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2 Michigan Panthers, MSU's Matt Coghlin nab awards for Week 1 of 2023 USFL season

Ryan Ford, Detroit Free Press
·3 min read

Week 1 of Year 2 of the USFL is in the books, and it was a clean sweep for the state of Michigan … sort of. After the Michigan Panthers opened with a road victory Sunday, the league announced its players of the week on Monday: Two Panthers — QB Josh Love and DE Breeland Speaks — and a former Michigan State kicker.

Love took Offensive Player of the Week honors after completing 19 of 21 passes for 216 yards and three touchdowns in Michigan’s 29-13 victory over the Houston Gamblers on Sunday in Memphis, Tennessee. His 90.5% completion percentage was easily the best single-game mark of any USFL quarterback in the league’s second iteration, and even topped the league record of 82.8% set by former Detroit Lions QB Greg Landry in a 1984 game for the Arizona Wranglers.

Michigan State coach Mel Tucker, left, congratulates kicker Matt Coghlin after Coghlin kicked the game-winning field goal in overtime against Nebraska, Saturday, Sept. 25, 2021, in East Lansing.
Michigan State coach Mel Tucker, left, congratulates kicker Matt Coghlin after Coghlin kicked the game-winning field goal in overtime against Nebraska, Saturday, Sept. 25, 2021, in East Lansing.

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On defense, it was Speaks taking home Player of the Week honors. The former Mississippi standout wreaked havoc on the Gamblers’ offense with seven tackles (including two for a loss) and three sacks. The Panthers held Houston to just 96 yards passing, the second-worst total from Week 1.

The week’s final award winner excelled in the final game of the weekend, a 22-15 win for the New Orleans Breakers over the Pittsburgh Maulers in Birmingham, Alabama. Kicker Matt Coghlin, who left MSU as the program’s career leader in points and field goals made, actually outscored the Maulers on his own, 16-15, as he hit all five of his field goal tries, plus an extra point. He also saved a potential touchdown on the opening kickoff, leaping up to tackle Pittsburgh’s Bailey Gaither after a 41-yard return off a lateral. Coghlin connected on field goals of 34 and 51 yards in the first quarter, 21 in the second and 27 and 28 in the third quarter before finishing his day with an extra point from the 15 with 68 seconds remaining. Coghlin’s kicking showcase was a far cry from the Breakers’ specialist last season: Taylor Bertolet made just nine of his 12 tries for New Orleans in 2022.

The Panthers, too, appear to have turned things around. With their win Sunday, they’re tied for first place in the North Division with their Ford Field hub-mate, the Philadelphia Stars. The Panthers and Stars play for first in the division this weekend, before they even open their Detroit schedule, with a 7 p.m. Sunday game at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio. Michigan will open its home slate on April 30 with a 4 p.m. visit from the New Jersey Generals, while the Stars host the Maulers at noon that day. Coghlin and the Breakers won’t play the Panthers at Ford Field, but they will visit the Stars there on May 21.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan Panthers, ex-MSU kicker get top honors in 2023 USFL Week 1