Winner Advances to USFL Championship Game on NBC and Peacock Next Saturday, July 1, at 8 p.m. ET
STAMFORD, Conn. – June 21, 2023 – The Pittsburgh Maulers host the Michigan Panthers in the USFL North Division Championship with a trip to the USFL Championship Game on the line this Saturday at 8 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock from Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio.
The winner of Saturday’s Panthers-Maulers playoff game will face the winner of Sunday’s USFL South Division Championship between the defending USFL champion Birmingham Stallions and the New Orleans Breakers.
The Maulers beat the New Jersey Generals, 26-6, in a “win-and-in” game last week to secure the franchise’s first playoff appearance and division title. Quarterback Troy Williams threw for 154 yards and a touchdown while wide receiver Isiah Hennie, who earned 2023 All-USFL Team honors as punt returner after leading the USFL in punt return yards (297), caught six passes for 48 yards and a score in the win. Head coach Ray Horton, who won Super Bowl XXVII as a player with the Dallas Cowboys and Super Bowls XL and XLIII as a secondary coach with the Pittsburgh Steelers, aims to add a USFL Championship.
The Panthers narrowly beat the Philadelphia Stars, 23-20, last week to clinch the second and final North Division playoff spot. Quarterback E.J. Perry threw for 121 yards and scored the go-ahead touchdown run and two-point conversion pass early in the fourth quarter to put the Panthers on top, sealing the team’s trip to the USFL playoffs. Super Bowl LIV-winning defensive end Breeland Speaks made the All-USFL Defense Team and led the USFL in sacks this season (9).
NBC Sports’ Jac Collinsworth (play-by-play), former Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett (analyst), and Zora Stephenson (sideline reporter) will call the Panthers-Maulers matchup on NBC and Peacock.
NBC Sports and FOX Sports, the USFL’s official media partners, will combine to present all 43 games live during the 2023 season. 2023 features 29 games on the NBC and FOX broadcast networks, which is a six-game increase from the league’s inaugural season. NBC Sports will present 18 games across NBC and Peacock (11) and USA Network and Peacock (7). FOX Sports will carry 25 games split between FOX (18) and FS1 (7). Click here for a comprehensive season schedule.
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