Head Coach Skip Holtz and Linebacker Kyahva Tezino met with the media via Zoom on Thursday afternoon to discuss the Stallions' Week 2 matchup against the Michigan Panthers on Friday night in Detroit. The Stallions look to bounce back from their Week 1 loss to the D.C. Defenders as they continue their two-game road trip to begin the 2025 campaign.
"You know it hasn't even really been a week since we last played," said Coach Skip Holtz in his opening remark. "We were all disappointed in our performance in the opening game. Defensively, I thought we played well but not great. We tried to keep the ball in front of us and learned more about our team and what our guys can do. On offense, this was probably our worst performance since we have been here in the past three seasons. We put up statistics from the past three seasons to show the players what we have accomplished, and the game on Sunday was the worst. I did think that Alex (McGough) did some good things, but we sometimes tried to make too much happen, which led to negative results. We have to calm down and play. The response from the team was exactly what I wanted; it was one of frustration, one of wanting to get things corrected, and our sense of urgency at practice has been great all week. We have, far and away, had our best week of practice, and what happened last week was a wake-up call for us. We can't just roll out the ball and beat anybody; even last year, we won multiple one-score games. Even as poorly as we played on offense last week, we had a chance to win with under a minute to play. We couldn't get it done; I don't mind losing a game as long as we can learn and grow from it."
Losing is something that Holtz and the Stallions are strangers to. Entering the season at a 32-4 record since 2022, Sunday's loss marks the first time the Stallions have been under .500 since the franchise's rebirth nearly four years ago. "I think the league has just gotten better and better," said Holtz. "I also think that our team is more talented from top to bottom than ever. However, I also think that about everyone else. Alex hasn't been in the league in two years. He has been playing wide receiver, and I think he did some good things; he played solid for the first 30 plays or so. Then I thought maybe that we all started pressing just a hair. We just tried to make too much happen, and you can't go one on 11 and expect good things to happen. Alex and our entire team have watched the film; we all see where we need to and what we need to get better at, and I, as a coach, decided to go with Alex because I thought he did what was necessary during training camp to win the job. I don't think four quarters of football were enough to take him out. I still believe in Alex, and I believe in Matt (Corral), too. We have two excellent quarterbacks, and we are just going to see how this thing will play out and see if Alex can get back comfortable playing quarterback and give us a chance to win, and if not, it will be Matt's turn."
Looking forward to this week's opponent in Michigan, Coach Holtz knows how much is on the line regarding standings in the USFL Conference and what problems Panthers' quarterback Bryce Perkins brings. "He (Bryce Perkins) has a lot of talent," said Holtz. "He's got those big-play capabilities and great vision, and he can hurt your defense in various ways. We have to corral him the best we can. That's what we must do; we must make sure we play smart football and not expose ourselves to one-on-one matchups with him on the open field. We will have to do a great job of pursuing the football and gang tackling. If someone misses a tackle, we need to make sure that we have someone behind them to make sure that the play is made."
Coach Holtz continued his media appearance by addressing Jace Sternberger's status. "You learn valuable lessons every year with your team, and when we started training camp, I thought (La'Michael) Pettway was playing extremely well, JT (Jordan Thomas) has been doing some great things, and even Jace has been playing well and continues to get better. As we got closer and closer to Game 1, we felt like we were going to roll with all three of them because they all were good enough to play. Then, Pettway gets injured, and I thought Jace stepped up. As a coaching staff, we know what he can do, and Jace knows what he can do. On game day, he was a completely different player than he was all of camp. Just that competitive nature, the look in his eyes, the attitude, leadership, and Jace will play a stronger role in our offense as the season progresses."
Coach Holtz mentioned that a significant point of emphasis in practice this week was to create more efficiency in the traditional run game. "I do not think we ran the ball well last week," said Holtz. "We only got to the safety clean once during the game for a gain of about 12 yards. If you look at the overall game statistics, we only averaged about three yards per carry. I probably got a little too "pass-happy" early in the game, and having a consistent and dominant run game is something that we are going to have to establish. One of the keys to our success is that we have been one of the leading rushing teams in the league for the last couple of seasons. I do not mean that solely being on Alex's feet. When he did scramble on Sunday, I thought that was huge for us, but we have to do a better job of establishing a run game that gets our running backs going downhill."
The new rules of the UFL this season and how they affect the league was prevalent in Week 1 of the season. "Yeah, I love the coach's challenge; they had a version of it last year," said Holtz. "Early in the game, you would hesitate to challenge it based on the situation, and now it feels like you get that second challenge if you get it right the first time. I didn't feel like we had a lot of calls worthy of a challenge in that game on Sunday, but I do like the new challenge rule."
"There are a lot of new players in new roles. We have four new faces on the offensive line, a new face at quarterback, a few new faces at wide receiver, and a few new faces at defensive end, and we as a team just have to keep coming together and build a football team. I will go back and say what I said at the beginning of the press conference. This loss might have been good for us. We have a new sense of urgency. We must change those things because we are going to get everyone's best game all season."
Outside linebacker Kyahva Tezino took to the mic to begin speaking to the media after the conclusion of Coach Holtz's press conference and was asked about the team's reaction to the game last week. "We have reacted and learned from the loss well," said Tezino. "As a guy who has been here for multiple seasons, I and some of the other older guys have come together and made it a major point of emphasis this week to get everyone on the same page of what a winning culture and winning mentality are. We have had a great week of practice; I feel like we are well prepared; we have a great game plan, and I do think that at some point and time, you have to get the nerves and butterflies out and play. As Coach Holtz said, that game was an eye-opener for us, but like I said postgame, I truly believe that we will be fine moving forward."
Michigan has been a familiar face for the Stallions. Friday's pairing will be the sixth time the two teams have met since 2022, including three games in which the two squads faced off against each other last season. "We know what type of dynamic skill set Bryce Perkins brings to the table, and we just need to be focused on playing our brand of football. We can't make too much of just one player and forget about the rest of their talent and skill on offense. We beat those guys three times last year, so we need to stick to that same style of play against Michigan. If we do that, then we should be fine. We know how great of a player Perkins is, but we need to go play lights out and have that 1-0 mentality."
Friday night games in primetime on FOX are new to the league this season; Tezino was asked about what that means to him and when he last played on a Friday. "The last time I think I played on a Friday was definitely in high school, but I think the first year of the USFL in 2022, I think we played on a Friday night in Birmingham. The game on Friday night will be fun; I think it gives our team a chance to get that bad taste out of our mouths extremely quickly. I'm super excited about it. I like playing on different days of the week, and I think it will be a cool experience for us. Also, it allows me to watch a few other games from around the league."
Tezino concluded his media availability by touching on his leadership skills and what that means for his and the team's success. "People can look at leadership in various ways; it started when I began my tenure with the Stallions. I came in and did my job, played my role, and leadership came naturally to me. That's how I want to carry myself; I think my teammates look towards it and gravitate towards it. It's also the nature of playing linebacker; I'll take full responsibility for how the defense performs. Coming off a loss, I knew that my leadership would be needed and that I needed to step up for us to get ready for this game against Michigan. I am super confident in our team, and I love being a leader.”