There was no late-game magic for the San Antonio Brahmas, who fell to the St. Louis Battlehawks 31-24 on Sunday afternoon at the Alamodome.
“Obviously, disappointing when you lose, I thought our guys fought their hearts out,” coach Wade Philips said. “We had an opportunity [to win the game].”
The Brahmas (2-1) have started to become one of the UFL’s most dangerous fourth-quarter teams. San Antonio came back in their first two games and won after their final quarter push.
The Brahmas put the first points on the board on their opening drive by way of recently acquired kicker Ryan Santoso on a 35-yard field goal.
“It’s a lot of fun being with the guys again,” Santoso said. “We have a great group of specialists.”
The Battlehawks (2-1) responded with a 10-yard rushing touchdown by quarterback A.J. McCarron. It did not take long for St. Louis to find the endzone again, and on a 20-yard pass, receiver Hakeem Butler found the endzone giving the Battlehawks an early 14-6 lead.
After a long 17-play drive, San Antonio reached the end zone with a two-yard rushing touchdown by running back John Lovett. St. Louis would close the half with a 44-yard field goal giving them a commanding 17-9 at the break.
Capitalizing off of a fumble recovery by cornerback Darius Philips to open the second half, Santoso made his second field goal of the afternoon to cut the Brahmas deficit to 17-12. The Battlehawks responded with their own field goal, further adding to their pilling lead.
“We shot our team in the foot,” quarterback Chase Garbers said. “We moved the ball fairly well, we just have to put drives together and ultimately put points on the board.”
The Battlehawks continued their success into the second half with a pair of field goals and a third touchdown.The Brahmas began to rally in the early fourth quarter. Starting with an eight-yard touchdown rush by running back Anthony McFarlane Jr., a trick play set up the Brahmas’ final score and a two-yard touchdown by tight end Alizé Mack brought the Brahmas within a one-possession game.
With time running out and no timeouts, San Antonio did not have enough magic to complete its third comeback in a row, ending the game with a turnover on downs.
“[St. Louis] came out and ran and passed the ball a little bit,” Phillips said. “They did a great job today; they are a good team on the other side of us.”
Garbers completed 27 of his 41 passes for 143 yards and a touchdown. Lovett and McFarland Jr. combined 80 yards on 21 attempts and two touchdowns. On defense, San Antonio played clean, only getting one penalty and forcing two sacks and a fumble from McCarron.
The Brahmas will face the Michigan Panthers at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Alamodome.
