Bama Central

Bo Scarbrough Helps Lead Birmingham Stallions to USFL Championship

Former Alabama running back scored first touchdown in title game and went over 100 rushing yards in first half.

Christopher Walsh

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Bo Scarbrough did one of the things he does best on Sunday night: Help teams from Alabama win championships. 

The former Crimson Tide running back scored the first touchdown, and finished the first half with more than 100 rushing yards as the the Birmingham Stallions won the first USFL Championship Game since 1985. 

Birmingham Stallions running back Bo Scarbrough (25) runs the ball into the end zone for a touchdown against the Philadelphia Stars during the first quarter at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.
Scott Galvin-USA TODAY Sports

Birmingham defeated the Philadelphia Stars in Canton, Ohio, home to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, 33-30. 

Scarbrough, who lifted the championship trophy for his teammates during the postgame celebration at midfield, finished with 13 carries for 135 yards and one touchdown.

The touchdown was the first of the game, on a 36-yard carry. 

Thanks to a 70-yard carry that set up a field goal, Scarbrough finished the first half with with 122 rushing yards.

However, he wasn't much of a factor in the second half, when the Stallions had to come back and win after falling behind early in the fourth quarter. 

Birmingham retook the lead on a touchdown reception by Victory Bolden Jr. with 3:09 remaining, followed by an interception returned 40 yards for a touchdown by linebacker Scooby Wright. 

Bolden Jr., who had six catches for 64 yards and the one touchdown, was named the game MVP. 

After being added to the Stallions' roster as a free agent in Week 4 of the USFL regular season in Birmingham, Scarbrough rushed for 391 yards in seven games (six starts). He's was third in the USFL with 58.7 rushing yards per game on 4.2 yards per attempt.

Scarbrough was on the Crimson Tide from 2014-17, and tallied 1,512 rushing yards on 267 carries and 20 career touchdowns. 

Although his biggest production was near the end of the 2016 season, which included 180 rushing yards on 19 carries against Washington, his Crimson Tide title rings came in 2015 and 2017.

Both starting quarterbacks left the game due to an injury, with Philadelphia's Case Cookus carted off in the fourth quarter with an apparent knee injury. 

Former Crimson Tide cornerback Bradley Sylve played for the Stars this season, but was ruled out of the title game due to an injury.

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Christopher Walsh
CHRISTOPHER WALSH

Christopher Walsh is the founder and publisher of BamaCentral, which first published in 2018. He's covered the Crimson Tide since 2004, and is the author of 26 books including Decade of Dominance, 100 Things Crimson Tide Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die, Nick Saban vs. College Football, and Bama Dynasty: The Crimson Tide's Road to College Football Immortality. He's an eight-time honoree of Football Writers Association of America awards and three-time winner of the Herby Kirby Memorial Award, the Alabama Sports Writers Association’s highest writing honor for story of the year. In 2022, he was named one of the 50 Legends of the ASWA. Previous beats include the Green Bay Packers, Arizona Cardinals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, along with Major League Baseball’s Arizona Diamondbacks. Originally from Minnesota and a graduate of the University of New Hampshire, he currently resides in Tuscaloosa.

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