UFL: Stallions top Battlehawks to stay undefeated, spoiling AJ McCarron's Alabama return

The Birmingham Stallions spoiled A.J. McCarron's Alabama homecoming by defeating his St. Louis Battlehawks 30-26 on Saturday.

The game was a back-and-forth affair from start to finish. The two teams exchanged the lead six times before the Stallions took their final lead with a long touchdown pass late in the fourth quarter. The teams played in front of a crowd of 14,056 fans, a new Stallions attendance record.

McCarron, the starting quarterback for the Battlehawks, played his first game in the state of Alabama since he was the Crimson Tide's starting quarterback as a senior in 2013. He finished the game 19-for-32 passing with 161 yards, a touchdown and an interception. He also added two scrambles for 24 rushing yards.

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Here are some more takeaways from the Birmingham Stallions' (7-0) victory over the St. Louis Battlehawks (6-2):

AJ McCarron overcomes early interception

McCarron was shaky to start the game. He threw two incompletions in a three-and-out opening drive then missed a 3rd-and-12 throw that wound up in the arms of Stallions safety A.J. Thomas.

Birmingham was able to capitalize on the turnover thanks to some long runs by running back C.J. Marable and quarterback Adrian Martinez. After successfully challenging that there was pass interference in the end zone on a pass intended for receiver Deon Cain, the Stallions punched it in from a yard out with Marable.

The Stallions failed the ensuing two-point conversion, so the score stood at 6-0. A field goal by each team made it 9-3 with about five minutes left in the first half. McCarron then led a 59-yard touchdown drive highlighted by a 44-yard pass to receiver Hakeem Butler that set up St. Louis inside the 10-yard line. Running back Jacob Saylors finished the drive with a touchdown on 4th-and-1 and gave the Battlehawks their first lead at 11-9 when he ran in the two-point conversion.

Both teams score late in the first half

The Battlehawks took their first lead with a little more than two minutes remaining in the first half. The Stallions responded with a slow, methodical drive that took most of the remaining time off the clock. With 16 seconds remaining in the half, Martinez found Cain in the end zone for a five-yard touchdown. A successful end-around run to receiver Marlon Williams gave Birmingham the two-point conversion for a 17-11 lead.

The Battlehawks got the ball back at their 35-yard line. A deep throw by McCarron fell incomplete, but an unnecessary roughness penalty by the Stallions gave them another chance to make something happen. St. Louis ended up attempting a season-long 61-yard field goal, which kicker Andre Szmyt sent through the uprights to make it 17-14 at halftime.

Stallions defense holds up in crunch time

Down by four with five minutes to go, the Battlehawks looked to McCarron for some late-game heroics. Unfortunately for him, Stallions defensive tackle Jordan Thompson sacked him for an eight-yard loss on the drive's first play. A short run to recoup some yardage followed by an incompletion to Butler on third down forced the Battlehawks to punt.

The Stallions got the ball back with three minutes to play and ran most of the clock out. Facing fourth down with under a minute to go, they decided to punt from midfield. Battlehawks linebacker Chris Garrett blocked the kick, giving the St. Louis another chance with 40 seconds left. However, the Stallions' defense held up once again, forcing a fourth down that St. Louis failed to convert with 11 seconds remaining.

What's next?

The Stallions will look to stay undefeated when they take on the Houston Roughnecks on Saturday, May 18. McCarron and the Battlehawks, meanwhile, will return home to take on the D.C. Defenders on Sunday, May 19.

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: UFL: Stallions vs. Battlehawks game score, highlights, takeaways