The Orlando Storm (4-0) visited Protective Stadium on Saturday afternoon against the Birmingham Stallions (1-4) in their first meeting of the season. Among the guests who were in attendance in Birmingham was former head coach Skip Holtz.
In the first quarter, both offenses got off to slow starts. Late in the first quarter, Orlando’s offense moved the ball to the three-yard line. On the next play, quarterback Jack Plummer threw a touchdown pass to Cam Camper. The Storm took a 7-0 lead heading into the second quarter. The drive took 13 plays for 80 yards.
In the second quarter, Orlando’s offense moved the ball to the one-yard line. They were unable to get into the endzone, and kicker Michael Lantz made a 19-yard field goal. The Storm led the Stallions 10-0 with 7:40 left, which took nine plays for 72 yards.
Late in the second quarter, Birmingham’s offense moved the ball to the 28-yard line. On fourth down, Birmingham kicker Anders Carlson missed a 46-yard field goal. Orlando’s offense quickly moved the ball to the 23-yard line, but was hit with a delay of game penalty, backing them up five yards. Kicker Michael Lantz made a 46-yard field goal, and the Storm led the Stallions 13-0 at halftime.
In the third quarter, Birmingham quarterback Matt Corral continued to struggle and was replaced by Michael Hiers. Despite the quarterback change, Birmingham continued to struggle on offense. On the other side, Orlando’s offense also struggled in the third quarter. Orlando remained ahead of Birmingham 13-0 heading into the fourth quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Orlando’s offense moved the ball to the 11-yard line. However, a false start penalty and Jack Plummer getting sacked by Izayah Green-May moved them back to the 27-yard line. Orlando kicker Michael Lantz made a 45-yard field goal. The Storm extended their lead to 16-0. Orlando controlled the rest of the game and went on to shut out the Stallions by the final score of 16-0.
Orlando’s offense had 292 yards (182 passing yards, 124 rushing yards), 16 first downs, 1 for 4 in the redzone, and the team was penalized seven times. Quarterback Jack Plummer completed 17 of 27 passes (63%) for 182 yards, one touchdown, and three carries for 42 yards. Running back Jashaun Corbin had 17 carries for 53 yards and two catches for 17 yards.
Wide receiver Elijhah Badger made three catches for 63 yards, while Cam Camper made four catches for 44 yards and one touchdown. Kicker Michael Lantz made 3 of 3 field goals, with a long of 46 yards. The defense made 49 tackles, three tackles for loss, two sacks, five pass breakups, and one forced fumble.
Birmingham’s offense had 166 yards (143 passing yards, 36 rushing yards), seven first downs, 0 for 1 in the redzone, and the team was penalized five times. Birmingham quarterback Matt Corral completed 13 of 20 passes (65%) for 83 yards and one carry for -1 yard. Backup quarterback Michael Hiers completed 7 of 15 passes (46.7%) for 60 yards and one carry for one yard.
Running back Anthony McFarland Jr. had eight carries for 30 yards. Wide receiver Justyn Ross made two catches for 41 yards, and Jaydon Mickens made four catches for 35 yards. The defense made 61 tackles, two tackles for loss, two sacks, and two pass breakups.
Next Friday, the Birmingham Stallions host the D.C. Defenders at 8 pm on Fox, while the Orlando Storm hosts the St. Louis Battlhawks on Saturday at 7 pm on ESPN.
