The Birmingham Stallions (9-0) continued their perfect season with an exciting 35-28 victory over the Houston Roughnecks (1-7) on Saturday night at Protective Stadium.

Quarterback Duel
It was an offensive shootout between Birmingham’s Adrian Martinez and Houston’s Reid Sinnett/Nolan Henderson. Martinez threw for 173 yards, 3 TDs and 1 INT while also rushing for 44 yards and 2 scores.

For the Roughnecks, Henderson had a rushing TD while Sinnett threw for a late TD to TE Braedon Bowman to make it a 7-point game in the fourth quarter.

Stallions Strike First
Birmingham wasted no time, scoring on their opening two possessions on TD passes from Martinez to Deon Cain and Binjimen Victor to take an early 12-0 lead.

Houston’s Thompson Shines
But the Roughnecks responded behind RB Mark Thompson, who rushed for scores of 37 and 3 yards. Thompson was Houston’s top offensive weapon on the night.

Defensive Playmakers
The defenses made plays too with Donald Rutledge Jr. intercepting a pass for Houston and DeMarquis Gates recording a sack and tackle for loss for Birmingham.

Stallions Pull Away Late
After Houston cut it to 28-20 in the third quarter, Martinez broke off an 8-yard TD run to extend the Stallions’ lead back to 15. His 3 total TDs proved to be just enough.

Stat Leaders
In addition to his 3 TDs, Martinez added 44 rushing yards on 11 carries. RB Ricky Person Jr. led Birmingham’s ground attack with 63 yards.

Receiver Deon Cain had 4 catches for 29 yards and the opening TD for the Stallions.

For the Roughnecks, Thompson had the 2 rushing scores while Rutledge led the defense with 8 tackles and the interception.

Up Next
Birmingham (9-0) will put their unbeaten record on the line next Saturday when they travel to face the San Antonio Brahmas (6-2) at 2pm CT on ABC.

Houston (1-7) returns home to host the Michigan Panthers (6-2) next Sunday at 1:30pm CT on FOX from Rice Stadium.