Former Ole Miss QB Matt Corral a Winner in UFL Debut
ARLINGTON, Texas — This corral has more than a few stallions.
Former Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral led the Birmingham Stallions to a 27-14 win over Arlington in the inaugural game of the United Football League. Birmingham, the 2023 champions of the USFL, had to come from behind but dominated the second half to cruise past last year’s XFL champs.
Corral finished 12-for-21 passing for 201 yards and a touchdown.
Corral’s touchdown came with three seconds left in the first half. The former Rebel hooked up with former Clemson star Deon Cain after he put a double move on the defensive back for a 39-yard scoring strike.
AND JUST WHEN IT LOOKED OVER FOR THE BIRMINGHAM STALLIONS, MATT CORRAL DROPS A DIME TO DEON CAIN!!!
Birmingham gets the two point conversion on a Ricky Person JR pure effort play and we got a tied ball game heading into halftime!
SPRING FOOTBALL JUST GOT STRONGER 😤😤
(🎥 Via… pic.twitter.com/P6EVMBuO1U
— United Football Media (@The_UFM) March 30, 2024
Corral completed a pass for a two-point conversion to Ricky Person, Jr., formerly of North Carolina State, and the game went into the half, 11-11.
Birmingham, who won the past two USFL crowns, scored a pair of rushing touchdowns in the second half to pull away.
Perhaps Corral’s best performance ended without points. Midway in the fourth quarter, Birmingham took possession at its own 5 knowing the Renegades needed two possessions to get back into the game. Corral orchestrated a methodical drive that milked the clock. After the Stallions missed a long field goal, Arlington took over, but with just over a minute to go in the game. The Renegades were unable to move the ball and Birmingham had the victory.
Picked up where we last left off 😮💨
WWWWW‼️ pic.twitter.com/E2yRW0pWYg
— B2B CHAMPIONSTALLIONS 🏆🏆 (@USFLStallions) March 30, 2024
Corral was named the Offensive Player of the Game by FOX Sports. This was his first start since getting hurt in the Rebels’ Sugar Bowl matchup vs. Baylor.
Birmingham plays next April 7 when the Stallions visit the Michigan Panthers.
The Stallions have their home opener April 13 at 6 p.m. against the Memphis Showboats. Coincidentally, Ole Miss will hold the annual Grove Bowl earlier that day.
Steve Barnes
Steve Barnes joins The Rebel Walk staff as a senior writer and brings a trifecta of journalistic experience. As a writer, he has covered college sports for Rivals.com, Football.com and SaturdayDownSouth.com as well as served as a beat writer for various traditional newspapers.
He has been a broadcaster for arena football and several national tournament events for the National Junior College Athletic Association as well as hosting various shows on radio.
A former sports information director at Albany (Ga.) State University and an assistant at Troy and West Florida, he has helped host many NCAA conference, regional and national events, including serving five years on the media committee of the NCAA Division II World Series.
Barnes, a native of Pensacola, Fla., attended Ole Miss in 1983-84, where his first journalism teacher was David Kellum. The duo has come a long way since that time.
He will bring a proven journalistic track record, along with a knack for finding the out-of-the-ordinary story angles to The Rebel Walk.
Barnes continues to reside in Pensacola a mere ten minutes from the beach because he does have taste and a brain.
