The first five weeks of this AFL season have come and gone while providing us
with exciting, over the wall action. The Sharks and Shock are both 5-0 and stand
as the only undefeated teams left, while the once-proud Orlando Predators are
the League's lone winless team at 0-4. In this edition, I will release my
thoughts and opinions from the first quarter of the season and give some
thoughts on what we might see for the next month of the season for the seven
teams in the American Conference.
American Conference
The Good
1) Jacksonville Sharks (5-0) - The Sharks have had a fantastic first quarter of the season by doing a lot of things very well to achieve a 5-0 record. Jacksonville started the season with a late-game comeback to win a tough road game against in-state rival Tampa Bay, and then followed with two consecutive road wins to successfully cap off a three-game road trip to being the year. When the time finally came to play in the Shark Tank, the Sharks anialated New Orleans 76-30 in week 4 and followed the performance up by surviving a late scare from Iowa in week 5 to stay undefeated. A key component of the Sharks' success has been their defense who has caused major problems for opposing quarterbacks to this point in the season. The defensive-line combination of Matt Marcorelle (2.5), Jerry Turner (5), and Rashaad Duncan (3) has tallied 10.5 sacks and mac-backer Aaron Robbins adds four sacks of his own. The defense has also recorded seven interceptions, four of them belonging to Terrance Smith. Bernard Morris is having another solid season, completing 71% of his passes for 1,081 yards and 25 touchdowns to just 1 interception; while adding 93 yards and 4 touchdowns rushing. Rendrick Taylor has also sturdied the Shark rushing attack with 127 yards and 5 touchdowns of his own. Jeff Hughley leads the receiving core with 418 yards and 8 touchdowns on 40 catches, and Jeron Harvey is having a quietly good season with 33 receptions for 313 yards and 8 touchdowns. The Sharks have made clutch plays all season long and will need to do so in order to stay unbeaten on their quest for a fourth consecutive division title.
2) Tampa Bay Storm (3-2) - The only negative news about Tampa Bay at this point in the season is that they are 0-2 at the Tampa Bay Times Forum and the Sharks are in the south, but other than that there isn't much to complain about. Tampa Bay is undefeated on the road and has been competitive in every game so far; bringing back optimisim of a return to postseason football for this storied franchise. Adrian McPherson has had a fabulous return to the AFL by completing 61% of his passes while throwing for 1,238 yards, 21 touchdowns, and 1 interception. McPherson has displayed amazing duel-threat ability by adding 183 yards and 14 touchdowns rushing to his production. Joe Hills has been the unquestionable top-target for McPherson through the first quarter of the season, leading the team with 38 receptions, 592 receiving yards, and 14 touchdowns. Hills also has caught multiple touchdowns in every game this season, and made League history in week 3 when he caught 16 passes for 259 yards and 5 touchdowns in a win at Utah. Greg Ellingson is also enjoying a solid season (33 catches, 454 yards, and 4 touchdowns) in his second season. The Storm defense has been phenominal at creating turnovers in their first five games, racking up 7 fumble recoveries and 8 interceptions. Chris Smith leads the team with 3 interceptions while Rashad Barksdale, Jean Fanor, and De'Audra Dix have also forced multiple takeaways to bolster a defense that features DeMarcus Tyler and R.J. Roberts up front who have combined for 5 sacks. If Tampa Bay can compete with the Shock, let alone be the first team to beat them in week 6 then the Storm are for real and can run with Jacksonville in the south division.
The Competitve
3) Philadelphia Soul (2-2) - The reigning American Conference champs have flied under the radar in 2013, thanks to losing an Arena Bowl rematch with Arizona in week 1 and having a bye in week 2. The Soul got on the fast track with back-to-back road wins, but lost momentum when they dropped their home-opener to Cleveland in week 5. Through the first four weeks most of us understood that the Soul's slow start was the cause of them being overlooked, but seeing them blow a 14-point lead at home against a young, inexperienced Cleveland team who entered the game winless has raised some concern. The Soul looked dominant in their two road wins and the first half verses Cleveland but played a sloppy and lethargic second half, which led to the ugly overtime possession that finalized the loss. Dan Raudabaugh is having a solid season to this point throwing for 1,149 yards, 6 interceptions, and 22 touchdowns while completing 98 of 147 passes. Derrick Ross has gotten off to a good start as well, rushing for 105 yards and 9 touchdowns on 31 carries. Tiger Jones has remained Raudabaugh's top target, leading the team with 36 receptions, 492 receiving yards, and 12 touchdowns. These are all the good points about the Soul, but this year's team has some glaring holes in it that the 2012 team did not have. 1) Other than Tiger Jones' production, only Andrae Thurman has caught more than 13 passes (27) and gained over 200 receiving yards (214) among the rest of the receiving core. 2) Dan Raudabaugh has thrown an interception in all four games this season, including back-to-back two-interception games. 3) Philadelphia's defense on paper is one of the best in the AFL but hasn't performed like it, only recording 6 takaways while allowing 51.5 points/game in the first quarter of the season. All of these have been glaring weaknesses in the 2013 Philadelphia Soul and unless they get fixed this could end up being a disappointing season. The week 6 matchup verse Jacksonville should reveal a lot about the Soul and answer some questions concerning whether Philadelphia has just flown under the radar and had a bad game, or if there is legitmate concern towards this year's team.
The Bad
4) Pittsburgh Power (1-3) - The Pittsburgh Power....... The Power got off to a horrendous start this season getting blown-out by a combined score of 125-68 in their first two games, both of which at home. Things didn't get much better when the Power only managed to score 14 points, all in the third quarter, in a 45-14 loss at Chicago in week 4 which followed their bye week. The Power finally turned it around and erased an early 16-point deficit to comeback and defeat New Orleans 46-43 in week 5. Jordan Jefferson finally looked comfortable in the win over New Orleans, posting season-best numbers of passing 19-30, 223 yards, and 5 touchdowns to go along with 42 rush yards. Even though a performance of this caliber is considered average in the AFL, looking at Jefferson's stats through the first four weeks shows the improvement (55.7% completions, 729 pass yards, 13 touchdowns, 5 interceptions, with 138 yards and a touchdown rushing). The Power sit at 1-3 but are only one game behind the Soul for first in the east. In order for Pittsburgh to achieve the franchise's first winning season the offense must become more consistent and efficent. Mike Washington is having a fantastic year at this point, catching 36 passes for 331 yards and 4 touchdowns to lead the team in all categories. The reason I began this evaluation with "the dots" is because I have trouble understanding how this Power team has played as poorly as they have to this point in the season. The defense ranks first in the League in yards allowed and has recorded 8 sacks; but has only managed 4 takeaways. The secondary has been solid through the first five weeks with Sergio Gilliam having both of the team's two interceptions. The one glaring deffiency of this defense is their inability to get off of the field in third/fourth-and-long situations. Various times the Power have been able to hold their opponents into third/fourth-and-long but have given up either a first down or a touchdown on way too many of these. In order to become competitive fourth-and-long has to turn it a stop, not another set of downs. Another problem has been the lack of spreading the ball on offense. P.J. "Superman" Berry has only 20 receptions for 255 yards and 4 touchdowns, one of the AFL's most versatile receivers needs more targets and touches to utilize his elite playmaking ability. If the Power are to make a surprise run at the playoffs Jordan Jefferson, who played his best game in week 5, will need to continue to grow on the upswing during this season and will need to utilize the talents of Washington, Berry, and Perry Baker to improve a scoring average of 32 points/game. The defense will also need to continue to be the strength of this team, but needs to quit surrending first downs of fourth-and-long situations while forcing more turnovers.
5) New Orleans VooDoo (1-3) - The VooDoo got off to an exciting start in 2013 by winning a wild overtime game in the Graveyard against division-rival Orlando, but it remains the only win as we enter week 6. New Orleans has lost three straight games in different fashions, the defense failed to make stops against Iowa, got destroyed in the Sharks' home-opener, and blew an early 16-point lead to become Pittsburgh's first victory. The VooDoo defense has been solid despite allowing 53.8 points/game, but has had trouble making timely stops. The VooDoo defense has been respectable, but has had additional issues forcing turnovers. Eddie Moten made the game-clinching interception in the overtime win vs. Orlando and has two of the team's three interceptions. The New Orleans defense has only managed a total of four takaways and 6 sacks, which ranks at the bottom of the AFL entering week 6. Despite the stats the defense has been the better side of the ball for the VooDoo. Kurt Rocco and the offense have struggled in three of the four games this season and only have surpassed 45 points in one game; the opening win verse Orlando. Kurt Rocco has struggled in the first month of this season, and that's putting it nicely, he has completed just 48% of his passes while throwing for 738 yards, 12 touchdowns, and 6 interceptions. Rocco has also rushed for 10 yards and 2 touchdowns, but suffered an ankle injury on a touchdown run verse Pittsburgh in the first half and was place on injured reserve earlier this week. The offensive woes are really felt among a talented receiving core that after five weeks has yet to have one if its own reach 20 catches. Quorey Payne returned a kick for a touchdown when he made his season debut in week 5, after missing the first three games with an injury. Donovan Morgan has also been a big disappointment with only 17 receptions for 182 yards and 5 touchdowns in three games; he also had two costly fumbles in the loss vs. Pittsburgh before leaving the game with an injury that has put him back on the injured reserve list. New Orleans has a great opportunity to end their three-game losing streak and for their second home win of the season when they face a struggling San Jose on Saturday night. Zack Eskridge will make his first start of the year in Rocco's abscence and Bill Stull has been signed to be the backup. Whether the answer is in either of these two or it can be found in Kurt Rocco, it needs to come sooner than later if the VooDoo hope to salvage the 2013 season.
6) Cleveland Gladiators (1-3) - The Gladiators entered 2013 as a young, and inexperienced team that featured only five players with two or more years of AFL experience. Steve Thonn and company knew that they might be in for a tough season with such a young roster and have experienced some growing pains through these first five weeks. In his first year as a starting arena quarterback, Brian Zbydniewski has been serviceable abd has used his previous experience as a backup to become the leader of this young team. The Gladiators started the season with a 67-41 loss at home to Spokane which was a game where the offense had trouble executing in prime-scoring situations while the defense was unable to make a stop. The next two games didn't go much better, as it was the same story in a 69-47 road loss at Tampa Bay and a 66-49 defeat against Jacksonville. To be fair, the combined record of Cleveland's first three opponents is 15-3, so to say the Glads were a bit over-matched might be an understatement. After their bye week, the Gladiators headed to Philadelphia as the guests for the Soul's home-opener in week 5. Everything pointed to this being another blowout loss for the Glads, but "that's why we play the game!" Everything appeared to be going as planned when Philadelphia forced a pair of Zbydniewski interceptions in the first half and took a 14-point lead into halftime; while being scheduled to receive the opening possession of the second half. Whatever was said at halftime by Steve Thonn and crew I do not know, but it worked as the Glads came away with interceptions on the first two possessions of the third quarter and outscored thr Soul 14-0 in the period to tie the game. Zbydniewski stepped up to turn in his best game of the season by matching Dan Raudabaugh touchdown drive for touchdown drive in the fourth quarter, ultimately setting up his Ross Gornall for the game-tying 45-yard field at the buzzer to force overtime. In the overtime Brian Zbydniewski capped off his best performance of the young season with a touchdown pass to Thyron Lewis, the defense would make one final stand to secure the first win of the season. The Gladiaros pulled off the biggest upset in the first quarter of the season and enter week 6 on a high wave of momentum as they host a struggling Utah team that provides a great oppportunity for consecutive wins. Brian Zbydniewski completed 24 of 33 passes for 316 yards and 8 touchdowns in the win over Philadelphia. If the Glads look to make any noise this season they need to see this Zbydniewski and not the one from the first three games who completed 59.8% of his passes for 787 yards, 13 touchdowns, and 3 interceptions. Dominic Goodman and Thyron Lewis who are two of the veterans on this team each have had solid first months: Goodman (24 rec, 247 yds, and 5 TD) and Lewis (21 rec, 312 yards, 7 TD). The Gladiators signed LaRoche Jackson a couple of weeks into the season to add a veteran prescence in the secondary to help a unit that has allowed 64.8 points/game. If Cleveland wants to make a surprise run at the playoffs, or east division, Brian Zbydniewski will need to continue his confident play that he showed in week 5, Dominic Goodman will need to have another 110+ catch season, and the defense will need to drastically grow by keeping opponents under 60 points/game while also forcing more turnovers.
7) Orlando Predators (0-4) - It's really a shame to see how one of the greatest franchises in Arena Football has fallen to the bottom of the Leagure in such a short time. In 2012 the Preds saw their streak of 18 consecutive playoff appreances come to an end, and in 2013 they have yet to enjoy a win. In each of their first two games Orlando held late fourth quarter leads, but was unable to make the necessary plays at the end of the game to lock up a road win. The Predators headed home to the Jungle in week 3 with hopes of knocking off Philadelphia, and got off to a great start when Marcus Everett scored two defensive touchdowns in the first five minutes to give Orlando a 14-0 lead without even running a play. Despite the great start Kyle Rowley failed to produce any points by the offense and by halftime a 14-point lead had turned into a 14-point deficit. The Soul ended up running away with a 61-33 win. After the bye week, Orlando hosted Tampa Bay in the first War on I4 matchup of 2013 in week 5. Kyle Rowley remained the starter admist a quarterback controversy, but was quickly pulled when he threw two interceptions in the first quarter. Despite Chris Dixon's efforts the Preds were unable to find a way to win, falling to 0-4 on the season. The main problem for Orlando has been interceptions. Kyle Rowley, who has started every game this season, has completed just 50.4% of his passes while throwing for 825 yards, 14 touchdowns, and 8 interceptions. Rowley has thrown multiple interceptions in three of the four games and has not had a touchdown pass since week 2. His counterpart Chris Dixon has appeared in the last two games, completing 26 of 34 passes for 318 yards, 5 touchdowns, and just 1 interception. Dixon also adds dual-threat ability to the offense as he has rushed for 15 yards on 3 carries. Orlando has as a quarterback controversy, but it is temporarily decided because Dixon was injured in week 5 and will be out 2-4 weeks. The qb situation also gets more complicated because Rowley was arrested earlier this past week and is rumored to be starting in week 6 while facing a probable release in the upcoming week. The week 6 news continued as the Preds traded Amarri Jackson to San Jose in exchange for the legend Aaron Garcia; but Garcia has reportedly refused to report and does not plan on joing the Predators. T.T. Toliver has only played one game because of a three-game suspension that he served to start the season (6 rec, 106 yds, 2 TD). Prechae Rodriguez has had a quietly solid first month, catching 28 passes for 398 yards and 8 touchdowns. Marcus Everett has recorded 3 takeaways and 2 defensive touchdowns, while Simeon Castille has the team's other 2 interceptions and Tim Cheatwood has recorded 2 of the team's 5 sacks. If Orlando is to make a huge turnaround the defense needs to start forcing turnovers and to cut an average of allowing 57.5 points/game. Chris Dixon needs to be the starter of this team when he returns from injury in the next couple weeks and hopefully Dixon and the Predators can find a winning formula and make a run at it in the second half of the season, otherwise it will be another long year in Orlando.
