The Philadelphia Stars (1-2) made their home debut at Ford Field on Sunday afternoon against the Pittsburgh Maulers (1-2) in a Keystone State battle. The Stars were looking to get back on the winning track after last week’s loss to Michigan. However, the struggles continued on Sunday.
Philadelphia got the ball to start the game. They went on a six-play drive for 47 yards to get on the board. Quarterback Case Cookus threw a 24-yard touchdown pass to Corey Coleman for a 7-0 lead with 12:07. That was the only touchdown scored in the game.
Philadelphia’s defense allowed 108 yards in the first half. Pittsburgh’s points came on four field goals by Chris Blewitt. His longest field goal went for 50 yards. Late in the second quarter, Philadelphia kicker Luis Aguilar made a 23-yard field goal, making it 12-10 Pittsburgh at halftime. Philadelphia’s offense had 75 yards in the first half.
Case Cookus in the first half completed 7 of 10 passes (70%) for 74 yards and one touchdown, while wide receiver Corey Coleman had three catches for 38 yards and one touchdown.
The running game was a non-factor as Matt Colburn II and Dexter Williams combined with eight carries for eight yards. Outside of the first drive, the Stars’ offense could not protect Cookus for the third straight game. Pittsburgh sacked Cookus three times.
Pittsburgh got the ball to start the third quarter. On their first drive, Pittsburgh, with the help of two Stars penalties extended their lead to 15-10 on a 35-yard field by Chris Blewitt. The Stars’ offense could not move the ball and turnovers were costly for Philadelphia in the second half.
Pittsburgh’s defense bulldozed the Stars’ offense as Olive Sagapolu hit Cookus, causing him to lose the football and the Maulers recovered. Pittsburgh capitalized on the turnover when quarterback Troy Williams threw an eight-yard touchdown pass to Bailey Gaither. However, kicker Chris Blewitt missed the extra point and it was now 21-10 with 1:04 left. The Stars trailed the Maulers 21-10 after three quarters.
In the fourth quarter, Philadelphia went on an eight-play drive for 34 yards before Luis Aguilar made a 48-yard field goal. It was now 21-13 with 11:48 left.
Philadelphia’s defense came up big on the next play when Adam Rodriguez stripped the ball out of C.J. Turner’s hands and the Stars recovered. Unfortunately, they gave it right back when Case Cookus’s pass intended for Chris Rowland was intercepted by Reuben Foster.
Philadelphia had one more shot late in the fourth quarter. They needed a touchdown plus a two-point conversion. However, Case Cookus’s passes intended for Corey Coleman went incomplete. Coleman took an offensive pass interference penalty to prevent another interception. The Stars lost their second straight game by the final score of 21-13.
Philadelphia must address the elephant in the room. Their offensive line. They have not done a great job protecting Cookus this season. It does not matter who lines up at center for Philadelphia. If they don’t have the protection, no one will succeed.
Philadelphia needs to put in new players on offense and see what they can do. They have the talent to be a better football team but if the offensive line can’t protect the quarterback, nothing will go their way.
Now, Cookus does not get a pass here too. He has made some bad decisions with the ball this year. Cookus completed 23 of 36 passes (63.9%) for 238 yards, one touchdown, two interceptions, five carries for zero yards, and one lost fumble. He is trying to make plays but when his receivers don’t come back for the ball, you’ve got to give it everything you’ve got.
Philadelphia’s receivers need to learn to come back to the football. Corey Coleman led the receivers with eight catches for 86 yards and one touchdown. The receivers combined with 23 catches. Those numbers can go up if they would just come back for the football.
Running backs Matt Colburn II and Dexter Williams finished the game combining with 12 carries for 20 yards, and three catches for 11 yards.
Philadelphia’s defense allowed 202 yards, with 72 tackles, five tackles for loss, five sacks, three pass breakups, and one forced fumble. In three games, Philadelphia is giving up 271 yards per game, 125.3 rushing yards per game, 22.7 points per game, five sacks, and three interceptions, ranking them fifth in the league. They need to put pressure on the quarterback and not give up the big plays.
For Pittsburgh, quarterback Troy Williams completed 10 of 18 passes (55.6%) for 96 yards, and one touchdown. In addition, Williams led the rushers with seven carries for 65 yards, while running back Garrett Groshek had 15 carries for 40 yards.
Fullback Mason Stokke led the receivers with two catches for 35 yards, while Bailey Gaither had four catches for 30 yards and one touchdown. Pittsburgh’s defense allowed 235 yards, with 64 tackles, five tackles for loss, three sacks, two interceptions, four pass breakups, and one forced fumble.
Next Saturday, the Philadelphia Stars host the Houston Gamblers at 1 pm on FOX, while the Pittsburgh Maulers host the Birmingham Stallions on Sunday at 6:30 pm on FS1. Tickets for both games are available on StubHub and Viagogo.
