Battlehawks dethroned XFL champs, set attendance records in UFL home opener

St. Louis Battlehawks head coach Anthony Becht asked all week for 40,000 fans to pack the “Battledome” for the UFL home opener.

And he got it.

The Battlehawks established a new modern spring football attendance record on Saturday, April 6, as they defeated the XFL champion Arlington Renegades 27-24 in front of 40,317 fans. The previous mark of 38,310 was set in last year’s home opener against Renegades on March 12, 2023.

“I love St. Louis. I love this fan base,” said Becht, who used to play in the NFL for five teams including the St. Louis Rams. “I love this fan base. To come out here with a soccer game, a Cardinals game today is awesome.”

The Battlehawks weren’t the only game in town. On a day dubbed the sports equinox, 102,090 sports fans were in downtown St. Louis to watch their teams. The St. Louis Cardinals defeated the Miami Marlins 3-1 in front of a crowd of 39,273 in the afternoon and St. Louis City SC played a 0-0 draw with FC Dallas in front of a sold-out crowd of 22,500 as the Battlehawks were playing.

Between the 8,791 that showed up to the Memphis Showboats’ home opener and 7,475 showing up to the Michigan Panthers’ second home game of the season, it’s clear that the Battlehawks have an environment that is unique to the rest of the UFL.

“I’m not gonna lie, the first half, we couldn’t even hear the plays,” said defensive end Pita Taumoepenu, who had two sacks to lead the defense. “It was so loud. So shoutout to the fans out there. Y’all made it possible for us to win.”

The Battlehawks were on the wrong end of a game-winning field goal last week at Michigan. This week it was Andre Szmyt’s turn to play the hero, as he drilled a 22-yard game-winning field goal as time expired.

“I treat every kick the same,” Szmyt said. “I was going out there and trusting the process.

Szmyt’s kick was set up by running back Mateo Durant breaking through with a 41-yard run to get into range. He finished the game with 104 yards and a touchdown in 14 carries. 50 of his yards came from the final drive.

“Our run game wasn’t fantastic last week,” Becht said. “That was a big emphasis this week trying to get it off.

“When you want to win games at the end, I just felt like the guys really hunkered down and got the job done in the fourth quarter.”

Battlehawks quarterback AJ McCarron completed 19-of-29 passes for 248 yards and two touchdowns. Both scores went to wide receiver Marcell Ateman, who has emerged as his top target this season.

Ateman caught four passes for 114 yards including a 53-yard touchdown reception that gave St. Louis a 21-17 lead entering the fourth quarter.

“We called it on the sidelines,” Ateman said. “In the first half, we ran a lot of those out routes and they were jumping on them. So we just said let's dial it up and see what we can do with it.”

The two go as far back as 2018 when the Oakland Raiders drafted Ateman in the seventh round out of Oklahoma State and acquired McCarron to back up Derek Carr.

“We would tear apart our starting defense when we were on scout team,” McCarron said. “By doing that, [Ateman] got his shot at being on the active roster that year and played well.”

Ateman played in 18 games over two seasons in his four-year career with the Raiders, totaling 20 receptions for 270 yards and one touchdown. He also posed 19 catches for 259 yards last year with the Battlehawks.

“We’ve been doing it for a long time,” McCarron said. “Two older guys still have a lot of tread on the tires.”

Renegades quarterback Luis Perez completed 21-of-29 passes for 233 yards and a touchdown to tight end Sal Cannella.

The Renegades offense was held to 71 rushing yards but De’Veon Smith and Lindsey Scott Jr. each ran into the end zone for a touchdown.

Renegades kicker Taylor Russolino made a 52-yard field goal to cut the Battlehawks lead at 14-11 at halftime but missed a 46-yarder late in the fourth quarter which would’ve given them a 27-24 lead instead of leading to St. Louis’ game-winning drive.

With the win, the Battlehawks (1-1) trail the 2-0 San Antonio Brahmas and are tied with the DC Defenders (1-1) for second place in the XFL Conference. The Renegades start the season 0-2.

The Battlehawks travel to take on the Brahmas on Sunday, April 14, in San Antonio.