What to watch for during this last week of April and May
- Will Jacksonville and Tampa Bay runaway as the best two teams in the conference, or can things tighten up?
- Can the Philadelphia Soul find their form and hand the Sharks their first loss of the season?
- Which of the four teams in my "The Bad" zone will be able to become competitive and make any/some noise?
- Adrian McPherson's case for AFL MVP.
- Joe Hills' breakout season.
- The Sharks continued chase at a four-peat in the south division.
- How long until the Predators win their first game in 2013, will it be in the next month?
- Can Cleveland beat Utah in week 6 and become a young team who catches fire?
- The record of the first-place team in the east division by the end of May.
Standings entering Week 6
South Division East Division
Jacksonville 5-0 (2-0) Philadelphia 2-2 (0-1)
Tampa Bay 3-2 (1-1) Cleveland 1-3 (1-0)
New Orleans 1-4 (1-1) Pittsburgh 1-3 (0-0)
Orlando 0-4 (0-2)
5 Things I look for in the next 5 weeks
1) Jacksonville and Tampa Bay to distance themselves from the rest of the south.
2) The east division to remain close and for all the three teams to be within 2 games of each other.
3) Adrian McPherson to emerge as the front-runner for AFL MVP.
4) The Sharks to win in Philadelphia in week 6 and stay unbeaten.
5) The Power will emerge from the bottom of the pack in the conference.
Monday, April 29, 2013
Sunday, April 28, 2013
2013 AFL Season, Frist Quarter Anaylsis - National Conference
The first five weeks of this AFL season have come and gone while providing us with exciting, over the wall action. The Sharks and Shock are both 5-0 and stand as the only undefeated teams left, while the once-proud Orlando Predators are the League's lone winless team at 0-4. In this edition, I will release my thoughts and opinions from the first quarter of the season and give some thoughts on what we might see for the next month of the season for the seven teams in the National Conference.
National Conference
The Good
1) Spokane Shock (5-0) - The Shock didnt nothing but win in the first five weeks of the season; winning their first three games on the road, outdueling Arizona in their home-opener, and beating the Sabercats in San Jose to cap it off. The Shock's offense has been nearly unstoppable to this point in the season. Erik Meyer is having a breakout year at quarterback to match the receiving corps of Adron Tennell, Kamar Jordan, Duane Brooks, Steven Black, and Jeffery Soloman. Tennell and Jordan have played in all five games this season, week 6 will be the third game for Brooks, and Soloman and Black have both missed the last two games with injuries. Meyer has completed 135 of 190 passes for 1,521 yards and 40 touchdowns with zero interceptions and Adron Tennell leads this deep group of receivers with 46 catches for 557 yards and 17 touchdowns; on an offense who has averaged 68.8 points/game. The Shock defense has also made their mark by being opportunistic in every week, especially in their week 4 win vs. the Rattlers. Beau Bell leads the team with 3.5 sacks and Paul Stephens set and AFL-record with 5 inteceptions in their week 5 win at San Jose.
2) Arizona Rattlers (4-1) - The defending champions have been very dominant through the first quarter of the season. If not for a 66-49 loss at Spokane in week 4, the Rattlers would be the unaminous top team in Arena Football. Nick Davila trails only Spokane's Meyer in passing, completing 97 of 145 passes for 1,444 yards and 34 touchdowns with just 3 interceptions. The Rattlers also are deep at receiver, but due to injuries Tysson Poots and Maurice Purify have both missed multiple games this season. The trio of Rod Windsor, Kerry Reed, and Jared Perry have spent the majority of offensive plays together in this first quarter of the season. Windsor leads the team with 24 receptions and 9 touchdowns, while Reed has 22 catches and 9 touchdowns, and Perry has caught 23 passes with 7 touchdowns to show how evenly talented this group has become. The Rattler defense has been dominant at no one's surprise. The trio of Virgil Gray, Arkeith Brown, and Marquis Floyd in the secondary has caused havoc for opposing quarterbacks; while Jeremy Kellem has also been a great piece in the middle of the defense. The front-line of Antajj Hawthorne, Cliff Dukes, Marcus Pittman, and Tyre Glasper have been a wrecking crew in their own relm. If not for a dominant performance in the fourth quarter by the Shock's defensive line in week 4, the Rattlers would be spotless. Garrett Lindholm has without a doubt been the top kicker at this point in the season, making 45-49 extra points and all three of his field goals.
The Competitive
3) Chicago Rush (3-2) - The Rush lost their first two games of the season while allowing 139 points to put themselves in an early two-game hole of Iowa. A road win at San Antonio in week 3 got the Rush their first win and they haven't lost since, taking a three-game win streak into Wells Fargo Arena on Friday night to try and even the score with Iowa. Carson Coffman has looked a lot more comfortable and confident in his last three games which has been a key reason for the Rush's success. Reggie Gray is having another excellant year, having 40 receptions for 499 yards and 12 touchdowns at this point in the season. The biggest reason for the Rush's turnaround has been their defense. The secondary of Vic Hall, Jorrick Calvin, Joe Phinisee, and Semaj Moody has become a freesome unit. Kelvin Morris and Darrell Campbell have both lead the front five of a defense that has allowed Chicago to turn a 0-2, 2 game-back start into a 3-2 record with a 1 game lead in the central division entering week 6.
4) Iowa Barnstormers (2-3) - The Barnstormers have gone in the exact opposite direction of the division-foe Chicago. The Barnstormers got off to a great 2-0 start that gave them a 2-game lead in the division, but three straight losses matched with the Rush's win streak have set Iowa a game-back in second. The bright side for Iowa is that all three losses have been close and they nearly gave Jacksonville its first loss of the season in week 5. J.J. Raterink has been solid, completing 101 of 166 passes for 1,366 yards, 22 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. The starting trio of Darious Reynolds, Marco Thomas, and Colin Taylor has become banged-up; Reynolds hasn't played since week 3, Thomas returned in week 5 after missing some time, and Taylor missed his first game in week 5. A very bright spot during this losing stretch has been the return of Barnstormer great, Jesse Schmidt. He made his debut in week 4 and has caught 15 passes for 166 yards and 2 touchdowns. The injuries have also allowed for the emergance of Marcus Harris who has contributed 21 catches for 380 yards and 5 touchdowns. Jason Simpson leads the team in tackles and is the leader of an Iowa defense that has seen great production from its secondary with Ter'Ran Benton, De'Mon Glanton, and Errick McIntosh each have two interceptions to spark a quietly good defense. Kicking woes have also stalled the success of Iowa, but a mid-week release of Phil Marfuggi in exchange for Fabrizio Scaccia who hoefully can improve the extra-point production for the Stormers.
5) San Jose Sabercats (2-2) - The Aaron Garcia experiment was a major fail for the 'Cats. The Sabercats got off to a 2-0 start by narrowly escaping the Talons and Predators, who are a combined 1-7, in the first two weeks. After the hot start the Sabercats traveled to the Snake Pit to battler long-time rival Arizona. The Rattlers dominated the matchup on both sides of the ball, intercepting Garcia 4 times and countering with an unstoppable offensive attack. The 'Cats tried to rebound in week 5, but got demolished by the visiting Shock 69-47. The fans were already calling for the end of the Garcia who leads the AFL with 13 interceptions entering week 6. Paul Stephens intercepted him five times in week 5 which became the final straw for Darren Arbett and company, who traded Aaron Garcia to Orlando in exchange for Amarri Jackson (WR) earlier this week. Huey Whittaker has made big plays on both sides of the ball this season and he looks to return this week after missing the Spokane game. Also, a mid-week addition was the signing of Russ Michna, a AFL-veteran, to lead the offense. The Sabercat defense has also struggled this year, allowing 142 points in their last two games which have both been losses.
The Bad
6) Utah Blaze (1-3) - Three straight losses, all of them at home, and a 1-3 record is what lands a team on this list after five weeks of play. On paper the Blaze are easily a contender for the playoffs, but the eye-test doesn't lie and is proves they haven't earned that right just yet. So, why have the Blaze struggled so far? 1) Tommy Grady has not been the same guy who when Offensive Player of the Year in 2012, as in the first part of 2013 he has only completed 57.3% of his passes for 1,085 yards, 22 touchdowns, with 12 interceptions. 2) Aaron LeSue missed the first two games of the season with an injury, since his return he has 15 receptions for 239 yards and 5 touchdowns. 3) L.J. Castille has been a disappointment, only catching 11 passes 114 yards and one touchdown in three games. 4) 0-3 at home, allowing 71 points/game. 5) The defense's inability to make timely stops/stands. A bright spot has been the rise of rookie Mario Urrutia, who has become Grady's top target with 30 receptions for 420 yards and 11 touchdowns. The Blaze have a great opportunity to snap the three-game slide in week 6 when they travel to Cleveland to face the Gladiators, but time is of the essence playing in the wild western division.
7) San Antonio Talons (1-3) - A year ago the Talons were the one seed and looked primed for a run at the title, but things fell apart in the first round of the playoffs and a lot of key guys from that team left for a new organization in 2013. San Antonio's season got off to a frustrating start, between losing their first two games at home by a total of elevan points and losing John Dutton for the season in the second game vs. Chicago when he tore his achilles while avoiding pressure in the pocket. The Talons acted fast by signing Nick Hill prior to their week 3 duel with Tampa Bay, which saw Hill lead the Talons to their first win of the season. All the optimism left in week 5 when the Hill-led Talons got blown out, 83-40, by the Rattlers. The offense has struggled to score with an average of just 44 points/game; 41 points/game in their three losses. Jomo Wilson is the only receiver that is over 21 catches, 200 yards, and 5 touchdowns at this point in the campaign (28 rec., 389 yds., 7 TD). The defense has done their part by only allowing over 50 points in the debacle against the Rattlers in week 5. The central division is still up for the taking, but the Talons need to figure out a solid plan on offense if they want to have any shot at repeating as division champs.
What to watch for during this last week of April and May
- The wild west division continuing to make noise at the top of the AFL.
- The battle between Spokane and Arizona for supremacy in the west, can San Jose or Utah fix things enough to put themselves in the mix?
- Will Chicago continue their winning ways and runaway with the central division or can Iowa rebound and go toe-to-toe with the Rush?
- Can the Shock keep up the offensive efficency that has lead them to a 5-0 record?
- Tommy Grady to return to his elite form sooner than later.
- Russ Michna to keep the Sabercats in contention.
- In order for San Antonio to turn things around they need to find a consistency with Nick Hill on offense and start scoring past 50 points/game in this next part of the season.
Standings entering Week 6
West Division Central Division
Spokane 5-0 (2-0) Chicago 3-2 (1-1)
Arizona 4-1 (2-1) Iowa 2-3 (1-0)
San Jose 2-2 (0-2) San Antonio 1-3 (0-1)
Utah 1-3 (0-1)
5 Things I look for in the next 5 weeks
1) The wild west to be in full-force and turn into a four-team race.
2) Spoakne and Arizona to both remain in the League's top 3.
3) Chicago to keep winning and build a comfortable lead in the central.
4) Iowa to turn things around by week 6 or 7 and get themselves back in the mix.
5) If San Antonio loses at the Pittsburgh in week 6 then they could be in for a long season, if they win on the road then they could potentially pass Iowa in the central.
National Conference
The Good
1) Spokane Shock (5-0) - The Shock didnt nothing but win in the first five weeks of the season; winning their first three games on the road, outdueling Arizona in their home-opener, and beating the Sabercats in San Jose to cap it off. The Shock's offense has been nearly unstoppable to this point in the season. Erik Meyer is having a breakout year at quarterback to match the receiving corps of Adron Tennell, Kamar Jordan, Duane Brooks, Steven Black, and Jeffery Soloman. Tennell and Jordan have played in all five games this season, week 6 will be the third game for Brooks, and Soloman and Black have both missed the last two games with injuries. Meyer has completed 135 of 190 passes for 1,521 yards and 40 touchdowns with zero interceptions and Adron Tennell leads this deep group of receivers with 46 catches for 557 yards and 17 touchdowns; on an offense who has averaged 68.8 points/game. The Shock defense has also made their mark by being opportunistic in every week, especially in their week 4 win vs. the Rattlers. Beau Bell leads the team with 3.5 sacks and Paul Stephens set and AFL-record with 5 inteceptions in their week 5 win at San Jose.
2) Arizona Rattlers (4-1) - The defending champions have been very dominant through the first quarter of the season. If not for a 66-49 loss at Spokane in week 4, the Rattlers would be the unaminous top team in Arena Football. Nick Davila trails only Spokane's Meyer in passing, completing 97 of 145 passes for 1,444 yards and 34 touchdowns with just 3 interceptions. The Rattlers also are deep at receiver, but due to injuries Tysson Poots and Maurice Purify have both missed multiple games this season. The trio of Rod Windsor, Kerry Reed, and Jared Perry have spent the majority of offensive plays together in this first quarter of the season. Windsor leads the team with 24 receptions and 9 touchdowns, while Reed has 22 catches and 9 touchdowns, and Perry has caught 23 passes with 7 touchdowns to show how evenly talented this group has become. The Rattler defense has been dominant at no one's surprise. The trio of Virgil Gray, Arkeith Brown, and Marquis Floyd in the secondary has caused havoc for opposing quarterbacks; while Jeremy Kellem has also been a great piece in the middle of the defense. The front-line of Antajj Hawthorne, Cliff Dukes, Marcus Pittman, and Tyre Glasper have been a wrecking crew in their own relm. If not for a dominant performance in the fourth quarter by the Shock's defensive line in week 4, the Rattlers would be spotless. Garrett Lindholm has without a doubt been the top kicker at this point in the season, making 45-49 extra points and all three of his field goals.
The Competitive
3) Chicago Rush (3-2) - The Rush lost their first two games of the season while allowing 139 points to put themselves in an early two-game hole of Iowa. A road win at San Antonio in week 3 got the Rush their first win and they haven't lost since, taking a three-game win streak into Wells Fargo Arena on Friday night to try and even the score with Iowa. Carson Coffman has looked a lot more comfortable and confident in his last three games which has been a key reason for the Rush's success. Reggie Gray is having another excellant year, having 40 receptions for 499 yards and 12 touchdowns at this point in the season. The biggest reason for the Rush's turnaround has been their defense. The secondary of Vic Hall, Jorrick Calvin, Joe Phinisee, and Semaj Moody has become a freesome unit. Kelvin Morris and Darrell Campbell have both lead the front five of a defense that has allowed Chicago to turn a 0-2, 2 game-back start into a 3-2 record with a 1 game lead in the central division entering week 6.
