Hometown quarterback returns to Tampa a champion
TAMPA, Fla. - The hometown kid has returned a champion and a part of the USFL's new history.
The Birmingham Stallions staked claim to the new USFL Championship. The Stallions won a thriller 33-30 victory over the Philadelphia Stars on July 3. One of the heroes of the game was former Gaither High quarterback Alex McGough.
"It was incredible and a very good experience for me," McGough told Fox 13 Sports.
McGough's season ended the way it started - on top. McGough was the Stallions first draft pick, but nagging injuries cost him the starting job during the season. Then at the most critical time, with the title on the line, McGough relieved the Stallions starter and lead Birmingham to the championship with a fourth-quarter go-ahead touchdown with just over three minutes to play.
His head coach and former USF head coach Skip Holtz embraced McGough after the game, knowing just how tough his season had been.
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"He just said I'm proud of you, congratulations and you deserve it," said McGough. "I'm happy that you got to go in and do this. It came full circle."
It was a redemption for McGough who had thrown an interception on the first drive coming off the bench, which lead to a bit of a heated sideline discussion with Holtz who was mic'd up. McGough trying to argue his view about what happened.
McGough: "Coach, I'm not saying what you're saying is wrong. "I'm giving you my reasoning."
Holtz: "Ok, don't get frustrated. We're going to win this game."
"We're both so spirited," explained McGough. "I just want to win real bad and he wants to win so bad. He wants me to do this exact thing. Sometimes I get off of it a little bit and he knows that. That's why he just rid of the conversation. Just said we are going to win the game. That's what kind of focused me back in."
"He said that to me and I was like that don't matter to me anymore," McGough added. "Like that interception doesn't matter. What's going to happen is that we're going to get a stop (defense) and we are going to get the ball back. We're going to score a touchdown and that's exactly what happened."
After spending four seasons as an NFL backup with three different teams, winning the title is McGough's crowning moment. He admits there were a lot of challenges playing in an upstart league in essentially a "bubble city" in Birmingham, but it's been worth it.
"I would 100% go back and play with Birmingham, said McGough. "I think it's easier to say when we win the Championship. It was so much fun. Coach Holtz and all the guys on the team are unbelievable. I would 100% go back and play."