During his 10 games as the St. Louis Battlehawks’ quarterback, AJ McCarron has thrown 26 touchdown passes. Eleven of them have come in the fourth quarter.

McCarron’s two TD passes in the season-opening game on Saturday came in the fourth quarter. Each gave St. Louis the lead against the Michigan Panthers. But unlike the other Battlehawks’ games with two touchdown passes by the former Alabama All-American, St. Louis lost.

Kicker Jake Bates connected on a 64-yard field goal with three seconds remaining to lift the Panthers to an 18-16 victory in a United Football League game at Ford Field in Detroit.

“To put our team in position to win at the end was pretty cool and some remarkable plays being made,” St. Louis offensive coordinator Bruce Gradkowski said. “But I know we have a group that just shines in moments like that, so it’s cool to see.”

The Battlehawks’ propensity for fourth-quarter fireworks stems from several factors, Gradkowski said, including McCarron.

“I think it’s our quarterback,” Gradkowski said. “He’s able to step up and have the poise and composure in big moments. … Having a quarterback that has the poise and composure to handle fourth quarters, to handle comebacks like that is always cool to see.

“We don’t want to always live in those moments. We’d like to make it a little more entertaining early on in football games, but at the same time, too, to have a group that’s able to respond that way and finish games is pretty exciting.”

Against Michigan, McCarron threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jake Sutherland with 7:55 to play as St. Louis took a 9-7 lead and a 5-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Marcell Ateman with a 1-point conversion pass to Sutherland to put the Battlehawks in front 16-15 with 49 seconds remaining.

The touchdown pass to Ateman came on fourth down and was preceded by a 25-yard completion on fourth down to Ateman that moved St. Louis to the Panthers’ 4-yard line.

“For whatever reason, we’ve just had some games where we start slow and we have to pick it up as the game goes on,” McCarron said, “but I don’t ever really pay attention to it being fourth quarter and all of that. I really just keep playing. I like when the game comes down to the end. I like being in those moments, I don’t shy away from those moments, I should say. They’re fun to be a part of. …

“You can’t be scared to not succeed. I think in those moments, I’m going to play scared not to fail, and, hell, if it works out, that’s awesome and, hopefully, we win, and if it doesn’t, it doesn’t. I don’t know. I like being in those moments, to tell you the truth. I feel like I really play with no fear in those moments, and it’s either going to work or it’s not.”

The Battlehawks’ UFL schedule continues with their home opener against the Arlington Renegades at 7 p.m. CDT Saturday at the Dome at America’s Center in St. Louis. ABC will televise the game.

Arlington kicked off its campaign last week with a 27-14 loss to the Birmingham Stallions.

“We need to go out and play fast and whatever happens happens,” McCarron said. “Like, we can’t have a fear of losing the game and not succeeding. Listen, we’re playing a game for a living. It’s not life or death, and let’s go out and have fun. Play the game that we’ve played, a lot of us, for a very long time — myself since the age of 3, when I first put on a helmet and shoulder pads — so just go out and have fun and play the way we’re capable of playing — not wait till the damn fourth quarter — and let the chips fall where they fall.”

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.