4) Iowa Barnstormers (2-3) - The Barnstormers have gone in the exact opposite direction of the division-foe Chicago. The Barnstormers got off to a great 2-0 start that gave them a 2-game lead in the division, but three straight losses matched with the Rush's win streak have set Iowa a game-back in second. The bright side for Iowa is that all three losses have been close and they nearly gave Jacksonville its first loss of the season in week 5. J.J. Raterink has been solid, completing 101 of 166 passes for 1,366 yards, 22 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. The starting trio of Darious Reynolds, Marco Thomas, and Colin Taylor has become banged-up; Reynolds hasn't played since week 3, Thomas returned in week 5 after missing some time, and Taylor missed his first game in week 5. A very bright spot during this losing stretch has been the return of Barnstormer great, Jesse Schmidt. He made his debut in week 4 and has caught 15 passes for 166 yards and 2 touchdowns. The injuries have also allowed for the emergance of Marcus Harris who has contributed 21 catches for 380 yards and 5 touchdowns. Jason Simpson leads the team in tackles and is the leader of an Iowa defense that has seen great production from its secondary with Ter'Ran Benton, De'Mon Glanton, and Errick McIntosh each have two interceptions to spark a quietly good defense. Kicking woes have also stalled the success of Iowa, but a mid-week release of Phil Marfuggi in exchange for Fabrizio Scaccia who hoefully can improve the extra-point production for the Stormers.
5) San Jose Sabercats (2-2) - The Aaron Garcia experiment was a major fail for the 'Cats. The Sabercats got off to a 2-0 start by narrowly escaping the Talons and Predators, who are a combined 1-7, in the first two weeks. After the hot start the Sabercats traveled to the Snake Pit to battler long-time rival Arizona. The Rattlers dominated the matchup on both sides of the ball, intercepting Garcia 4 times and countering with an unstoppable offensive attack. The 'Cats tried to rebound in week 5, but got demolished by the visiting Shock 69-47. The fans were already calling for the end of the Garcia who leads the AFL with 13 interceptions entering week 6. Paul Stephens intercepted him five times in week 5 which became the final straw for Darren Arbett and company, who traded Aaron Garcia to Orlando in exchange for Amarri Jackson (WR) earlier this week. Huey Whittaker has made big plays on both sides of the ball this season and he looks to return this week after missing the Spokane game. Also, a mid-week addition was the signing of Russ Michna, a AFL-veteran, to lead the offense. The Sabercat defense has also struggled this year, allowing 142 points in their last two games which have both been losses.
The Bad
6) Utah Blaze (1-3) - Three straight losses, all of them at home, and a 1-3 record is what lands a team on this list after five weeks of play. On paper the Blaze are easily a contender for the playoffs, but the eye-test doesn't lie and is proves they haven't earned that right just yet. So, why have the Blaze struggled so far? 1) Tommy Grady has not been the same guy who when Offensive Player of the Year in 2012, as in the first part of 2013 he has only completed 57.3% of his passes for 1,085 yards, 22 touchdowns, with 12 interceptions. 2) Aaron LeSue missed the first two games of the season with an injury, since his return he has 15 receptions for 239 yards and 5 touchdowns. 3) L.J. Castille has been a disappointment, only catching 11 passes 114 yards and one touchdown in three games. 4) 0-3 at home, allowing 71 points/game. 5) The defense's inability to make timely stops/stands. A bright spot has been the rise of rookie Mario Urrutia, who has become Grady's top target with 30 receptions for 420 yards and 11 touchdowns. The Blaze have a great opportunity to snap the three-game slide in week 6 when they travel to Cleveland to face the Gladiators, but time is of the essence playing in the wild western division.
7) San Antonio Talons (1-3) - A year ago the Talons were the one seed and looked primed for a run at the title, but things fell apart in the first round of the playoffs and a lot of key guys from that team left for a new organization in 2013. San Antonio's season got off to a frustrating start, between losing their first two games at home by a total of elevan points and losing John Dutton for the season in the second game vs. Chicago when he tore his achilles while avoiding pressure in the pocket. The Talons acted fast by signing Nick Hill prior to their week 3 duel with Tampa Bay, which saw Hill lead the Talons to their first win of the season. All the optimism left in week 5 when the Hill-led Talons got blown out, 83-40, by the Rattlers. The offense has struggled to score with an average of just 44 points/game; 41 points/game in their three losses. Jomo Wilson is the only receiver that is over 21 catches, 200 yards, and 5 touchdowns at this point in the campaign (28 rec., 389 yds., 7 TD). The defense has done their part by only allowing over 50 points in the debacle against the Rattlers in week 5. The central division is still up for the taking, but the Talons need to figure out a solid plan on offense if they want to have any shot at repeating as division champs.
What to watch for during this last week of April and May
- The wild west division continuing to make noise at the top of the AFL.
- The battle between Spokane and Arizona for supremacy in the west, can San Jose or Utah fix things enough to put themselves in the mix?
- Will Chicago continue their winning ways and runaway with the central division or can Iowa rebound and go toe-to-toe with the Rush?
- Can the Shock keep up the offensive efficency that has lead them to a 5-0 record?
- Tommy Grady to return to his elite form sooner than later.
- Russ Michna to keep the Sabercats in contention.
- In order for San Antonio to turn things around they need to find a consistency with Nick Hill on offense and start scoring past 50 points/game in this next part of the season.
Standings entering Week 6
West Division Central Division
Spokane 5-0 (2-0) Chicago 3-2 (1-1)
Arizona 4-1 (2-1) Iowa 2-3 (1-0)
San Jose 2-2 (0-2) San Antonio 1-3 (0-1)
Utah 1-3 (0-1)
5 Things I look for in the next 5 weeks
1) The wild west to be in full-force and turn into a four-team race.
2) Spoakne and Arizona to both remain in the League's top 3.
3) Chicago to keep winning and build a comfortable lead in the central.
4) Iowa to turn things around by week 6 or 7 and get themselves back in the mix.
5) If San Antonio loses at the Pittsburgh in week 6 then they could be in for a long season, if they win on the road then they could potentially pass Iowa in the central.
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
AFL Week 5 Recap
The first month of this year's Arena Football season has come and gone, as we entered week 5 with two unbeatens and three teams still looking for that elusive first victory. It's still a little to early to look at the playoff picture, but every week matters here in the AFL. This week featured all fourteen teams in action, good for seven thrilling games between Friday and Saturday nights!
Jacksonville Sharks 40, Iowa Barnstormers 34
The Sharks sported their all-red home uniforms in-front of 8,011 at Sea Best Field on Friday while trying to become the first team to reach the 5-0 mark this season. The Barnstormers entered trying to snap a two-game slide by doing something that no one's been able to do this season; beat the Sharks.
Iowa gained two first downs in as many plays after receiving the opening kick, but their momentum was quickly dounced when Terrance Smith intercepted J.J. Raterink's end-zone pass. Bernard Morris would complete five of his first six passes while throwing two touchdowns, a 29-yarder to Markee White on the opening drive and Jeron Harvey caught a 16-yard TD pass on the second possession to give the Sharks a 13-3 lead with under three minutes in the first quarter. The next three possessions all resulted in touchdowns, keeping the Sharks in the lead with a 20-16 advantage at the seven-minute mark of the second quarter. It was the Iowa defense that made the next stop when Rodney Gnat and Mike Lewis combined for a fourth-down sack that followed three straight incompletions by Morris. The sack gave Iowa a great opportunity to take their first lead by having the ball at the Shark-3, but despite the great field position their chance to capitalize escaped when Raterink was sacked on fourth and goal by Jerry Turner. Mat Marcorelle scored on a one-yard run at the end of the half to give Jacksonville an elevan-point lead at the break. The Sharks looked primed to blow this one open after picking up a first down in three qucik plays, but that changed when their next three plays netted a loss of one-yard to set up a fourth-and-long. This time, Mike Lewis made sure the Barnstormers seized a great opportunity when he sacked Morris and forced a fumble that was recovered run into the end zone by Darnell Carter for a "scoop-and-score." The Sharks' next drive ended in a similar fate when Jason Simpson intercepted a Morris deep-ball, after the Sharks had gained 23 yards and two first downs. Iowa was presented with another chance to grab their first lead and did so this time when J.J. Raterink connected with Marcus Harris on second-down for a 43-yard tocuhdown. Despite the dominant quarter by the Barnstormers, the Sharks still managed to carry a 34-28 lead into the fourth quarter when Jeron Harvey caught his third touchdown of the night on the final play of the period. Iowa looked poised to answer with a touchdown of their own, but that ended when Raterink fumbled when he was sacked by Aaron Robbins at the Shark-13. After the Iowa defense forced a four-and-out by the Sharks, it only took two plays for Raterink to tie the game with his 26-yard touchdown pass to Marcus Harris. Jacksonville responded with a five-play, 38-yard drive of their own that resulted in Markee White's five-yard touchdown reception; Marco Capozzoli's extra point was no good so the lead was only six for the Sharks with 2:57 remaining in the game. For the first time this season Jacksonville's perfect record was at-stake late in a game when J.J. Raterink led the Barnstormers out on the field at their own six yard-line. Iowa began the series in fluid-motion, gaining 15 yards in three plays to place the ball at the their own 21 for a second down play with one minute left to play. With the tension in the building rising it was the Shark secondary that stepped up, forcing three straight incompletions by Raterink to preserve the lead. Bernard Morris hit Jeff Hughley for an elevan-yard completion and Rendrick Taylor gained positive yards on three consecutive runs to expire the clock and wrap up the hard-fought 40-34 win for Jacksonville. This game was a classic example of the importance each possession and where extra points can solely make up the differnce in the AFL.
Stat Leaders:
Iowa (2-3) Jacksonville (5-0)
J.J. Raterink 17-30, 240 yds, 3TD, Int Bernard Morris 25-36, 237 yards, 5TD, Int,
Marco Thomas 4 rec, 51 yds, TD, 15 rush yards
23 rush yds Rendrick Taylor 5 rush, 22 yards
Marcus Harris 6 rec, 130 yds, 2 TD Jeron Harvey 8 rec, 81 yds, 3 TD
Ter'Ran Benton 12 tackles Jeff Hughley 10 rec, 75 yds
Jason Simpson 9 tackles, Int Markee White 6 rec, 73 yds, 2 TD
Iowa D 3 sacks Terrance Smith Int
Darnell Carter Fumb Rec-TD Tracy Belton 12 tackles
Phil Marfuggi 1-1 FG (17), 1-5 PAT Jerry Turner/Aaron Robbins sack each
Pittsburgh Power 46, New Orleans VooDoo 43
The Power and VooDoo each entered the Graveyaard in desperate need of a win. Both sides were coming off of being on the embarrassing end of blowouts in week 4 and were looking to move past them with a nice win in week 5.
Both offenses got off to much better starts this week, scoring on thier opening possessions to have the game tied at seven midway through the first quarter. The VooDoo re-took the lead when Kurt Rocco found a wide-open Donovan Morgan for an 18-yard touchdown that sparked a quick run of 16 unanswered points; featuring a sack by James Bryant that resulted for a safety and a 57-yard kick return touchdown by Quorey Payne on the ensuing sequences. In a blink-of-an-eye the Power had fallen behind by three scores but responded with 13 unanswered points of their own on the next two series; occuring when Jordan Jefferson engineered a five-play drive that ended on the first play of the second quarter with Perry Baker's 25-yard touchdown reception and on the following VooDoo possession Sergio Gilliam intercepted Rocco's second down pass and returned it 18 yards for a touchdown. The turnover problems continued for the VooDoo on their next possession when on first and goal Donvan Morgan took the hand-off, ran towards the left, and fumbled when Darius Powell hit him shy of the boards. Jefferson capitalized on his defense's efforts by directing a four-play, 48-yard drive that ended on a 28-yard catch-and-run touchdown reception by P.J. Berry; giving Pittsburgh its first lead of the night. The Power would force a turnover for the third straight possession when Chris LeFlore knocked the ball out of Donovan Morgan's left hand and recovered it at the New Orleans-22. This time the Power offense was unable to reward their defense's effort, as two plays lost 21 yards and on fourth-and-long Jefferson was sacked to give the ball right back to New Orleans. The VooDoo moved quickly and scored with 13 seconds left in the half to retake the lead on Kurt Rocco's one-yard touchdown run; he would left the game with an apparent ankle injury and did not return. Both sides traded touchdowns on their first possession of the second half, but the trend ended when Jordan Jefferson got sacked on second down and followed with back-to-back incompletions, giving the ball to New Orleans at the one. Zack Eskridge, Rocco's replacement, scored on a one-yard qb keeper to give the VooDoo a ten point lead with two minutes left in the third. The lead was quickly reduced back to three when Jefferson hit P.J. Berry for a 47-yard touchdown on the next play. The start of the fourth quarter brought on a low-scoring fifteen minutes. Eskridge got sacked on back-to-back plays on the VooDoo's opening series and P.J. Berry scored on a two-yard touchdown run on the next play to give the Power a 46-43 lead. Gary Cismesia's 30-yard field goal attempt went wide-left on the next possession and Berry's touchdown run would stand as the lone six points in the quarter. The Power defense recorded three sacks and prevented New Orleans from scoring in the fourth to secure their first win of 2013. Quorey Payne made his season debut on Friday night recording 112 all-purpose yards and a kick-return touchdown.
Stat Leaders:
Pittsburgh (1-3) New Orleans (1-3)
Jordan Jefferson 19-30, 223 yds, 5TD, Zack Eskridge 8-15, 29 yds, TD, Rush TD
30 rush yds Kurt Rocco 7-13, 86 yds, 2TD, Int, Rush TD
P.J. Berry 4 rec, 95 yds, 2 TD, Rush TD Donovan Morgan 3 rec, 42 yds, TD, 2 fumbles
Perry Baker 6 rec 75 yds, TD Derek Lee 5 rec, 50 yds, 2 TD
Mike Washington 9 rec, 61 yds, TD James Bryant 10 tackles (3 TFL), 2 sacks, safety
Chris LeFlore/Darius Powell FF/FR each Marlon Favorite/Michale Janac 0.5 sack each
Sergio Gilliam Int-ret TD
Dominie Pittman 2 sacks
Spokane Shock 69, San Jose Sabercats 47
The Shock and Sabercats met in HP Pavilion for a wild western showdown. Spokane entered looking to join the Sharks at 5-0, while the Sabercats were looking to avoid a second straight loss.
