well-balanced offense that can do damage with the running game and aerial attack.

#2. BIRMINGHAM STALLIONS (1-0) Same spot from last week

Do you remember Snoop Dogg was in the ESPN series called the Playmakers which was about a professional football team? The Stallions unveiled their new running back Snoop Connor who racked up 56 yards on the ground for Birmingham in week 1 with a touchdown.

Wide receiver Jaydon Mickens stole the show in his Stallions debut. The former Defender caught 9 balls for 102 yards as he kept the chains moving as Birmingham just got by the Louisville Kings in low scoring game. It was not pretty. Some of the Stallions wins when Skip Holtz was the head coach were not pretty wins. He just racked up a lot of W’s in his time. His teams got better as the season went on. You could see things with the Stallions that have not changed. That bend don’t break defense that thrives on turnovers got two interceptions. Matt Corral was decent behind center. He did not turn over the ball and guided his team to another W on the back of his football card. In sports it is tough to win games on the road. The Stallions can do that in front of sold out crowds in Louisville.

#3. ST.LOUIS BATTLEHAWKS (1-0) Moved up 1 spot from last week.

The BattleHawks defend their Thunderdome home Mad Max style. St.Louis is now 10-1 in home games going on their 3rd season in the UFL. They were dominated at home when they played in the XFL as well. The BattleHawks certainly got the crowds they normally get as their home opener had plenty of supporters as they knocked off the defending champions, the DC Defenders. The BattleHawks and Defenders is probably the best rivalry in the UFL. In a rivalry that started back in the XFL and certainly carried over to the UFL.

The BattleHawks would have their work cut out for them as they lost their long time head coach Anthony Becht to the sunshine in Orlando. The BattleHawks lost a few defenders from last season. However you would not notice because they looked like the best defense in the league in week 1. It all starts with defensive player of the year from last year in Pita Taumoepenu, who recorded 2.5 sacks in week 1. He led the UFL last season in sacks and is looking for the repeat of that title this season. They held the Defenders to 10 points. They only scored 16 points which was enough to get the first win of the season and knock off your hatred rival at the same time. I think their offense will eventually catch up to their defense. They have a veteran spring QB in Brandon Silvers, who did throw a touchdown pass and made no mistakes. He was okay. Nothing to write home to mom about. St.Louis has some nice weapons for Silvers to put up bigger numbers.

#4. ORLANDO STORM (1-0) Moved up 3 spots from last week

The Storm were the first among the three teams that relocated to a different city to win their first game of the year. Former BattleHawks head coach Anthony Becht keeps his winning ways with his new team, the Storm. The Storm showdown with the Aviators from Columbus was the first battle between teams that relocated from last year. The Storm looks like they found themselves a solid QB who did well in his spring debut.

Jack Plummer had a mutt of a college career suiting up for Louisville, Purdue, and California. He had a cup of coffee with the Carolina Panthers camp in the NFL. He may have found a nice home with the Storm to showcase his talents. Plummer completed 77% of his passes in week 1 win over the Aviators. Plummer went 17-22 for 240 passing yards and a touchdown pass. A solid debut indeed. You know Becht likes to run the ball. His star running back Jashaun Corbin had two rushing touchdowns for 66 yards on the ground. The Storm also have a spring veteran return man and wide Receiver Chris Rowland, who caught Plummer’s only touchdown pass. The Storm is brewing after week 1.

#5. DC DEFENDERS (0-1) Dropped 4 spots from last week

The Defending champs could be experiencing a little hang over from winning it all last week. The Defenders offensively put up a clunker versus their arch rival the BattleHawks on the road, only scoring 10 points. The Defenders quarterback Jordan Ta’amu was horrible with two interceptions. Ta’amu, one of the better QB’s in the UFL for years, was out of sync in his first start of the year. You could blame the Defenders O-line as Ta’amu was sacked 7 times in the game. It is hard winning in Arch Town. The Defenders defense only gave up 16 points so overall this could be just a hiccup for DC getting off to a slow start.

One of the UFL’s rule changes this season is if a kicker hits on a 60 yard or more field goal, the team is awarded 4 points instead of the normal 3 point play. The Defenders kicker Matt McCrane becomes the first kicker to get the 4 point play in the UFL. McCrane nailed a 60 yard field goal in the dome of St.Louis. The UFL kickers have been scooped up by the NFL like Jake Bates when he was playing for the Michigan Panthers a few seasons ago. He was hitting 60 yard field goals for the Panther and the Detroit Lions signed him, as he’s still kicking in motor city today. McCrane could be next.

