Welcome back USFL fans! There are just three weeks left in the regular season of the United States Football League, and we have watched quite a transformation in the games. For a while, we saw defensive battle after defensive battle at Protective Stadium in Birmingham, Alabama, but now the fireworks come out in almost every game as the offenses have taken center stage. We have a much better idea of what to expect on a weekly basis, although there are still some huge curveballs from time to time. We went 2-2 last week on our picks yet again and are even on the season, so let’s take a look at some of the point spreads, totals and player props for Week 8 in the USFL.
How to watch the USFL in Week 8
The USFL regular season will continue on Friday, June 3 and run through the next three weeks before the playoffs begin. The opening matchup this weekend will see the New Jersey Generals take on the Pittsburgh Maulers, with kickoff set for 8:00 pm ET on Friday.
- New Jersey Generals vs Pittsburgh Maulers, 8:00 pm ET, Friday, June 3, USA
- Birmingham Stallions vs New Orleans Breakers, 3:00 pm ET, Saturday, June 4, FOX
- Philadelphia Stars vs Michigan Panthers, Noon ET, Sunday, June 5, FOX
- Tampa Bay Bandits vs Houston Gamblers, 4:00 pm ET, Sunday, June 5, Peacock
New Jersey Generals -8.5 over Pittsburgh Maulers (-110)
Alongside the Maulers, the Michigan Panthers also only have one win. However, most of the Panthers’ games have been settled by less than a possession. On the other side, the Maulers have lost all six of their games by a touchdown or more. Vad Lee made a nice difference at quarterback in his first game for Pittsburgh, but he has looked lost the past two weeks. As for the Generals, they are going to the playoffs and looking to solidify their place in the USFL’s second season. They are solid on offense both on the ground and through the air, and they have the best run defense in the league. This one could easily be over by halftime and the Generals should cover the spread.
New Orleans Breakers vs Birmingham Stallions Over 45.5 (-110)
This is the easiest bet on the board in Week 8, as these teams are two of the top three offenses in the USFL with the Stallions averaging 27 points a game and the Breakers coming in with 24 points per contest. They both do have pretty solid defenses as both allow under 19 points per game, but at this point of the season both offenses are in a nice stride, and both are coming off wins. The Breakers are still fighting for a playoff spot, and you know the Stallions would love to finish off the regular season undefeated. Both quarterbacks are quite good and both teams run the ball well. Given the uptick in offense in the USFL over the past three weeks or so, I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised to see this game go comfortably over 50 points.
Michigan Panthers vs Philadelphia Stars Over 47.5 (-110)
The point totals in the USFL have gone up dramatically since the beginning of the season when most of them were in the 30s and the unders were still hitting. The offense has definitely kicked it up a notch in the last three weeks as teams are finally starting to get comfortable and working together better than they were early on when there wasn’t really any preseason. The Panthers have a new quarterback in Josh Love, who looked like he really had a grasp of the offense. With them, it is a matter of how injured his thumb might be. But the passing game looks in good hands and Reggie Corbin is killing it on the ground, and torched the Stars already once this season.
On the Philadelphia side, Case Cookus has improved each week since filling in for Bryan Scott, and Matt Colburn has given them a legitimate running option to dominate a game. Both defenses are far from spectacular as Philadelphia gives up over 25 points a game and Michigan nearly 21. The Panthers started out the season with a strong defense, so their points per game have been much higher in recent weeks. All of this adds up to seeing lots of points and I think this game could easily go into the 50s. We should see an up-and-down game here which results in the over hitting.
Bo Scarbrough over 67.5 rushing yards
He has topped 100 rushing yards in each of his two full games since coming to Birmingham, and Scarbrough almost seems like a video game player in this league. To me, he is probably the most talented player in the entire league. He is averaging 4.6 yards per carry and has completely taken control of the carries, as evidenced by his 27 rushes last week while the next closest running back had three. New Orleans is a pretty solid rush defense, but they do allow over 116 yards on the ground per game and allowed Reggie Corbin to break the century mark alone last week. Scarbrough should continue his tearing up USFL defenses in Week 8 for sure.
Reggie Corbin over 67.5 rushing yards
To me, this is another no brainer. Corbin has taken over the lead for most rushing yards in the USFL with his third 100-yard effort in Week 7 and he now has hit that mark in three of the last five games, while topping 67.5 in four of the last five. The Stars are the worst run defense in the USFL, allowing 163 yards on the ground per game. In fact, Corbin’s best game this season was in Week 4 against Philadelphia when he ran for 154 yards on 13 carries. He has a firm grip on the carries in this backfield and should have absolutely no trouble topping this prop in Week 8.
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