Spokane wasted no time getting comfortable in another hostile environment, as Paul Stephens intercepted Aaron Garcia's second pass of the night to give his offense the ball at their own 15 yard-line. It only took three plays for the Shock to score their first points of the night when Erik Meyer threw a 19-yard pass to Adron Tennell, who made a spectacular one-handed catch for the touchdown. Garcia and Meyer both threw touchdown passes on their next two possessions to give the Shock a 21-14 lead at the 14:18 mark in the second quarter. It looked like the Sabercats would respond with a third consecutive touchdown-drive but on fourth down from the Spokane-9 Stephens made his second interception of the night to deny Garica and the 'Cats. Meyer would find Kamar Jorden for an 18-yard touchdown two plays later to make it a 13-point game. Aaron Garica rebounded by leading a three-play, 40-yard drive that ended on Jason Willis' 27-yard touchdown catch. Spokane made their mark in the final four-and-half minutes of the half when Meyer directed a nine-play, 31-yard drive that concluded on Duane Brooks' three-yard touchdown reception and a couple plays later Paul Stephens recorded his third interception of the game. Spokane broke the game open in the first five minutes of the third quarter when they took the opening possession and marched down the field in a six-play, four-minute drive that resulted in Kamar Jorden's third touchdown catch, and when Paul Stephens intercepted Aaron Garcia's first pass of the half and returned it 26 yards for another touchdown. Garcia and Meyers would match touchdown passes on the ensuing possessions and the Shock carried a 55-27 lead into the fourth. A 28-point margin was quickly cut in-half when Garcia found Jason Willis for a four-yard touchdown, capping off a ten-play, 42-yard drive, and J.C. Neal forced a fumble on the next possession which turned into a three-yard touchdown run by Brian Folkerts. The essence of a wild comeback was quickly calmed when the Shock recovered the ensuing onside kick and Adron Tennell caught a six-yard touchdown to get the lead back to 21 with 9:40 left to play. San Jose scored quickly, but failed to recover their second straight onside kick. The Shock milked three-and-half minutes off the clock and Tennell scored his fourth touchdown on a two-yard run to seal another road victory for the orange and blue. Paul Stephens set an AFL record by recording his fifth interception on Garcia's final pass of the night and without will be this week's defensive player of the week. Shock go to 5-0, while the Sabercats fall to 2-2.
Stat Leaders:
Spokane (5-0) San Jose (2-2)
Erik Meyer 26-37, 242 yds, 8TD, 14 rush yds Aaron Garcia 28-45, 309 yds, 6TD, 5 Int
Adron Tennell 9 rec, 117 yds, 3 TD, Rush TD Jamarko Simmons 11 rec, 126 yds, TD
Duane Brooks 10 rec, 63 yds, TD Jason Willis 9 rec, 123 yds, 3 TD
Kamar Jorden 5 rec, 49 yds, 3 TD Clevan Thomas/Ken Fontenette 7 tackles
Terrance Sanders 10 tackles
Paul Stephens 6 tackles, 5 interceptions,
1 Int-ret TD
Beau Bell/Chase Vaughn sack each
Tampa Bay Storm 53, Orlando Predators 35
The first meeting between these two hated rivals marked the 51st edition of the War on I-4. The Storm entered the hostile "Jungle" looking to stay perfect on the road, while the Predators tried to get the first win of 2013.
Entering this matchup the Predators faced questions about who would be their starter this week; we got our answer when Kyle Rowley took the field on the opening drive of the night. Rowley got off to a good start, completing his first four passes, but on the seventh play of the series his pass intended for T.T. Toliver in the end zone was intercepted by De-Audra Dix who returned it 37 yards before fumbling the ball to teammate Rashad Barkdale who finished the "pick-six" by running the last 15 yards to score the touchdown. The struggles continued for Rowley when his eight pass was an over-throw that got intercepted by Chris Smith; and resulted in Adrian McPherson's one-yard touchdown run four plays later. Facing a 14-0 deficit and seeing Rowley throw two interceptions caused Doug Plank to make a quick change to Chris Dixon. The decision proved to be the correct one as Dixon instantly led a seven-play, 37-yard drive that ended on Jermaine Richardson's one-yard touchdown run. McPherson and Dixon would each direct two touchdown drives in the second quarter to keep the Storm's lead at six by halftime. A pair of goal-line stands by the Predator defense, the second of which coming on the opening drive of the second half, created the opportunity for Orlando to take their first lead of the game. Dixon answered the call by completing three straight passes to three different receivers, finding T.T. Toliver for a 30-yard touchdown and Mark Lewis' extra point gave the Preds their first lead of the night with 7:35 left in the third. The lead would be short-lived as Adrian McPherson completed his fourth-down pass to Greg Ellingson who did the rest to turn a short dump-off pass into a 40-yard touchdown, making it 33-28 Storm. De-Audra Dix forced Amarri Jackson to fumble on a 15-yard reception, and two plays later Michael Lindsey caught a 25-yard touchdown to give Tampa Bay an elevan-point lead heading into the fourth quarter. Orlando responded with a nine-play drive that resulted in a 16-yard touchdown run by Chris Dixon to cut the deficit to four with 8:49 reamining, but Dixon was injured when he dove into the end zone and left the game. It only took three plays for the Storm to counter when McPherson hit Joe Hills for a 33-yard touchdown, bringing the lead back to double digits with 5:39 left to play. Kyle Rowley was forced to re-enter the game and threw four incompletions which effectively ended any hopes of a wild finish; two plays later Adrian McPherson scored his second rushing touchdown to ice the game. The Storm take the all-time lead in the series (26-25) and more importantly move to 3-2 on the season, while the Predators faulter again in the Jungle. A couple notes for the Predators, T.T. Toliver made his 2013 debut and Kyle Rowley had a forgetable night only completing 6 of 17 passes for 70 yards to go along with two interceptions.
Stat Leaders:
Tampa Bay (3-2) Orlando (0-4)
Adrian McPherson 12-20, 223 yards, 4TD, Chris Dixon 17-21, 198 yds, 3TD,
7 yds and 2 TD rushing 60 rush yds, TD
Joe Hills 4 rec, 83 yds, 2 TD T.T. Toliver 6 rec, 106 yds, 2 TD
Greg Ellingson 4 rec, 79 yds, TD Amarri Jackson 5 rec, 65 yds, TD
Michael Lindsey 4 rec, 61 yds, TD Marcus Everett 4 tackles, sack
Jean Fanor 10 tackles, Fumb. rec
Chris Smith/De-Audra Dix Int each
Rashad Barksdale Def TD
DeMarcus Tyler 2 sacks
Cleveland Gladiators 64, Philadelphia Soul 57 F/OT
Entering week 5 this matchup between the Soul and Gladiators looked like it would be nothing more than a blowout; but folks.....thats why we play the game!
Things got off to a fast start in Philadelphia when both teams traded opening-drive touchdowns but LaRico Stevenson created some space when he forced and returned a fumble for a touchdown to make it a quick 14 points for the Soul. The teams would again trade touchdowns on the following possessions to keep it a seven-point margin early in the second quarter. The Soul looked prime to pull away when Joe Goosby made an interception on the Gladitors' 21-yard line and returned it to the six, setting up a six-yard touchdown reception by Tiger Jones to make it 28-14. Brian Zbydniewski responded by throwing a 34-yard touchdown pass to Thyron Lewis on the next series to cut the lead in-half. Dan Raudabaugh engineered a 12-play, 43-yard drive that concluded with a touchdown run by Derrick Ross to give the Soul a 14-point lead at halftime. Everything looked to be going as planned, the Soul led by 14 and looked as they we be able to expand the lead to 21 with on the opening possession of the second half; but that all changed when Raudabaugh's pass on third and goal was intercepted by Maurice Williams in the Cleveland end zone. It only took three plays for the Glads to capitalize on the stop with Jamar Howard's elevan-yard touchdown catch to get the lead back down to seven. Philadelphia looked to be on the move again after Raudabaugh completed his first two passes on the ensuing drive but it all ended when his third pass was intercepted by Brandon Anderson, giving Cleveland a great opportunity to tie the game. Zbydniewski completed two of his next four passes, finding Jamar Howard for a 17-yard touchdown to tie it at 35. The Soul capped off a five-play drive on the second snap of the fourth quarter when Raudabaugh fired a strike to Tiger Jones for a 15-yard touchdown to put his sideback up by seven. Cleveland answered with a six-play, 45-yard drive that resulted in Zbydniewski's one-yard touchdown run which made it 42-41 with 9:05 to play; the extra point was missed. The night of surprises was just getting started, Alvance Robinson fumbled the ensuing kickoff and Zbydniewski fired a 30-yard strike to a wide-open Jonathan Wilson for the go-ahead touchdown with 7:50 left. The Soul were facing their first deficit since early in the first, but responded with a nine-play, 47-yard drive that resulted in a four-yard touchdown catch by Andrae Thurman, who also caught the two-point conversion, to give Philadelphia a three-point lead with 55 seconds remaining. The Gladiators recovered the ensuing onside kick (typical AFL strategy by the leading team to better their chances at either running out the clock or getting themselves one, final possession) and scored on the next play when Zbydniewski threw an 18-yard touchdown to Thyron Lewis to give Cleveland a four-point lead with 47 seconds left. The Soul took over at their own ten and just needed three plays to retake the lead on Tiger Jones' 13-yard touchdown reception, leaving ten seconds for Cleveland. Brian Zbydniewski completed his only pass of the final series to Howard to set up a 45-yard field goal try for Ross Gornall; which Gornall drilled down the middle to tie the game at 57 as the buzzer sounded to force overtime. Cleveland received the opening possession of the overtime period and moved down the field in five-plays, re-taking the lead on Thyron Lewis' 16-yard touchdown reception. The Soul started their OT-possession needing to gain 39 yards for the tying touchdown. Dan Raudabaugh completed his first pass to Thurman for 16 yards, but misfired on his next three attempts that also featured a false start to set up a fourth and fifteen. With the game on the line Raudabaugh dropped back and looked deep in the front of the end zone for Tiger Jones but his pass was out of the reach for Jones and fell harmlessly to the ground, sending the Gladiators home as winners for the first time in 2013. For the second consecutive season Cleveland has come to Philadelphia and beat the Soul to pull off the upset of the 2013 season to this point.
Stat Leaders:
Cleveland (1-3) Philadelphia (2-2)
Brian Zbydniewski 24-33, 316 yds, 8TD, Dan Raudabaugh 31-50, 306 yds, 5TD, 2 Int
Int, Rush TD Derrick Ross 6 rush, 17 yds, 2 TD, 2 rec, 7 yds
Thyron Lewis 6 rec, 122 yds, 4 TD Tiger Jones 13 rec, 143 yds, 3 TD
Jamar Howard 9 rec, 95 yds, 2 TD Andrae Thurman 9 rec, 82 yds, TD
Jonathan Wilson 7 rec, 87 yds, 2 TD Joe Goosby 8 tackles, Int
Brandon Anderson/Maurice Williams Int
Ross Gornall 1-1 FG (45), 7-8 PAT
Arizona Rattlers 83, San Antonio Talons 40
How would the Rattlers bounce back from their first loss of the season is what we were all wondering heading into this week 5 matchup; to answer the question I think they bounced back just fine.
The Nick Davila to Rod Windsor connection got off to a hot start, five receptions for 89 yards and three touchdowns in the first quarter which coupled with two defensive stops to give Arizona an early 21-7 lead. The offensive efficency continued for Davila in the second quarter, completing two out of two passes for 29 yards and two touchdowns to match another stand by the defense to give the Rattlers a 34-14 lead midway through the period. Nick Hill and Davila traded touchdown passes on the ensuing possessions to keep the margin at 21 points with 4:42 left in the half, but then the Rattler defense made another timely stop by recording back-to-back sacks of Hill which forced a 64-yard field goal attempt by Stefan Demos that was way short and wide left, giving Arizona the ball at their own twenty-yard line with 99 seconds left for Nick Davila to work his magic. Davila only needed 92 of those seconds to lead the Rattlers down the field in five plays and throw his seventh touchdown pass of the half, a 13-yarder to Rod Windsor to extend the lead to 48-20. The Rattlers received the opening possession of the third quarter and marched smoothly down the field in four plays, resulting in Davila's eighth touchdown pass which was a 17-yard strike to Kerry Reed. Nick Davila and the Rattlers offense was unstoppable the entire night and Virgil Gray's interception inside the final minute if the third ended any possibility of a dreamy Talons comeback. Arizona responded like any defending champion would, crushing the Talons 83-40 to stay unbeaten in the Snake Pit while moving to 4-1 on the season.
Stat Leaders:
San Antonio (1-3) Arizona (4-1)
Nick Hill 20-40, 293 yds, 4TD, 2 Int, Nick Davila 22-26, 278 yds, 9TD
14 rush yds, 2 TD Odie Armstrong 3 rush, 26 yds, TD
Jomo Wilson 10 rec, 164 yds, 3 TD Rod Windsor 12 rec, 166 yds, 5 TD
Dwayne Eley Jr. 4 rec, 54 yds, TD Jared Perry 5 rec, 93 yds, 2 TD, Rush TD
Kerry Reed 4 rec, 47 yds, 3 TD
Virgil Gray/Jeremy Kellem Int
Tyre Glasper 2 sacks
Chicago Rush 59, Utah Blaze 56
This week's CBS Sports Network game of the week featured two foes who are going opposite directions. The Rush entered on a two-game winning streak, while the Blaze were trying to avoid a third-straight home defeat.
