Is the wrong team favored in Saturday night’s Panthers vs. Brahmas matchup at 7:00 p.m. ET? Or will the Panthers improve to 3-1 on the UFL season?
Panthers vs. Brahmas Event Information
Michigan Panthers (-1.5) at San Antonio Brahmas (+1.5); o/u 42.5
7:00 p.m. ET, Saturday, April 20, 2024
The Alamodome, San Antonio, TX
TV: FOX
Michigan kicker Bates’ star continues to grow in UFL
Michigan Panthers kicker Jake Bates has become a breakout star. He has made field goals of 62 yards or more through Week 3. He’s perfect (5 of 5) on the season and the rest of the league’s place kickers are also performing very well.
Seven kickers have combined to make 39 of 43 (90.1%) field goals. Furthermoee, they went 18 for 18 through the first 11 games this season. DC Defenders kicker Matt McCrane has made three field goals of 50 yards or more with a long of 58, followed by the Memphis Showboats’ Matt Coghlin, who has made two field goals of 50 yards or more with a long of 57.
Brahmas suffer first loss of UFL season
The Brahmas succumbed to a dramatic comeback by the Battlehawks — their first loss of the year. QB Chase Garbers finished with just 158 passing yards — after throwing for 287 yards in Week 2 — against a stingy St. Louis defense.
“We have to quit getting into situations where we have to come from behind like that,” head coach Wade Phillips said. Still, Phillips took heart in having an opportunity to win in the final moments and credited his team for continuing to seek a victory until the game ended.
Panthers vs. Brahmas Prediction
Take Michigan. As previously mentioned, the Panthers have the ultimate late-game weapon in Bates. If they’re tied or trailing by a point or two, all they need to do is get into Bates’ range and they have a chance to win. That’s how they buried St. Louis in Week 1 despite the Battlehawks believing they had capped off a late-game comeback to beat the Panthers at Ford Field. Bates trotted out to the field and connected on a 64-yarder to lift Michigan to victory. He’s been incredible ever since.
San Antonio also benefited from an early-season schedule that featured a D.C. Defenders team that isn’t as good as it was a year ago in the XFL, as well as a Memphis Showboats team that is one of the weaker squads in the UFL. The Brahmas needed a dramatic fourth quarter comeback to secure victory in that Memphis game too, so they’re ripe for the taking in my eyes.
Panthers vs. Brahmas Week 4 UFL Prediction: MICHIGAN PANTHERS -1.5