#6.LOUISVILLE KINGS (0-1) Moved up 2 spots from last week

We know most of America do not like Kings running the country. We have to think the Stallions don’t like kings either as Birmingham has been the King of spring football for years.

Louisville looks like a keeper for the UFL as fans packed their stadium in the season opener under Friday Night Lights. The Kings played well versus the Stallions. Birmingham won the game in the last minutes of regulation. The Kings quarterback Jason Bean looked pretty good despite throwing two interceptions. One was not his fault bouncing off his receiver’s hands. He threw for over 200 yards. He had one touchdown pass. The Kings defense only gave up 15 points. I think Kings head coach Chris Redman will have a solid squad as the season moves on after they get over their growing pains.

#7.COLUMBUS AVIATORS (0-1) Dropped 4 spots from last week.

The Aviators I thought would be better than they were in their first game. The Aviators settled for field goals in the first quarter. They stayed in the game with the Storm the entire way. The Aviators did not score in the second or third quarter. They made things interesting when they scored their first touchdown of the season in the 4th quarter. It was running back Zaquandre White who found the end zone for the Aviators with his first rushing touchdown of the season.

I think the Aviators running game was not very good in week 1. When veteran quarterback Jalen McClendon has to throw the ball 32 times, it’s not a good recipe to win many games in spring. McClendon tallied up over 200 yards in passing. He had no touchdown passes. He did not throw any interceptions. If you give McClendon a well balanced offense, I think the Aviators would convert more touchdowns rather than relying on field goals.

#8.HOUSTON GAMBLERS (0-1) Dropped two spots from week 1

The Gamblers or last years Roughnecks are teams that do not start well in this league. The Gamblers were blown out by the Renegades in the battle of Texas. They gave up not the most points with 36 points. The Gamblers did out score a few teams with 17 points.

One of the Gamblers’ touchdowns was an impressive kickoff return by Jalen Moreno Cooper which is only the 2nd one in league history. You take that away & the Gamblers offense only racked up 10 points. The Gamblers starting quarterback Nolan Henderson had two interceptions which one was a pick six that got the Renegades off to a fast start. The Gamblers may have hope as Hunter Dekkers came in and completed 19-29 passes for 227 passing yards. He had no interceptions and no touchdown passes. He did way better than Henderson. Which is a positive. The Gamblers defense was dissected like a frog in an 8th grade science class which could be a big concern for the entire season that is left on the schedule.

THE CHICAGO BEARS SUDDENLY HAVE THE KNACK FOR FINDING THAT GEM BEHIND CENTER

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The Chicago Bears have not had a franchise quarterback since the 1940’s when Sid Luckman was the general behind center. The Bears for decades were like the present day Cleveland Browns, with a never-ending list of dead beats behind center. It was like every Christmas delivered a lump of coal in the Bears fans’ stockings as every season you would witness them marching out the next bum to turn into a bust. Everybody thought the Bears’ number 1 selection in the 2024 NFL draft would turn to stone when they drafted Caleb Williams from USC. Most experts thought Williams would be the best choice and the Bears could not do what they did in the 2017 NFL draft & gamble on the likes of another Mitch Trubisky. The guarantee that year by the experts was Deshaun Watson. In Chicago all massage therapists dodge a bullet that the Bears selected Mitch over the sexual predator. In 2017 Patrick Mahomes turned out to be golden for the Chiefs. Williams this season in his second year has shown he can be the face of this Bears franchise for the next decade and beyond. In 2023, the Bears signed Tyson Bagent as he was an undrafted free agent. In three seasons he has a 2-2 record as a starter. The Bears front office has been fielding calls about acquiring Bagent, who is the number two guy on the Chicago totem pole. Suddenly anything the Bears touch at quarterback is starting to turn into gold. Last weekend more evidence became available about the Bears being the QB whisperer. It was another quarterback the Bears had at their camp the last two seasons who lit up the UFL (United Football League) in his first start the opening weekend of the spring gridiron. Some people may remember Austin Reed who played a part in HBO’s Hard Knocks when they did the Bears series. It was Reed who signed with the Dallas Renegades after the Bears let him go. On Saturday he sliced and diced the Houston Gamblers defense while setting new records in the UFL as a quarterback.