Carson Coffman got off to a cold start, throwing incompletions on three of his first four passes which gave Utah the ball at the Rush-22. Tommy Grady didn't waste anytime getting the first points of the night when his first pass fell into the arms of Aaron LeSue for the touchdown. It became a touchdown show as both offenses caught fire in the and traded scores all the way until Utah's fifth possession with 28 seconds remaining in the first half. The Rush defense rose to the challenge and got their first stop of the game when Tyus Jackson and Brian McNally combined for a sack with one second left and Vic Hall intercepted a hail mary in the end zone to ensure the half ended in a 28-28 tie. Tommy Grady and the Blaze took the opening possession of the second half and went down the field in four plays, 43 yards to retake the lead on Mario Urrutia's 16-yard touchdown grab. Coffman responded on the next series with a 19-yard touchdown pass to Reggie Gray to re-tie the game at 35. The barrage of touchdowns came to an end before it got started in the second half when Jorrick Calvin intercepted Grady on a deep ball and six plays later Carson Coffman fumbled at the line on a fourth-and-one to give the ball back to Utah. Tommy Grady answered by engineering a five-play, 46-yard drive that resulted in five-yard touchdown reception by Urrutia. Adrian Trevino missed the extra point on the touchdown, but made up for it by recovering a fumble on the ensuing kickoff to give the ball right back to Grady and the offense at the Rush-16. It looked like the Blaze would be able to create some space but Joe Phinisee had other ideas, recording the third interception of Grady on the final play of the third quarter to keep the Rush within six. Chicago began the fourth quarter at their own five-yard line and were guided 45 yards down the field on eight plays by Coffman, who threw a seven-yard touchdown pass to Reggie Gray to give Chicago a one-point lead with 9:56 left in the game. Tommy Grady answered with three straight completions, the third of them to Aaron LeSue for a 24-yard touchdown to give the lead back to Utah. The Rush didn't trail for long as Coffman hit Jared Jenkins for a 30-yard touchdown to get the lead right back with 5:54 to play. Three plays later Kelvin Morris made the fourth interception of Grady and returned it 18 yards for a touchdown, making it 56-48 in favor of the Rush. Utah got the ball back with 2:51 to go and only needed one play to score, a 45-yard touchdown reception by Brandon Thompkins cut the deficit to two and Grady hit Mario Urrutia for the two-point conversion to tie the game at 56. The Rush recovered an onside kick and began their final possession on their own 22-yard line with 90 seconds to work. Coffman would lead an efficent seven-play, 20-yard drive that setup a 23-yard field goal try for Jose Martinez with one second remaining. Good snap, good hold, and Martinez's kick was down the middle, good for the Rush win! Jose Martinez's game-winning 23-yard field goal sent the Rush home with their third straight win and sole possession of first-place in the central division, while Utah loses their third consecutive home game.
Stat Leaders:
Chicago (3-2) Utah (1-3)
Carson Coffman 22-37, 275 yds, 5TD Tommy Grady 27-42, 345 yds, 7TD, 4 Int
J.J. Payne 4 rush, 8 yds, TD, rec, 8 yds Aaron LeSue 8 rec, 136 yds, 3 TD
Rodney Wright 4 rec, 38 yds, 3 Total TD Brandon Thompkins 9 rec, 117 yds, 2 TD
Jared Jenkins 4 rec, 58 yds, TD Mario Urrutia 9 rec, 82 yds, 2 TD
Reggie Gray 9 rec, 121 yds, 2 TD David Hyland 9 tackles
Kelvin Morris Int, Def-TD
Vic Hall 4 rec, 50 yds, Int
Jorrick Calvin/Joe Phinisee Int
Jose Marinez 1-1 FG (23), 8-8 PAT
Week 5 Players of the Week
Offensive Player of the Week: Brian Zbydniewski, Cleveland QB
- Zbydniewski played his best game as the Gladiators starter, completing 24 of 33 passes for 316 yards and eight touchdowns. He also added a rushing touchdown to lead Cleveland to a 64-57 overtime upset of division-rival Philadelphia; earning the Glads their first victory of the season.
Defensive Player of the Week: Paul Stephens, Spokane DB
- Paul Stephens set an AFL record with 5 interceptions and returned one for a today in the Shock's blowout win over San Jose. Stephens owned Aaron Garcia all game and set the tone on the defensive side of the ball for the Shock who are now 5-0 on the season; with four of those wins coming on the road.
Playmaker of the Week: Rod Windsor, Arizona WR
- Windsor and Nick Davila had an early connection vs. the Talons and the numbers were very impressive. On the night Windsor caught 12 passes for 166 yards and five touchdowns; recording five catches and three scores in the first quarter. The Rattlers bounced back with a dominant performance which was led, in-partial, by Rod Windsor's outstanding performance.
For more on any of these seven games, or the Arena Football League go to: http://www.arenafootball.com/sports/a-footbl/sched/afl-a-footbl-sched.html
Jacksonville Sharks 40, Iowa Barnstormers 34
The Sharks sported their all-red home uniforms in-front of 8,011 at Sea Best Field on Friday while trying to become the first team to reach the 5-0 mark this season. The Barnstormers entered trying to snap a two-game slide by doing something that no one's been able to do this season; beat the Sharks.
Iowa gained two first downs in as many plays after receiving the opening kick, but their momentum was quickly dounced when Terrance Smith intercepted J.J. Raterink's end-zone pass. Bernard Morris would complete five of his first six passes while throwing two touchdowns, a 29-yarder to Markee White on the opening drive and Jeron Harvey caught a 16-yard TD pass on the second possession to give the Sharks a 13-3 lead with under three minutes in the first quarter. The next three possessions all resulted in touchdowns, keeping the Sharks in the lead with a 20-16 advantage at the seven-minute mark of the second quarter. It was the Iowa defense that made the next stop when Rodney Gnat and Mike Lewis combined for a fourth-down sack that followed three straight incompletions by Morris. The sack gave Iowa a great opportunity to take their first lead by having the ball at the Shark-3, but despite the great field position their chance to capitalize escaped when Raterink was sacked on fourth and goal by Jerry Turner. Mat Marcorelle scored on a one-yard run at the end of the half to give Jacksonville an elevan-point lead at the break. The Sharks looked primed to blow this one open after picking up a first down in three qucik plays, but that changed when their next three plays netted a loss of one-yard to set up a fourth-and-long. This time, Mike Lewis made sure the Barnstormers seized a great opportunity when he sacked Morris and forced a fumble that was recovered run into the end zone by Darnell Carter for a "scoop-and-score." The Sharks' next drive ended in a similar fate when Jason Simpson intercepted a Morris deep-ball, after the Sharks had gained 23 yards and two first downs. Iowa was presented with another chance to grab their first lead and did so this time when J.J. Raterink connected with Marcus Harris on second-down for a 43-yard tocuhdown. Despite the dominant quarter by the Barnstormers, the Sharks still managed to carry a 34-28 lead into the fourth quarter when Jeron Harvey caught his third touchdown of the night on the final play of the period. Iowa looked poised to answer with a touchdown of their own, but that ended when Raterink fumbled when he was sacked by Aaron Robbins at the Shark-13. After the Iowa defense forced a four-and-out by the Sharks, it only took two plays for Raterink to tie the game with his 26-yard touchdown pass to Marcus Harris. Jacksonville responded with a five-play, 38-yard drive of their own that resulted in Markee White's five-yard touchdown reception; Marco Capozzoli's extra point was no good so the lead was only six for the Sharks with 2:57 remaining in the game. For the first time this season Jacksonville's perfect record was at-stake late in a game when J.J. Raterink led the Barnstormers out on the field at their own six yard-line. Iowa began the series in fluid-motion, gaining 15 yards in three plays to place the ball at the their own 21 for a second down play with one minute left to play. With the tension in the building rising it was the Shark secondary that stepped up, forcing three straight incompletions by Raterink to preserve the lead. Bernard Morris hit Jeff Hughley for an elevan-yard completion and Rendrick Taylor gained positive yards on three consecutive runs to expire the clock and wrap up the hard-fought 40-34 win for Jacksonville. This game was a classic example of the importance each possession and where extra points can solely make up the differnce in the AFL.
Stat Leaders:
Iowa (2-3) Jacksonville (5-0)
J.J. Raterink 17-30, 240 yds, 3TD, Int Bernard Morris 25-36, 237 yards, 5TD, Int,
Marco Thomas 4 rec, 51 yds, TD, 15 rush yards
23 rush yds Rendrick Taylor 5 rush, 22 yards
Marcus Harris 6 rec, 130 yds, 2 TD Jeron Harvey 8 rec, 81 yds, 3 TD
Ter'Ran Benton 12 tackles Jeff Hughley 10 rec, 75 yds
Jason Simpson 9 tackles, Int Markee White 6 rec, 73 yds, 2 TD
Iowa D 3 sacks Terrance Smith Int
Darnell Carter Fumb Rec-TD Tracy Belton 12 tackles
Phil Marfuggi 1-1 FG (17), 1-5 PAT Jerry Turner/Aaron Robbins sack each
Pittsburgh Power 46, New Orleans VooDoo 43
The Power and VooDoo each entered the Graveyaard in desperate need of a win. Both sides were coming off of being on the embarrassing end of blowouts in week 4 and were looking to move past them with a nice win in week 5.
Both offenses got off to much better starts this week, scoring on thier opening possessions to have the game tied at seven midway through the first quarter. The VooDoo re-took the lead when Kurt Rocco found a wide-open Donovan Morgan for an 18-yard touchdown that sparked a quick run of 16 unanswered points; featuring a sack by James Bryant that resulted for a safety and a 57-yard kick return touchdown by Quorey Payne on the ensuing sequences. In a blink-of-an-eye the Power had fallen behind by three scores but responded with 13 unanswered points of their own on the next two series; occuring when Jordan Jefferson engineered a five-play drive that ended on the first play of the second quarter with Perry Baker's 25-yard touchdown reception and on the following VooDoo possession Sergio Gilliam intercepted Rocco's second down pass and returned it 18 yards for a touchdown. The turnover problems continued for the VooDoo on their next possession when on first and goal Donvan Morgan took the hand-off, ran towards the left, and fumbled when Darius Powell hit him shy of the boards. Jefferson capitalized on his defense's efforts by directing a four-play, 48-yard drive that ended on a 28-yard catch-and-run touchdown reception by P.J. Berry; giving Pittsburgh its first lead of the night. The Power would force a turnover for the third straight possession when Chris LeFlore knocked the ball out of Donovan Morgan's left hand and recovered it at the New Orleans-22. This time the Power offense was unable to reward their defense's effort, as two plays lost 21 yards and on fourth-and-long Jefferson was sacked to give the ball right back to New Orleans. The VooDoo moved quickly and scored with 13 seconds left in the half to retake the lead on Kurt Rocco's one-yard touchdown run; he would left the game with an apparent ankle injury and did not return. Both sides traded touchdowns on their first possession of the second half, but the trend ended when Jordan Jefferson got sacked on second down and followed with back-to-back incompletions, giving the ball to New Orleans at the one. Zack Eskridge, Rocco's replacement, scored on a one-yard qb keeper to give the VooDoo a ten point lead with two minutes left in the third. The lead was quickly reduced back to three when Jefferson hit P.J. Berry for a 47-yard touchdown on the next play. The start of the fourth quarter brought on a low-scoring fifteen minutes. Eskridge got sacked on back-to-back plays on the VooDoo's opening series and P.J. Berry scored on a two-yard touchdown run on the next play to give the Power a 46-43 lead. Gary Cismesia's 30-yard field goal attempt went wide-left on the next possession and Berry's touchdown run would stand as the lone six points in the quarter. The Power defense recorded three sacks and prevented New Orleans from scoring in the fourth to secure their first win of 2013. Quorey Payne made his season debut on Friday night recording 112 all-purpose yards and a kick-return touchdown.
Stat Leaders:
Pittsburgh (1-3) New Orleans (1-3)
Jordan Jefferson 19-30, 223 yds, 5TD, Zack Eskridge 8-15, 29 yds, TD, Rush TD
30 rush yds Kurt Rocco 7-13, 86 yds, 2TD, Int, Rush TD
P.J. Berry 4 rec, 95 yds, 2 TD, Rush TD Donovan Morgan 3 rec, 42 yds, TD, 2 fumbles
Perry Baker 6 rec 75 yds, TD Derek Lee 5 rec, 50 yds, 2 TD
Mike Washington 9 rec, 61 yds, TD James Bryant 10 tackles (3 TFL), 2 sacks, safety
Chris LeFlore/Darius Powell FF/FR each Marlon Favorite/Michale Janac 0.5 sack each
Sergio Gilliam Int-ret TD
Dominie Pittman 2 sacks
Spokane Shock 69, San Jose Sabercats 47
The Shock and Sabercats met in HP Pavilion for a wild western showdown. Spokane entered looking to join the Sharks at 5-0, while the Sabercats were looking to avoid a second straight loss.
Spokane wasted no time getting comfortable in another hostile environment, as Paul Stephens intercepted Aaron Garcia's second pass of the night to give his offense the ball at their own 15 yard-line. It only took three plays for the Shock to score their first points of the night when Erik Meyer threw a 19-yard pass to Adron Tennell, who made a spectacular one-handed catch for the touchdown. Garcia and Meyer both threw touchdown passes on their next two possessions to give the Shock a 21-14 lead at the 14:18 mark in the second quarter. It looked like the Sabercats would respond with a third consecutive touchdown-drive but on fourth down from the Spokane-9 Stephens made his second interception of the night to deny Garica and the 'Cats. Meyer would find Kamar Jorden for an 18-yard touchdown two plays later to make it a 13-point game. Aaron Garica rebounded by leading a three-play, 40-yard drive that ended on Jason Willis' 27-yard touchdown catch. Spokane made their mark in the final four-and-half minutes of the half when Meyer directed a nine-play, 31-yard drive that concluded on Duane Brooks' three-yard touchdown reception and a couple plays later Paul Stephens recorded his third interception of the game. Spokane broke the game open in the first five minutes of the third quarter when they took the opening possession and marched down the field in a six-play, four-minute drive that resulted in Kamar Jorden's third touchdown catch, and when Paul Stephens intercepted Aaron Garcia's first pass of the half and returned it 26 yards for another touchdown. Garcia and Meyers would match touchdown passes on the ensuing possessions and the Shock carried a 55-27 lead into the fourth. A 28-point margin was quickly cut in-half when Garcia found Jason Willis for a four-yard touchdown, capping off a ten-play, 42-yard drive, and J.C. Neal forced a fumble on the next possession which turned into a three-yard touchdown run by Brian Folkerts. The essence of a wild comeback was quickly calmed when the Shock recovered the ensuing onside kick and Adron Tennell caught a six-yard touchdown to get the lead back to 21 with 9:40 left to play. San Jose scored quickly, but failed to recover their second straight onside kick. The Shock milked three-and-half minutes off the clock and Tennell scored his fourth touchdown on a two-yard run to seal another road victory for the orange and blue. Paul Stephens set an AFL record by recording his fifth interception on Garcia's final pass of the night and without will be this week's defensive player of the week. Shock go to 5-0, while the Sabercats fall to 2-2.
