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The UFL opens the season Saturday with the champions of the 2 leagues that merged to form it. The Birmingham Stallions, who are coming off back-to-back USFL championships, are on the road facing the Arlington Renegades, who won the XFL championship last year. Kickoff from Choctaw Stadium is at 1 p.m. ET (FOX). Let’s analyze FanDuel Sportsbook’s lines around the Stallions vs. Renegades odds and make our expert football picks and predictions.
The Stallions went 21-3 in 2 seasons and postseasons. They have a new QB in Matt Corrall, who spent 2 seasons in the NFL. They also added WR Amari Rodgers, who spent 3 seasons in the NFL as a return specialist for the Green Bay Packers.
The Renegades went 4-6 in the regular season but got hot in the playoffs and won the championship. They added former NFL 1st-round pick DE Vic Beasley to their defense. He last played in the NFL in 2020 but played well last season for the Vegas Vipers in the XFL.
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Stallions at Renegades odds
Provided by FanDuel Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 1 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Stallions -200 (bet $200 to win $100) | Renegades +170 (bet $100 to win $170)
- Against the spread (ATS): Stallions -3.5 (-110) | Renegades +3.5 (-110)
- Over/Under (O/U): 41.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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Stallions at Renegades key injuries
Stallions
- LB DeMarquis Gates (personal) out
Renegades
- C Cameron Hunt (hand) probable
- DL DaVonte Lambert (ankle) probable
Stallions at Renegades picks and predictions
Prediction
Stallions 20, Renegades 16
Moneyline
With the inaugural game in a new league with teams from 2 previous leagues, this is a tough one to pick.
However, you have to like Birmingham (-200), as they dominated the USFL 2 consecutive seasons with 2 different starting quarterbacks, especially going against a team that had a losing record before the postseason.
As the Stallions have been so good for so long, I won’t open the season picking an outright underdog to beat them, but -200 odds aren’t any good to wager.
PASS.
Against the spread
Thus far, there are no good trends to go by.
However, if you look at Birmingham’s 2023, of their 10 total wins between the regular season and postseason, 9 were by at least 4 points.
With little else to go by in a new league, I’m leaning on the favorite.
BET STALLIONS -3.5 (-110).
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Over/Under
Birmingham’s season opener last season finished with 37 points, and the championship had 40 points. They only had 3 total games not reach at least 42 total points.
Arlington scored more than 18 points only twice in the regular season last year in the XFL but scored 26 and 35 in the semifinals and championship games.
In a new league with no preseason, expect things to start slowly.
BET UNDER 41.5 (-110).
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For more sports betting picks and tips, check out SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW.
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