The New Jersey Generals now have something in common with the Giants and Jets – finding a way to lose.
The Generals lost a heartbreaking 28-24 loss to the Birmingham Stallions on Saturday night at Protective Stadium in Birmingham, Alabama, the first game of the redesigned USFL.
Nick Rose, who missed two field goals early in the game, hit a 47-yarder with 1:54 left to give the Generals a 24-21 lead.
But that was enough time for Birmingham to put together a game-winning 59-yard drive that was capped by a 2-yard touchdown run by Stallions quarterback J’Mar Smith by 29 seconds.
“It feels good, I can’t stop smiling,” Smith Fox’s Brock Huard said after the game. “It’s a great feeling…to be out here is a great opportunity for the USFL. I’m just very grateful.”
It was a tough defeat for the generals who dominated on the ground. They rushed for an impressive 222 rushing yards. she ran the ball 24 times in a row in one place.
New Jersey fielded two quarterbacks. Luis Perez – who threw to Randy Satterfield for the first touchdown in the revived league’s history with a 2-yard score in the first quarter. – threw more and went 13-for-19 for 143 yards and two touchdown passes. De’Andre Johnson, the other quarterback, went 3-on-8 for 59 yards off the air but rushed for 98 yards and a score.
Opening weekend action for the USFL — which debuted its helmet cam on Saturday — continues Sunday with three games starting at 12 p.m. Eastern.