Stat Leaders:
Spokane (5-0) San Jose (2-2)
Erik Meyer 26-37, 242 yds, 8TD, 14 rush yds Aaron Garcia 28-45, 309 yds, 6TD, 5 Int
Adron Tennell 9 rec, 117 yds, 3 TD, Rush TD Jamarko Simmons 11 rec, 126 yds, TD
Duane Brooks 10 rec, 63 yds, TD Jason Willis 9 rec, 123 yds, 3 TD
Kamar Jorden 5 rec, 49 yds, 3 TD Clevan Thomas/Ken Fontenette 7 tackles
Terrance Sanders 10 tackles
Paul Stephens 6 tackles, 5 interceptions,
1 Int-ret TD
Beau Bell/Chase Vaughn sack each
Tampa Bay Storm 53, Orlando Predators 35
The first meeting between these two hated rivals marked the 51st edition of the War on I-4. The Storm entered the hostile "Jungle" looking to stay perfect on the road, while the Predators tried to get the first win of 2013.
Entering this matchup the Predators faced questions about who would be their starter this week; we got our answer when Kyle Rowley took the field on the opening drive of the night. Rowley got off to a good start, completing his first four passes, but on the seventh play of the series his pass intended for T.T. Toliver in the end zone was intercepted by De-Audra Dix who returned it 37 yards before fumbling the ball to teammate Rashad Barkdale who finished the "pick-six" by running the last 15 yards to score the touchdown. The struggles continued for Rowley when his eight pass was an over-throw that got intercepted by Chris Smith; and resulted in Adrian McPherson's one-yard touchdown run four plays later. Facing a 14-0 deficit and seeing Rowley throw two interceptions caused Doug Plank to make a quick change to Chris Dixon. The decision proved to be the correct one as Dixon instantly led a seven-play, 37-yard drive that ended on Jermaine Richardson's one-yard touchdown run. McPherson and Dixon would each direct two touchdown drives in the second quarter to keep the Storm's lead at six by halftime. A pair of goal-line stands by the Predator defense, the second of which coming on the opening drive of the second half, created the opportunity for Orlando to take their first lead of the game. Dixon answered the call by completing three straight passes to three different receivers, finding T.T. Toliver for a 30-yard touchdown and Mark Lewis' extra point gave the Preds their first lead of the night with 7:35 left in the third. The lead would be short-lived as Adrian McPherson completed his fourth-down pass to Greg Ellingson who did the rest to turn a short dump-off pass into a 40-yard touchdown, making it 33-28 Storm. De-Audra Dix forced Amarri Jackson to fumble on a 15-yard reception, and two plays later Michael Lindsey caught a 25-yard touchdown to give Tampa Bay an elevan-point lead heading into the fourth quarter. Orlando responded with a nine-play drive that resulted in a 16-yard touchdown run by Chris Dixon to cut the deficit to four with 8:49 reamining, but Dixon was injured when he dove into the end zone and left the game. It only took three plays for the Storm to counter when McPherson hit Joe Hills for a 33-yard touchdown, bringing the lead back to double digits with 5:39 left to play. Kyle Rowley was forced to re-enter the game and threw four incompletions which effectively ended any hopes of a wild finish; two plays later Adrian McPherson scored his second rushing touchdown to ice the game. The Storm take the all-time lead in the series (26-25) and more importantly move to 3-2 on the season, while the Predators faulter again in the Jungle. A couple notes for the Predators, T.T. Toliver made his 2013 debut and Kyle Rowley had a forgetable night only completing 6 of 17 passes for 70 yards to go along with two interceptions.
Stat Leaders:
Tampa Bay (3-2) Orlando (0-4)
Adrian McPherson 12-20, 223 yards, 4TD, Chris Dixon 17-21, 198 yds, 3TD,
7 yds and 2 TD rushing 60 rush yds, TD
Joe Hills 4 rec, 83 yds, 2 TD T.T. Toliver 6 rec, 106 yds, 2 TD
Greg Ellingson 4 rec, 79 yds, TD Amarri Jackson 5 rec, 65 yds, TD
Michael Lindsey 4 rec, 61 yds, TD Marcus Everett 4 tackles, sack
Jean Fanor 10 tackles, Fumb. rec
Chris Smith/De-Audra Dix Int each
Rashad Barksdale Def TD
DeMarcus Tyler 2 sacks
Cleveland Gladiators 64, Philadelphia Soul 57 F/OT
Entering week 5 this matchup between the Soul and Gladiators looked like it would be nothing more than a blowout; but folks.....thats why we play the game!
Things got off to a fast start in Philadelphia when both teams traded opening-drive touchdowns but LaRico Stevenson created some space when he forced and returned a fumble for a touchdown to make it a quick 14 points for the Soul. The teams would again trade touchdowns on the following possessions to keep it a seven-point margin early in the second quarter. The Soul looked prime to pull away when Joe Goosby made an interception on the Gladitors' 21-yard line and returned it to the six, setting up a six-yard touchdown reception by Tiger Jones to make it 28-14. Brian Zbydniewski responded by throwing a 34-yard touchdown pass to Thyron Lewis on the next series to cut the lead in-half. Dan Raudabaugh engineered a 12-play, 43-yard drive that concluded with a touchdown run by Derrick Ross to give the Soul a 14-point lead at halftime. Everything looked to be going as planned, the Soul led by 14 and looked as they we be able to expand the lead to 21 with on the opening possession of the second half; but that all changed when Raudabaugh's pass on third and goal was intercepted by Maurice Williams in the Cleveland end zone. It only took three plays for the Glads to capitalize on the stop with Jamar Howard's elevan-yard touchdown catch to get the lead back down to seven. Philadelphia looked to be on the move again after Raudabaugh completed his first two passes on the ensuing drive but it all ended when his third pass was intercepted by Brandon Anderson, giving Cleveland a great opportunity to tie the game. Zbydniewski completed two of his next four passes, finding Jamar Howard for a 17-yard touchdown to tie it at 35. The Soul capped off a five-play drive on the second snap of the fourth quarter when Raudabaugh fired a strike to Tiger Jones for a 15-yard touchdown to put his sideback up by seven. Cleveland answered with a six-play, 45-yard drive that resulted in Zbydniewski's one-yard touchdown run which made it 42-41 with 9:05 to play; the extra point was missed. The night of surprises was just getting started, Alvance Robinson fumbled the ensuing kickoff and Zbydniewski fired a 30-yard strike to a wide-open Jonathan Wilson for the go-ahead touchdown with 7:50 left. The Soul were facing their first deficit since early in the first, but responded with a nine-play, 47-yard drive that resulted in a four-yard touchdown catch by Andrae Thurman, who also caught the two-point conversion, to give Philadelphia a three-point lead with 55 seconds remaining. The Gladiators recovered the ensuing onside kick (typical AFL strategy by the leading team to better their chances at either running out the clock or getting themselves one, final possession) and scored on the next play when Zbydniewski threw an 18-yard touchdown to Thyron Lewis to give Cleveland a four-point lead with 47 seconds left. The Soul took over at their own ten and just needed three plays to retake the lead on Tiger Jones' 13-yard touchdown reception, leaving ten seconds for Cleveland. Brian Zbydniewski completed his only pass of the final series to Howard to set up a 45-yard field goal try for Ross Gornall; which Gornall drilled down the middle to tie the game at 57 as the buzzer sounded to force overtime. Cleveland received the opening possession of the overtime period and moved down the field in five-plays, re-taking the lead on Thyron Lewis' 16-yard touchdown reception. The Soul started their OT-possession needing to gain 39 yards for the tying touchdown. Dan Raudabaugh completed his first pass to Thurman for 16 yards, but misfired on his next three attempts that also featured a false start to set up a fourth and fifteen. With the game on the line Raudabaugh dropped back and looked deep in the front of the end zone for Tiger Jones but his pass was out of the reach for Jones and fell harmlessly to the ground, sending the Gladiators home as winners for the first time in 2013. For the second consecutive season Cleveland has come to Philadelphia and beat the Soul to pull off the upset of the 2013 season to this point.
Stat Leaders:
Cleveland (1-3) Philadelphia (2-2)
Brian Zbydniewski 24-33, 316 yds, 8TD, Dan Raudabaugh 31-50, 306 yds, 5TD, 2 Int
Int, Rush TD Derrick Ross 6 rush, 17 yds, 2 TD, 2 rec, 7 yds
Thyron Lewis 6 rec, 122 yds, 4 TD Tiger Jones 13 rec, 143 yds, 3 TD
Jamar Howard 9 rec, 95 yds, 2 TD Andrae Thurman 9 rec, 82 yds, TD
Jonathan Wilson 7 rec, 87 yds, 2 TD Joe Goosby 8 tackles, Int
Brandon Anderson/Maurice Williams Int
Ross Gornall 1-1 FG (45), 7-8 PAT
Arizona Rattlers 83, San Antonio Talons 40
How would the Rattlers bounce back from their first loss of the season is what we were all wondering heading into this week 5 matchup; to answer the question I think they bounced back just fine.
The Nick Davila to Rod Windsor connection got off to a hot start, five receptions for 89 yards and three touchdowns in the first quarter which coupled with two defensive stops to give Arizona an early 21-7 lead. The offensive efficency continued for Davila in the second quarter, completing two out of two passes for 29 yards and two touchdowns to match another stand by the defense to give the Rattlers a 34-14 lead midway through the period. Nick Hill and Davila traded touchdown passes on the ensuing possessions to keep the margin at 21 points with 4:42 left in the half, but then the Rattler defense made another timely stop by recording back-to-back sacks of Hill which forced a 64-yard field goal attempt by Stefan Demos that was way short and wide left, giving Arizona the ball at their own twenty-yard line with 99 seconds left for Nick Davila to work his magic. Davila only needed 92 of those seconds to lead the Rattlers down the field in five plays and throw his seventh touchdown pass of the half, a 13-yarder to Rod Windsor to extend the lead to 48-20. The Rattlers received the opening possession of the third quarter and marched smoothly down the field in four plays, resulting in Davila's eighth touchdown pass which was a 17-yard strike to Kerry Reed. Nick Davila and the Rattlers offense was unstoppable the entire night and Virgil Gray's interception inside the final minute if the third ended any possibility of a dreamy Talons comeback. Arizona responded like any defending champion would, crushing the Talons 83-40 to stay unbeaten in the Snake Pit while moving to 4-1 on the season.
Stat Leaders:
San Antonio (1-3) Arizona (4-1)
Nick Hill 20-40, 293 yds, 4TD, 2 Int, Nick Davila 22-26, 278 yds, 9TD
14 rush yds, 2 TD Odie Armstrong 3 rush, 26 yds, TD
Jomo Wilson 10 rec, 164 yds, 3 TD Rod Windsor 12 rec, 166 yds, 5 TD
Dwayne Eley Jr. 4 rec, 54 yds, TD Jared Perry 5 rec, 93 yds, 2 TD, Rush TD
Kerry Reed 4 rec, 47 yds, 3 TD
Virgil Gray/Jeremy Kellem Int
Tyre Glasper 2 sacks
Chicago Rush 59, Utah Blaze 56
This week's CBS Sports Network game of the week featured two foes who are going opposite directions. The Rush entered on a two-game winning streak, while the Blaze were trying to avoid a third-straight home defeat.
Carson Coffman got off to a cold start, throwing incompletions on three of his first four passes which gave Utah the ball at the Rush-22. Tommy Grady didn't waste anytime getting the first points of the night when his first pass fell into the arms of Aaron LeSue for the touchdown. It became a touchdown show as both offenses caught fire in the and traded scores all the way until Utah's fifth possession with 28 seconds remaining in the first half. The Rush defense rose to the challenge and got their first stop of the game when Tyus Jackson and Brian McNally combined for a sack with one second left and Vic Hall intercepted a hail mary in the end zone to ensure the half ended in a 28-28 tie. Tommy Grady and the Blaze took the opening possession of the second half and went down the field in four plays, 43 yards to retake the lead on Mario Urrutia's 16-yard touchdown grab. Coffman responded on the next series with a 19-yard touchdown pass to Reggie Gray to re-tie the game at 35. The barrage of touchdowns came to an end before it got started in the second half when Jorrick Calvin intercepted Grady on a deep ball and six plays later Carson Coffman fumbled at the line on a fourth-and-one to give the ball back to Utah. Tommy Grady answered by engineering a five-play, 46-yard drive that resulted in five-yard touchdown reception by Urrutia. Adrian Trevino missed the extra point on the touchdown, but made up for it by recovering a fumble on the ensuing kickoff to give the ball right back to Grady and the offense at the Rush-16. It looked like the Blaze would be able to create some space but Joe Phinisee had other ideas, recording the third interception of Grady on the final play of the third quarter to keep the Rush within six. Chicago began the fourth quarter at their own five-yard line and were guided 45 yards down the field on eight plays by Coffman, who threw a seven-yard touchdown pass to Reggie Gray to give Chicago a one-point lead with 9:56 left in the game. Tommy Grady answered with three straight completions, the third of them to Aaron LeSue for a 24-yard touchdown to give the lead back to Utah. The Rush didn't trail for long as Coffman hit Jared Jenkins for a 30-yard touchdown to get the lead right back with 5:54 to play. Three plays later Kelvin Morris made the fourth interception of Grady and returned it 18 yards for a touchdown, making it 56-48 in favor of the Rush. Utah got the ball back with 2:51 to go and only needed one play to score, a 45-yard touchdown reception by Brandon Thompkins cut the deficit to two and Grady hit Mario Urrutia for the two-point conversion to tie the game at 56. The Rush recovered an onside kick and began their final possession on their own 22-yard line with 90 seconds to work. Coffman would lead an efficent seven-play, 20-yard drive that setup a 23-yard field goal try for Jose Martinez with one second remaining. Good snap, good hold, and Martinez's kick was down the middle, good for the Rush win! Jose Martinez's game-winning 23-yard field goal sent the Rush home with their third straight win and sole possession of first-place in the central division, while Utah loses their third consecutive home game.
Stat Leaders:
Chicago (3-2) Utah (1-3)
Carson Coffman 22-37, 275 yds, 5TD Tommy Grady 27-42, 345 yds, 7TD, 4 Int
J.J. Payne 4 rush, 8 yds, TD, rec, 8 yds Aaron LeSue 8 rec, 136 yds, 3 TD
Rodney Wright 4 rec, 38 yds, 3 Total TD Brandon Thompkins 9 rec, 117 yds, 2 TD
Jared Jenkins 4 rec, 58 yds, TD Mario Urrutia 9 rec, 82 yds, 2 TD
Reggie Gray 9 rec, 121 yds, 2 TD David Hyland 9 tackles
Kelvin Morris Int, Def-TD
Vic Hall 4 rec, 50 yds, Int
Jorrick Calvin/Joe Phinisee Int
Jose Marinez 1-1 FG (23), 8-8 PAT
Week 5 Players of the Week
Offensive Player of the Week: Brian Zbydniewski, Cleveland QB
- Zbydniewski played his best game as the Gladiators starter, completing 24 of 33 passes for 316 yards and eight touchdowns. He also added a rushing touchdown to lead Cleveland to a 64-57 overtime upset of division-rival Philadelphia; earning the Glads their first victory of the season.