Austin Reed is 26 years of age. In college he was part of three football programs: SIU, West Florida, and Western Kentucky. It was Western Kentucky where Reed thrived as he had 40 touchdown passes in 2022. In 2023 he threw 31 touchdown passes. In both seasons he had the same amount of interceptions thrown, with 11 each season. In 2024 Reed signed with the Bears as an undrafted free agent. He had his 15 minutes on Hard Knocks. He made the Bears practice squad in ’24. In 2025 he played in some preseason games & then landed his walking papers. The Bears wanted veteran quarterback Case Keenum on their roster to help mentor Caleb Williams. Then Tyson Bagent was the number two QB. The Bears decided they did not need Reed on their practice squad either. As an athlete you can practice until the cows come home every day. Every athlete needs a game to improve their craft. In those NFL preseason games, Reed played very well for the Bears. He tallied up 230 passing yards with a touchdown pass and came away with a 99.3 passing rating. Reed decided to take his talents to the UFL. The Dallas Renegades have one of the better spring veteran quarterbacks in the league. His name is Luis Perez and he is the king of the spring fling. He even has written a book about it. Perez has also guided these Renegades to championship before the merger when this franchise was back in the XFL. Reed beat out Perez for the starting job this spring for Dallas. In his first UFL game, the Renegades blew up the Houston Gamblers with a score of 36-17. Reed threw three touchdown passes in his debut along with 370 passing yards.

These spring football leagues like the UFL really don’t generate talented quarterbacks that take over the starting job in the NFL. The UFL has done well with kickers and special team players. The 49ers had former Birmingham Stallion Adrian Martinez as a 3rd string quarterback for them last season. The Arena League produced a Hall of Famer in Kurt Warner. It can happen. I always believe when a athlete leaves the city of Chicago, their career suddenly takes off. It is only one game for Austin Reed in the UFL. He played with two different coaching staffs with the Bears. He did get a sniff of the Ben Johnson offense in preseason in 2025. You have to like his football IQ to handle some different offenses at the professional level and thrive. He looks like he has the stuff to be a solid QB in the UFL as we will see how it all unfolds for him. If I were him, I would not re-sign with the Bears if his season does end up going well like his first game did. Who wants to be the 4th quarterback? He may have a better chance with another team to actually make a NFL roster rather than just settle for a practice squad position. Maybe the football gods are starting to help a team like the Bears which has been deprived so long at the quarterback position. All the bums this franchise has had. Yes, we had a few seasons of some solid QB play. Like Jim McMahon helping the Bears win their only Superbowl. He may have been a great QB if not for those bad injuries he suffered, which I believe set him back. I loved guys like Jim Miller and Erik Kramer. Those guys sparked this team for a few seasons. Then smoking Jay Cutler who somehow still has a cult following in the Windy City. Cutler broke many Bears records behind center which is easy to do because of the QB play this town has had. He was a selfish SOB only in for himself. Then the failed number 1 picks before Caleb. Like Mitch Trubisky and Justin Fields. Both are back ups presently. I remember sports radio talking about how the Bears should draft a QB every year to finally get it right. Now they have the ICE-MAN in Williams, a guy that paints his finger nails in a blue collar town. Most of these bar flies would express absolute hatred for a guy like that. He’s playing well at a position that was so weak for this franchise for decades. They don’t care. Most people have never seen solid QB play in Chicago during their entire lifetime. Now the Bears have done well getting something out of undrafted QB’s like Tyson Bagent and Reed. Some team may give the Bears a 4th round pick for Bagent. I would like to keep Bagent but adding a pick to this April’s draft could help the team out in other positions. Because obviously the Bears know how to find quarterbacks. They could sign Reed or sign another undrafted free agent if Austin does not want to come back. You feel the world is coming to an end when a team like the Bears know something about selecting a solid QB.

JACK, CHOOSING BASEBALL OVER FOOTBALL IN THE MANGUM HOUSEHOLD

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I wonder if the Mangum household is similar to the show Blue Bloods. In Blue Bloods, Tom Selleck plays character Frank Reagan who sits at the head of dinner table as the Police Commissioner with a family that has law enforcement as the family business. It seems like the Mangum family business is football. John Mangum Jr. played for the Chicago Bears during the 1990’s. His father, the original John, played defensive tackle for the Boston Patriots, who at the time resided in the AFL before the merger with the NFL. Then John Mangum’s brother Kris played tight end for the Carolina Panthers for 10 seasons in the NFL. Along came John Mangum Jr.’s son Jake who elected to play baseball over football. He followed his own path in life and has made it to the MLB. I’m sure Jake is not sentenced to the kids table at Sunday family dinners.

