Tampa Bay Bandits' 2022 USFL schedule: Three things to know
TAMPA, Fla. - The Bandits, coached by Todd Haley, open their season against the Pittsburgh Maulers as part of the final game of a tripleheader on Sunday, April 17, at Protective Stadium.
Tickets for all USFL regular-season games drop at 7 p.m. ET Monday and can be purchased directly at theUSFL.com. Adult general admission tickets are $10, and each ticketed adult can receive up to three free tickets for children under the age of 15.
Here's a look at Tampa Bay's 10 regular-season games, which will be played in Birmingham, Alabama, for the inaugural season:
Week 1: at Pittsburgh Maulers, 8 p.m. ET April 17
Week 2: vs. New Orleans Breakers, 3 p.m. ET April 24
Week 3 (April 30-May 1): at Houston Gamblers
Week 4 (May 6-8): at Birmingham Stallions
Week 5 (May 13-15): vs. Michigan Panthers
Week 6 (May 21-22): at Philadelphia Stars
Week 7 (May 28-29): vs. New Jersey Generals
Week 8 (June 3-5): vs. Houston Gamblers
Week 9 (June 11-12): at New Orleans Breakers
Week 10 (June 18-19): vs. Birmingham Stallions
Here are three things you need to know about Tampa Bay's schedule.
1. The Bandits-Panthers matchup in Week 5 will be a meeting between Jeff Fisher (Panthers) and Todd Haley (Bandits), who last faced each other as NFL head coaches for the Tennessee Titans and Kansas City Chiefs, respectively. Haley’s Chiefs defeated Fisher’s Titans 34-14 on Dec. 26, 2010, at Arrowhead Stadium.
2. Tampa Bay's games against the Gamblers in Week 3 and Week 8 will feature the first running back selected in the USFL Draft (B.J. Emmons of the Bandits) against the first inside linebacker chosen (Beniquez Brown of the Gamblers).
3. Haley and Maulers coach Kirby Wilson were members of Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin’s 2012 coaching staff, Haley as the offensive coordinator and Wilson as running backs coach. The two are more than a little familiar with each other, and their Week 1 meeting will be the first chance either of them has to face the other as a head coach.
RJ Young's game to watch: Bandits vs. Panthers
When Shea Patterson decided to transfer to Michigan from Ole Miss, some Rebels fan believed he was running from a quarterback derby in 2018.
Patterson suffered an injury in the middle of the 2017 season, and Jordan Ta’amu — then a transfer from the New Mexico Military Institute — finished the season with slightly better numbers than Patterson as the offense seemed to find a rhythm.
Since then, Patterson and Ta’amu were invited to training camp with the Chiefs as recently as 2020.
Fast-forward to 2022, and Patterson (Panthers) and Ta’amu (Bandits) were the No. 1 and No. 2 overall picks in the USFL Draft, respectively. This will be their first opportunity to play against each other in meaningful competition.