Defensive Player of the Week: Paul Stephens, Spokane DB
- Paul Stephens set an AFL record with 5 interceptions and returned one for a today in the Shock's blowout win over San Jose. Stephens owned Aaron Garcia all game and set the tone on the defensive side of the ball for the Shock who are now 5-0 on the season; with four of those wins coming on the road.
Playmaker of the Week: Rod Windsor, Arizona WR
- Windsor and Nick Davila had an early connection vs. the Talons and the numbers were very impressive. On the night Windsor caught 12 passes for 166 yards and five touchdowns; recording five catches and three scores in the first quarter. The Rattlers bounced back with a dominant performance which was led, in-partial, by Rod Windsor's outstanding performance.
For more on any of these seven games, or the Arena Football League go to: http://www.arenafootball.com/sports/a-footbl/sched/afl-a-footbl-sched.html
Friday, April 19, 2013
AFL Week 4 Recap
Week 4 in the AFL only featured five games, with two of them being blowouts. Orlando, Cleveland, San Jose, and Utah all had their bye this week.
Jacksonville Sharks 76, New Orleans VooDoo 30
After winning three straight road games to begin the season, it was time to welcome the VooDoo into Sea Best Field for the long overdue home-opener for the Sharks. Any questions about whether New Orleans would spoil the festivities were quickly erased when the Sharks commanded the first quarter for a 28-0 lead.
The Jacksonville defense got a sack and forced two incompletions on the VooDoo's opening possession and scored the first points of the night when Bernard Morris threw an elevan-yard touchdown pass to Jeff Hughley two plays later. New Orleans had a little more success on their second drive, but things got worse as Jeff Hughley scored his second touchdown of the night by catching Gary Cismesia's missed 30-yard field goal off the rebound net and returning it 52 yards for a touchdown. Jeff Hughley's third touchdown of the quarter came on a nine-yard catch to give the Sharks a 21-0 lead with four minutes left in the first quarter. The Sharks would add another touchdown to their lead four plays later, highlighted by an interception by Terrance Smith and -Rendrick Taylor's one-yard touchdown run. To start the second quarter Kurt Rocco would throw his second interception and Rendrick Taylor scored his second one-yard touchdown run to give the Sharks a 35-point lead early in the second quarter. The Sharks led 55-12 at the half and that was all she wrote. The Sharks used a dominant defensive perfrmance coupled by an effective rushing attack to become the League's first 4-0 team this season.
Stat Leaders:
New Orleans (1-2) Jacksonville (4-0)
Kurt Rocco 13-28, 172 yds, 3TD, 2 Int Bernard Morris 5-6, 45 yds, 2TD, 5 rush yds, TD
Zack Eskridge 6-9, 71 yds, 2TD, Int R.J. Archer 11-16, 132 yds, 2TD, 19 rush yds
Donovan Morgan 7 rec, 64 yds, 3TD Renderick Taylor 14 rush, 17 yds, 4TD
Courtney Smith 8 rec, 150 yds, TD Markee White 5 rec, 75 yds, TD
Eddie Moten 7 tackles Terrance Smith 2 Int
Matt Marcorella 2 sacks
San Antonio Talons 52, Tampa Bay Storm 36
The Talons entered this game with some questions at quarterback, but signed Nick Hill in the middle of the week to command the offense verse his former squad. Neither team took much time to score their frist points of the evening, Tampa Bay took a 6-0 lead on Adrian McPherson's 28-yard touchdown run and the Dwayne Eley Jr. returned the ensuing kickoff 58 yards for a touchdown to make it 7-6 in San Antonio's favor. McPherson would lead the Storm on a nine-play, six-and-a-half minute drive that resulted in Juan Bongarra's 29-yard field goal. The Talon Defense stepped up in the second quarter forcing two missed field goals while holding Tampa Bay to just six points. San Antonio retook the lead with three seconds left in the half when Burl Toler caught Hill's seven-yard pass for a touchdown to make it 21-15. Both sides traded touchdowns and defensive stops in the third quarter to give the Talons a 35-28 lead going into the fourth. San Antonio began a dominant quarter when Nick Hill found Jomo Wilson for a 25-yard touchdown on the fifth play of the drive to give the Talons their largest lead of the night. Tampa Bay's chances at a comeback were dashed three plays later when Joe Sykes sacked Adrian McPherson from behind, forcing a fumble that was returned for a touchdown by Jamar Ransom and to add injury to insult, McPherson was injured on the play. The Talons held a 21-point lead with ten and a half minutes left, but without McPherson available to lead the Storm offense Tampa bay had no answer and only managed eight points in the final quarter. Nick Hill successfully led San Antonio to their first win of the season while restoring confidence for the folks of the Alamo all against his former team. This was Nick Hill's Talon and 2013 AFL debut.
Stat Leaders:
San Antonio (1-2) Tampa Bay (2-2)
Nick Hill 23-35 187 yds, 4TD, Int Adrian Mcpherson 12-24, 141 yds, 2TD, Int,
Burl Toler 10 rec, 74 yds, TD 46 rush yds, 2TD
Dwayne Eley Jr. 5 rec, 52 yds, TD Greg Ellingson 7 rec, 101 yds, TD
Jomo Wilson 6 rec, 42 yds, 2 TD Joe Hills 4 rec, 42 yds, 2TD
Dwayne Eley Jr./D.J. Stephens De'Audra Dix 6 tackles, Int
Kick-ret TD each R.J. Roberts 2 sacks
Joe Sykes 4 tackles (3 TFL), FF, 2.5 sacks
Talon D 4 sacks, Int, and Fumble
Stefan Demos 1-1 FG (23), 7-7 PAT
Spokane Shock 66, Arizona Rattlers 49
The great battle of the wild west, what better way to spend a Friday night!? The Shock started their season with three straight road wins and welcomed the undefeated, defending champion Rattlers into their building in a matchup of undefeated, division rivals.
Both offenses had it clicking for the first twenty minutes, trading touchdowns on their first three possessions. Nick Davila threw two touchdowns to Rod Windsor, while his counter part Erik Meyer also threw two touchdowns but also added a rushing score in the early fury of points. The game changed when Shock head coach, Andy Olsen called for an onside kick with ten minutes remaining in the second quarter that was successfully recovered to earn Spokane the first stop of the game by either side. It took five plays for Meyer to convert the onside kick into points, finding Kamar Jordan who had a nice run after the catch for an 18-yard touchdown; giving the Shock their first lead of the night. Things looked like they could be getting away from the Rattlers when their ensuing possession started at their own one-yard line and Davila threw three consecutive incompletions to set up a fourth and ten from the same spot. After a delay-of-game moved the ball back mere inches Davila, with his back against the back of his own end zone, threw a beautiful spiral to a wide-open Kerry Reed who would finish the run to complete the 49-yard touchdown, tying the game at 28 with 2:30 left in the first half. The Shock did a masterful job ensuring themselves of the last possession of the half by producing a ten-play drive, but on the last play of the half Meyer's pass intended for Duane Brooks fell incomplete in the back of the end zone; marking the first stop by the Rattlers' defense to keep it tied at halftime. Just like the first quarter both teams traded touchdowns on their first two possessions of the second half, keeping the game tied at 42 with 13:21 remaining in the fourth quarter. This tie didn't last for long, on first and ten from his own five Erik Meyer found Adron Tennell in-stride at the Arizona-15 where his momentum caused him to bounce off the wall and run the rest of the way into the end zone for a 45-yard touchdown, putting the Shock back up by seven. Nick Davila answered by hitting Rod Windsor for a 34-yard completion on first and ten from his own five, and going back to Windsor three plays later for a 17-yard touchdown to re-tie the game at 49. Erik Meyer quickly gave the Shock their seven-point lead back by completing back-to-back passes, highlighted by Adron Tennell's one-handed grab in the back left-corner of the end zone for the 24-yard touchdown. The Rattlers got the ball back at their own five with 6:14 remaining and needing to, once-again, match a Spokane touchdown. The Shock front-three put tremendous pressure on Nick Davila, forcing four straight incompletions to earn a huge defensive stop. The Rattler defense was able to make a stand, holding the Shock to three points on Kenny Spencer's 18-yard field goal. The Shock held a ten-point lead, the largest margin either side enjoyed on the night, with one minute left. Davila was able to move his Rattlers in scoring position at the Shock-7, only to have his second-down pass intercepted by a leaping Beau Bell. Meyer connected with Adron Tennell for a 23-yard touchdown to secure the victory. Despite the final score, this game was without a doubt the best game of this young 2013 season. The Shock improve to 4-0, while the Rattlers suffer their first loss. Also as a fun-fact, neither kicker missed a kick in this game which in the AFL is very uncommon.
Stat Leaders:
Arizona (3-1) Spokane (4-0)
Nick Davila 18-33, 341 yds, 5TD, Int, Erik Meyer 27-43, 351 yds, 8TD,
17 rush yds 11 rush yds, TD
Rod Windsor 7 rec, 135 yds, 3 TD Adron Tennell 10 rec, 138 yds, 4 TD
Kerry Reed 6 rec 117 yds, TD Duane Brooks 9 rec, 118 yds, TD
Jared Perry 5 rec, 89 yds, TD Kamar Jordan 8 rec, 95 yds, 3 TD
Garrett Lindholm 7-7 PAT Beau Bell 3 tackles, Int, and sack
Kenny Spencer 1-1 FG (18), 9-9 PAT
Philadelphia Soul 54, Iowa Barnstormers 43
This week's CBS Sports Network game of the week featured the Soul and Barnstormers. The Soul were trying to win their second cosnecutive game, while the Iowa tried to avoid a loss at home for the second straight week. The Soul got the opening possesson, with their first two plays being exact opposites. Dan Raudabaugh's first pass was a 33-yard touchdown to Tiger Jones to quickly give the Soul a 7-0 lead. After the Philadelphia defense recorded two sacks and forced two incompletions in a four-play sequence for the turnover-on-downs, Raudabaugh's second pass was intercepted De'Mon Glanton. The Soul defense got the ball back two plays later when Bryan Robinson forced a fumble while sacking J.J. Raterink at the Philadelphia-23. This offensive-struggle of a first quarter continued when the Barnstormer defense flexed its muscle by making a stand in the red-zone to keep the Soul from scoring. Raterink produced Iowa's first points of the game with less than a minute remaing in the first quarter when he found Jesse Schmidt, who made his 2013 debut, for a 36-yard touchdown; Bryan Robinson blocked the extra point and Rayshaun Kizer returned it for a defensive PAT to make it 9-6. Philadelphia got the first possession of the second quarter and marched down the field in five plays, ending on Derrick Ross's four-yard touchdown run to extend the lead to ten. The Soul defensive front dominated in the first half and made their prescence felt when thye sacked Raterink for two more times on the ensuing drive, which was highlighted by Brandon Perkins' sack on fourth and 19 that resulted in a safety. Just when it looked like Philadelphia was making their move to runaway with this one a pair of turnovers quickly changed that notion. LaRico Stevenson fumbled the following kickoff, which lead to Jesse Schmidt's second touchdown, and an interception-return touchdown by Erick McIntosh on the next series turned a twelve-point defecit into a one-point lead with 2:35 left in the half. The Soul offense regrouped by going on a five-play, 45-yard drive that resulted in Larry Brackins' 16-yard touchdown reception with 13 seconds; but Phil Marfuggi stole the spotlight at the end of the half when he drilled a 50-yard field goal at the buzzer to make the score 25-22 in-favor of Philadelphia. Iowa began the second half with a seven-play, 45-yard drive that saw a 17-yard touchdown catch by Marcus Harris return the lead to Iowa. Philadelphia answered with a five-play, 46-yard drive of their own that ended on Ryan McDaniel's 25-yard touchdown catch. Iowa was able to move the ball down the field on their next possession, but got nothing when J.J. Raterink was sacked by Joe Goosby on fourth-and-goal. Derrick Ross scored his second rushing touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter to make it a two-possession game. Raterink threw four incompletions from his seven-yard line and Tiger Jones caught a one-yard touchdown four plays later to give the Soul their largest lead of the night with 8:50 remaining in the game. J.J. Raterink would throw touchdown passes on the next two possessions but unfortunately for Iowa it was too little, too late for a comeback. Jesse Schmidt made his season debut for Iowa.
Stat Leaders:
Philadelphia (2-1) Iowa (2-2)
Dan Raudabaugh 22-30, 270 yds, 5TD, 2 Int J.J. Raterink 20-35, 238 yds, 4TD, rush TD
Derrick Ross 9 rush, 17 yds, 2 TD Marcus Harris 11 rec 126 yds, 2 TD
Tiger Jones 8 rec, 108 yds, 3 TD Jesse Schmidt 8 rec, 107 yds, 2TD
Ryan McDaniel 5 rec, 93 yds, TD De'Mon Glanton/Errick McIntosh Int each
Bryan Robinson/Dustin Barno 1.5 sack each
Joe Goosby 7 tackes (3 TFL), 2 sacks
Chicago Rush 45, Pittsburgh Power 14
The Rush entered Sunday looking for the first home win of 2013, while the Power were just trying to earn their first victory of the young season. The first quarter was unique, as we saw each team only possess the ball once. The Rush took the opening kick and put together an elevan play drive that lasted 6:50, endured two fourth-and-long conversions, and concluded when Danny Southwick, who started for Carson Coffman, found Reggie Gray for a 19-yard touchdown pass. The Power responded with a 13-play drive of their own that spanned for the remainder of the first and set up a fourth and three on Chicago's four-yard line for the first play of the second quarter. On the fourth down play, Jordan Jefferson faked a hand-off to Kirby Griffin and instead pitched the ball to P.J. Berry who looped around the backfield and was tackled at the Chicago-2, a yard shy of the first down marker. Southwick directed a six-play, 48-yard drive that resulted in his 12-yard touchdown pass to Jared Jenkins to put the Rush up 14-0 midway through the quarter. The Power answered with am eight-play drive that consumed nearly six minutes but ended up producing nothing when Jefferson wound-up to throw a pass on first-and-goal and had the ball slip out of his hand for a fumble that was recovered by Chicago at their own 21-yard line. The Power defense stepped up to make two goal-line stands in the last four-and-half minutes of the half to keep the game within two scores. Chicago's defense was also impressive, posting a first half shutout which is a hard thing to do in the AFL. The second half got off to a much better start, Jefferson had a 32-yard run on the first play of the half and then Kirby Griffin scored on a three-yard touchdown run to make it 14-7. Despite Southwick's successful first half, Chicago head coach Bob McMillan elected to put Carson Coffman in the game to direct the offense. Coffman led Chicago on a five-play drive that resulted in J.J. Payne's three-yard touchdown run to bring the lead back to fourteen. The Rush defense forced a quick four-and-out on the Power's next possession and Jose Martinez's 27-yard field goal gave Chicago a 24-7 advantage midway through the third quarter. Jordan Jefferson would throw an eight-yard touchdown to Mike Washington to make the score 24-14 at the end of the third. The fourth quarter was dominated by Chicago, Carson Coffman threw two touchdown passes while the defense pressured, sacked, and intercepted Jefferson all quarter to turn this into a "windy city" blowout. J.J. Payne scored a second three-yard touchdown run in the final minutes to seal a 21-0 quarter by the Rush for their second consecutive win.
