GAME RECAP: Louisville Kings Power Past 47-25 Road Win Over Dallas Renegades

FRISCO, Texas — The Louisville Kings turned four Dallas turnovers into 14 points and rode a punishing ground game led by Ian Wheeler’s four rushing touchdowns to a commanding 47-25 victory over the Dallas Renegades Sunday afternoon at Toyota Stadium.

Wheeler was unstoppable, punching in scores from 1, 7, 12 and 2 yards as part of Louisville’s 147-yard rushing attack. Quarterback Chandler Rogers managed the game efficiently with 150 passing yards and zero turnovers, while kicker Tanner Brown added a pair of field goals (38 and 19 yards) and went 5-for-6 on extra points. The Kings (now 2-3) piled up 20 first downs and controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball.

The story of the game, though, was the Louisville defense. Dallas quarterback Austin Reed was intercepted four times — two of them returned for touchdowns. Bryce Hall picked off Reed at the Louisville 17 and raced 83 yards for a score in the second quarter, and Antonio Grier Jr. returned another interception 47 yards for six in the fourth. Keaton Ellis also came up with a crucial interception on a two-point conversion attempt. The Renegades (now 3-3) finished with 365 total yards but couldn’t overcome the four turnovers.

Dallas led in time of possession (35:26 to 24:34) and generated more total yards, with Reed throwing for 195 yards and a touchdown. Running back Ellis Merriweather powered for 55 yards and two one-yard touchdown runs, while tight end Curtis Hodges hauled in a 25-yard scoring strike and wide receiver Emmanuel Butler added a 27-yard touchdown reception from Greg Ward late in the fourth. But the turnovers proved fatal.

Louisville jumped out to a 3-0 lead on Brown’s 38-yard field goal and never looked back. The second quarter was all Kings: Hall’s pick-six made it 10-0, Wheeler’s one-yard plunge pushed it to 16-0, and Brown’s 19-yard field goal sent Louisville into halftime up 19-7 after Merriweather’s first touchdown run for Dallas.

The third quarter saw Dallas cut the lead to 19-13 on Hodges’ touchdown catch (two-point try failed), but Wheeler answered with a seven-yard touchdown run to make it 26-13. In the fourth, Wheeler added his third and fourth scores, sandwiching Grier’s pick-six. Dallas added two late touchdowns but could never get closer than 22 points after the Kings’ defensive stands.

Louisville’s opportunistic defense and Wheeler’s explosiveness proved too much for a Dallas team that otherwise moved the ball well. The Renegades will look to clean up the turnover issues, while the Kings showed they can win ugly on the road and stay alive in the playoff picture.