After 10 weeks of action, it all comes down to two weeks of playoff games to determine the United States Football League champion. It will be the first champion crowned since the 1985 season of the original incarnation of the USFL.
The New Orleans Breakers will be the No. 2 seed in the South Division, will take on the Birmingham Stallions, which earned the No. 1 seed by virtue of its 9-1 record. In the North Division, top-seeded New Jersey Generals will face the No. 2 seed Philadelphia Stars.
The last USFL Championship game was held on July 14, 1985. A crowd of 49,263 fans saw the Baltimore Stars defeat the Oakland Invaders 28-24 and capture their second consecutive championship.
The playoffs, which will be held at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio, begin with the semifinals on Saturday, June 25.
Stars vs. Generals: 3 p.m. ET on FOX.
Breakers vs. Stallions: 8 p.m. ET on NBC.
The winners will then play in the USFL Championship Game on Sunday, July 3 at 7:30 p.m. ET on FOX.
North Division
No. 1 New Jersey Generals (9-1) vs. No. 2 Philadelphia Stars (6-4)
Current streak: Generals, W9; Stars, L1.
Head-to-head: The Generals beat the Stars twice, 24-16 in Week 3 and 26-23 in Week 10.
Points for/against: Generals, 232-182; Stars, 262-243.
Leading passer: Generals, Luis Perez (1,200 yards on 71.7% completions, nine touchdowns, one interception); Stars, Case Cookus (1,334 yards on 62.5%, 12 TDs, five INTs).
Leading rusher: Generals, Trey Williams (579 yards, 4.9 yards per carry, two TDs); Stars, Matthew Colburn (457 yards, 4.5 YPC, eight TDs).
Leading receiver: Generals, KaVontae Turpin (540 yards, 12.3 yards per reception, four TDs); Stars, Bug Howard (371 yards, 12.4 YPR, four TDs).
Leading tackler: Generals, Dravon Askew-Henry, S (39 tackles, two INTs); Stars, Jordan Moore, LB (60 tackles, four tackles for loss, two sacks).
Other notables: Turpin is not only a dangerous receiver but also difficult to corral on kick returns. He leads the league in punt return average (15.3) and is the only player to return one for a touchdown this season. … Darius Victor (nine) and Colburn (eight) have scored the most rushing touchdowns in the league. … Cookus has compiled his passing numbers in only six starts. He started the season as Philly's backup behind Bryan Scott, taking over the job after Scott was injured. … Philly DB Channing Stribling leads the league in interceptions (seven).
South Division
No. 1 Birmingham Stallions (9-1) vs. No. 2 New Orleans Breakers (6-4)
Current streak: Stallions, W1; Breakers, L1.
Head-to-head: The Stallions swept the season series with the Breakers, winning 22-13 in Week 3 and 10-9 in Week 8.
Points for/against: Stallions, 234-169; Breakers, 196-164.
Leading passer: Stallions, J'Mar Smith (1,573 yards on 54.8% completions, 10 TDs, six INTs); Breakers, Kyle Sloter (1,798 yards on 57.7% completions, nine TDs, 11 INTs).
Leading rusher: Stallions, CJ Marable (401 yards, 3.9 YPC, five TDs); Breakers, Jordan Ellis (596 yards, 4.0 YPC, four TDs).
Leading receiver: Stallions, Marlon Williams (474 yards, 14.8 YPR, four TDs); Breakers, Jonathan Adams (406 yards, 13.1 YPR, three TDs).
Leading tackler: Stallions, DeMarquis Gates, LB (62 total tackles, 11 TFL, 6.5 sacks); Breakers, Vontae Diggs, LB (75 total tackles, seven TFL, two sacks).
Other notables: Sloter has shown a knack for making clutch plays and his passing total is tops in the league, but his 11 interceptions are also the second-most in the league. … Marable's rushing numbers have taken a hit since the Stallions signed Bo Scarbrough midseason. Scarbrough has rushed for 352 yards in six games (five starts). … Gates leads the league in tackles for loss, with 11.
Tickets for the USFL playoffs and championship games are on sale at United States Football League (USFL) (hofvillage.com).
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