At the age of 30, Jake Mangum has had a very interesting path to the MLB after spurning football his freshman year of high school to concentrate on baseball. In 2025, Jake made his MLB debut with the Tampa Bay Rays. This season he is on the Pirates in year two of his career as he has already been traded three times in his career. Mangum was drafted three times by both New York teams. He avoided the Yankee Death Star by playing college ball instead of wearing storm trooper pinstripes. The Mets drafted him two years in a row in 2018 & ’19. He played his college ball at Mississippi State University where he earned a degree in business administration. In 4 seasons at Mississippi State, he helped the Bulldogs get to the College World Series in back-to-back years in 2018 & ’19. In 4 seasons he racked up 383 hits which ranks him number 1 all-time in the Southeastern conference. Those 383 hits rank him number 4 all-time in NCAA Division 1 history. He would finally sign with the Mets to begin his journey to the MLB. In 2020 due to the pandemic, he did not play as all minor league seasons were cancelled completely that year. The Mets traded him to the Marlins for that famous player to be named later deal. Then about a year later the Marlins flipped him to get that famous player to be named later. Finally Mangum had a break out camp with the Rays while being protected from any other team poaching him in the rule 5 draft. Mangum is switch hitting outfielder with remarkable defensive skills. With the lumber last year he racked up 120 hits in 118 games. His batting average was a impressive .296. Not much power with the bat only 3 long balls but he drove in 40 runs. The Rays had a fire sale during the off-season as they work on another quick rebuild on the fly, they threw in Mangum in the deal with second baseman Brandon Lowe who was headliner of the deal.

John Mangum Jr. presently 59 years of age. He was born and raised in the state of Mississippi. John was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the 6th round of the 1990 NFL draft from Alabama University. John was defensive back and played 9 seasons in the NFL all with Da Bears. In 105 NFL games he tallied up 5 interceptions. He recorded 4.5 sacks and racked up 272 solo tackles. When John played for the Bears this was after those great 1980’s teams they had when they won the Superbowl in 85. The Bears still had some Hall of Fame players that played with John in the 1990’s.

Steve “Mongo” McMichael and Richard Dent were on their last legs when Mangum Jr. was patrolling the Bears secondary. The Bears did make it to the post-season three times with John Mangum Jr. In 5 post-season games, Mangum did record an interception and fumble recovery on his playoff resume.

John Mangum Jr.’s younger brother Kris is 52 years of age presently. He was drafted by the Carolina Panthers in the 7th round of the 1997 NFL draft from Alabama University. He helped the Crimson Tide win a National title in 1992. Before transferring to Alabama he played for Ole Miss. Kris did not play defense like his brother and father. He was an offensive player whose position on the gridiron was tight end. He played 10 seasons in the NFL all with the Panthers. He played in 126 NFL games and racked up 151 catches for 1,424 receiving yards. He also hauled in 9 touchdown passes. He played from 1997 until 2006.

Jack Mangum was way too young to see his father play professional football. In 2025 for a Monday football game between the Bears and the Vikings, Jack was in town with the Rays. It was an alumni game for his father John, at Soldier field. Jack had the day off as the Rays were going to be playing both Chicago baseball teams during the week starting on Tuesday. Jack got some perspective about his father and all his Bear chums that night. The stories that were told. Along with watching the game together, it had to have been special for the Mangum football family.

When John Mangum Jr. was playing for the Bears, I always liked how he played the game. He was not your All-Pro defensive back out on the field. He played hard every down and had a high football IQ which you have to respect. In sports, guys like John Jr. are some of the unsung heroes of these teams you watch every Sunday. You need these guys on the roster to win games. You can tell that about his son Jack, who carved his own path in life. He may have been good playing football until he gave it up. He was committed to Alabama but backed out in the last minute to go to Mississippi State which was close to home. It was a school he visited multiple times before going there because he knew people there. By the time he went to school there, he knew many people and everyone knew his name earning himself the “Mayor” nickname. I was watching the Pirates game yesterday, his new team, as they were in New York playing the Mets, the team that drafted him and traded him away. He was playing center field and on one play he tracked down a ball that was destined to be off the wall for extra bases. He got on his horse and tracked it down for one hell of a catch. He looked like a defensive back like a safety ball hawking a ball thrown deep by a quarterback. His father would be proud that Jack has taken some football into his sport of baseball. The Mangum family toughness with the game high IQ is what this family is all about. Jack was late getting to the big leagues, but he certainly looks like he should be an everyday player as I hope the Pirates give him plenty of playing time. You hope he can get 8-10 good years in the MLB like his father and uncle got playing on the gridiron.