Stat Leaders:
Pittsburgh (0-3) Chicago (2-2)
Jordan Jefferson 18-36, 139 yds, TD, Int, Danny Southwick 17-26, 150 yds, 2TD
67 rush yds Carson Coffman 7-10, 98 yds, 2TD
Power 82 rush yds, TD as a team Reggie Gray 10 rec, 152 yds, 2 TD
Mike Washington 12 rec, 98 yds, TD Jared Jenkins 10 rec, 73 yds, TD
Chris LeFlore 8 tackles Jorrick Calvin/Joe Phinisee 11 tackles each,
Calivn Int
Darrell Campbell 2 sacks
Week 4 Players of the Week
Offensive Player of the Week: Erik Meyer, Spokane QB
- Erik Meyer earned his second "Offensive Player of the Week" award of the season by completing 27 of 43 passes for 351 yards and eight touchdown passes, while adding elevan yards and a touchdown on the ground to lead the Shock to a win in their home-opener. Meyer out-dueled his counterpart Nick Davila in order to keep the Shock perfect on the young season.
Defensive Player of the Week: Joe Goosby, Philadelphia JLB
- Goosby lead a dominate performance by the Soul defense with seven tackles, three of them for a loss, and two sacks. The entire defense caused havoc for J.J. Raterink the entire night, leading to the Soul's second straight win.
Playmaker of the Week: Jeff Hughley, Jacksonville WR
- Hughley had himself quite a night, catching only two passes but both were touchdowns and returning a missed field goal for a touchdown. He scored the first three touchdowns of a game that was well in-hand by halftime. The Sharks made easy work of their south division rivals winning 76-30 to record their fourth win of the season and their first at Sea Best Field.
For more on any of these five games, or the Arena Football League go to: http://www.arenafootball.com/sports/a-footbl/sched/afl-a-footbl-sched.html
Jacksonville Sharks 76, New Orleans VooDoo 30
After winning three straight road games to begin the season, it was time to welcome the VooDoo into Sea Best Field for the long overdue home-opener for the Sharks. Any questions about whether New Orleans would spoil the festivities were quickly erased when the Sharks commanded the first quarter for a 28-0 lead.
The Jacksonville defense got a sack and forced two incompletions on the VooDoo's opening possession and scored the first points of the night when Bernard Morris threw an elevan-yard touchdown pass to Jeff Hughley two plays later. New Orleans had a little more success on their second drive, but things got worse as Jeff Hughley scored his second touchdown of the night by catching Gary Cismesia's missed 30-yard field goal off the rebound net and returning it 52 yards for a touchdown. Jeff Hughley's third touchdown of the quarter came on a nine-yard catch to give the Sharks a 21-0 lead with four minutes left in the first quarter. The Sharks would add another touchdown to their lead four plays later, highlighted by an interception by Terrance Smith and -Rendrick Taylor's one-yard touchdown run. To start the second quarter Kurt Rocco would throw his second interception and Rendrick Taylor scored his second one-yard touchdown run to give the Sharks a 35-point lead early in the second quarter. The Sharks led 55-12 at the half and that was all she wrote. The Sharks used a dominant defensive perfrmance coupled by an effective rushing attack to become the League's first 4-0 team this season.
Stat Leaders:
New Orleans (1-2) Jacksonville (4-0)
Kurt Rocco 13-28, 172 yds, 3TD, 2 Int Bernard Morris 5-6, 45 yds, 2TD, 5 rush yds, TD
Zack Eskridge 6-9, 71 yds, 2TD, Int R.J. Archer 11-16, 132 yds, 2TD, 19 rush yds
Donovan Morgan 7 rec, 64 yds, 3TD Renderick Taylor 14 rush, 17 yds, 4TD
Courtney Smith 8 rec, 150 yds, TD Markee White 5 rec, 75 yds, TD
Eddie Moten 7 tackles Terrance Smith 2 Int
Matt Marcorella 2 sacks
San Antonio Talons 52, Tampa Bay Storm 36
The Talons entered this game with some questions at quarterback, but signed Nick Hill in the middle of the week to command the offense verse his former squad. Neither team took much time to score their frist points of the evening, Tampa Bay took a 6-0 lead on Adrian McPherson's 28-yard touchdown run and the Dwayne Eley Jr. returned the ensuing kickoff 58 yards for a touchdown to make it 7-6 in San Antonio's favor. McPherson would lead the Storm on a nine-play, six-and-a-half minute drive that resulted in Juan Bongarra's 29-yard field goal. The Talon Defense stepped up in the second quarter forcing two missed field goals while holding Tampa Bay to just six points. San Antonio retook the lead with three seconds left in the half when Burl Toler caught Hill's seven-yard pass for a touchdown to make it 21-15. Both sides traded touchdowns and defensive stops in the third quarter to give the Talons a 35-28 lead going into the fourth. San Antonio began a dominant quarter when Nick Hill found Jomo Wilson for a 25-yard touchdown on the fifth play of the drive to give the Talons their largest lead of the night. Tampa Bay's chances at a comeback were dashed three plays later when Joe Sykes sacked Adrian McPherson from behind, forcing a fumble that was returned for a touchdown by Jamar Ransom and to add injury to insult, McPherson was injured on the play. The Talons held a 21-point lead with ten and a half minutes left, but without McPherson available to lead the Storm offense Tampa bay had no answer and only managed eight points in the final quarter. Nick Hill successfully led San Antonio to their first win of the season while restoring confidence for the folks of the Alamo all against his former team. This was Nick Hill's Talon and 2013 AFL debut.
Stat Leaders:
San Antonio (1-2) Tampa Bay (2-2)
Nick Hill 23-35 187 yds, 4TD, Int Adrian Mcpherson 12-24, 141 yds, 2TD, Int,
Burl Toler 10 rec, 74 yds, TD 46 rush yds, 2TD
Dwayne Eley Jr. 5 rec, 52 yds, TD Greg Ellingson 7 rec, 101 yds, TD
Jomo Wilson 6 rec, 42 yds, 2 TD Joe Hills 4 rec, 42 yds, 2TD
Dwayne Eley Jr./D.J. Stephens De'Audra Dix 6 tackles, Int
Kick-ret TD each R.J. Roberts 2 sacks
Joe Sykes 4 tackles (3 TFL), FF, 2.5 sacks
Talon D 4 sacks, Int, and Fumble
Stefan Demos 1-1 FG (23), 7-7 PAT
Spokane Shock 66, Arizona Rattlers 49
The great battle of the wild west, what better way to spend a Friday night!? The Shock started their season with three straight road wins and welcomed the undefeated, defending champion Rattlers into their building in a matchup of undefeated, division rivals.
Both offenses had it clicking for the first twenty minutes, trading touchdowns on their first three possessions. Nick Davila threw two touchdowns to Rod Windsor, while his counter part Erik Meyer also threw two touchdowns but also added a rushing score in the early fury of points. The game changed when Shock head coach, Andy Olsen called for an onside kick with ten minutes remaining in the second quarter that was successfully recovered to earn Spokane the first stop of the game by either side. It took five plays for Meyer to convert the onside kick into points, finding Kamar Jordan who had a nice run after the catch for an 18-yard touchdown; giving the Shock their first lead of the night. Things looked like they could be getting away from the Rattlers when their ensuing possession started at their own one-yard line and Davila threw three consecutive incompletions to set up a fourth and ten from the same spot. After a delay-of-game moved the ball back mere inches Davila, with his back against the back of his own end zone, threw a beautiful spiral to a wide-open Kerry Reed who would finish the run to complete the 49-yard touchdown, tying the game at 28 with 2:30 left in the first half. The Shock did a masterful job ensuring themselves of the last possession of the half by producing a ten-play drive, but on the last play of the half Meyer's pass intended for Duane Brooks fell incomplete in the back of the end zone; marking the first stop by the Rattlers' defense to keep it tied at halftime. Just like the first quarter both teams traded touchdowns on their first two possessions of the second half, keeping the game tied at 42 with 13:21 remaining in the fourth quarter. This tie didn't last for long, on first and ten from his own five Erik Meyer found Adron Tennell in-stride at the Arizona-15 where his momentum caused him to bounce off the wall and run the rest of the way into the end zone for a 45-yard touchdown, putting the Shock back up by seven. Nick Davila answered by hitting Rod Windsor for a 34-yard completion on first and ten from his own five, and going back to Windsor three plays later for a 17-yard touchdown to re-tie the game at 49. Erik Meyer quickly gave the Shock their seven-point lead back by completing back-to-back passes, highlighted by Adron Tennell's one-handed grab in the back left-corner of the end zone for the 24-yard touchdown. The Rattlers got the ball back at their own five with 6:14 remaining and needing to, once-again, match a Spokane touchdown. The Shock front-three put tremendous pressure on Nick Davila, forcing four straight incompletions to earn a huge defensive stop. The Rattler defense was able to make a stand, holding the Shock to three points on Kenny Spencer's 18-yard field goal. The Shock held a ten-point lead, the largest margin either side enjoyed on the night, with one minute left. Davila was able to move his Rattlers in scoring position at the Shock-7, only to have his second-down pass intercepted by a leaping Beau Bell. Meyer connected with Adron Tennell for a 23-yard touchdown to secure the victory. Despite the final score, this game was without a doubt the best game of this young 2013 season. The Shock improve to 4-0, while the Rattlers suffer their first loss. Also as a fun-fact, neither kicker missed a kick in this game which in the AFL is very uncommon.
Stat Leaders:
Arizona (3-1) Spokane (4-0)
Nick Davila 18-33, 341 yds, 5TD, Int, Erik Meyer 27-43, 351 yds, 8TD,
17 rush yds 11 rush yds, TD
Rod Windsor 7 rec, 135 yds, 3 TD Adron Tennell 10 rec, 138 yds, 4 TD
Kerry Reed 6 rec 117 yds, TD Duane Brooks 9 rec, 118 yds, TD
Jared Perry 5 rec, 89 yds, TD Kamar Jordan 8 rec, 95 yds, 3 TD
Garrett Lindholm 7-7 PAT Beau Bell 3 tackles, Int, and sack
Kenny Spencer 1-1 FG (18), 9-9 PAT
Philadelphia Soul 54, Iowa Barnstormers 43
This week's CBS Sports Network game of the week featured the Soul and Barnstormers. The Soul were trying to win their second cosnecutive game, while the Iowa tried to avoid a loss at home for the second straight week. The Soul got the opening possesson, with their first two plays being exact opposites. Dan Raudabaugh's first pass was a 33-yard touchdown to Tiger Jones to quickly give the Soul a 7-0 lead. After the Philadelphia defense recorded two sacks and forced two incompletions in a four-play sequence for the turnover-on-downs, Raudabaugh's second pass was intercepted De'Mon Glanton. The Soul defense got the ball back two plays later when Bryan Robinson forced a fumble while sacking J.J. Raterink at the Philadelphia-23. This offensive-struggle of a first quarter continued when the Barnstormer defense flexed its muscle by making a stand in the red-zone to keep the Soul from scoring. Raterink produced Iowa's first points of the game with less than a minute remaing in the first quarter when he found Jesse Schmidt, who made his 2013 debut, for a 36-yard touchdown; Bryan Robinson blocked the extra point and Rayshaun Kizer returned it for a defensive PAT to make it 9-6. Philadelphia got the first possession of the second quarter and marched down the field in five plays, ending on Derrick Ross's four-yard touchdown run to extend the lead to ten. The Soul defensive front dominated in the first half and made their prescence felt when thye sacked Raterink for two more times on the ensuing drive, which was highlighted by Brandon Perkins' sack on fourth and 19 that resulted in a safety. Just when it looked like Philadelphia was making their move to runaway with this one a pair of turnovers quickly changed that notion. LaRico Stevenson fumbled the following kickoff, which lead to Jesse Schmidt's second touchdown, and an interception-return touchdown by Erick McIntosh on the next series turned a twelve-point defecit into a one-point lead with 2:35 left in the half. The Soul offense regrouped by going on a five-play, 45-yard drive that resulted in Larry Brackins' 16-yard touchdown reception with 13 seconds; but Phil Marfuggi stole the spotlight at the end of the half when he drilled a 50-yard field goal at the buzzer to make the score 25-22 in-favor of Philadelphia. Iowa began the second half with a seven-play, 45-yard drive that saw a 17-yard touchdown catch by Marcus Harris return the lead to Iowa. Philadelphia answered with a five-play, 46-yard drive of their own that ended on Ryan McDaniel's 25-yard touchdown catch. Iowa was able to move the ball down the field on their next possession, but got nothing when J.J. Raterink was sacked by Joe Goosby on fourth-and-goal. Derrick Ross scored his second rushing touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter to make it a two-possession game. Raterink threw four incompletions from his seven-yard line and Tiger Jones caught a one-yard touchdown four plays later to give the Soul their largest lead of the night with 8:50 remaining in the game. J.J. Raterink would throw touchdown passes on the next two possessions but unfortunately for Iowa it was too little, too late for a comeback. Jesse Schmidt made his season debut for Iowa.
Stat Leaders:
Philadelphia (2-1) Iowa (2-2)
Dan Raudabaugh 22-30, 270 yds, 5TD, 2 Int J.J. Raterink 20-35, 238 yds, 4TD, rush TD
Derrick Ross 9 rush, 17 yds, 2 TD Marcus Harris 11 rec 126 yds, 2 TD
Tiger Jones 8 rec, 108 yds, 3 TD Jesse Schmidt 8 rec, 107 yds, 2TD
Ryan McDaniel 5 rec, 93 yds, TD De'Mon Glanton/Errick McIntosh Int each
Bryan Robinson/Dustin Barno 1.5 sack each
Joe Goosby 7 tackes (3 TFL), 2 sacks
Chicago Rush 45, Pittsburgh Power 14
The Rush entered Sunday looking for the first home win of 2013, while the Power were just trying to earn their first victory of the young season. The first quarter was unique, as we saw each team only possess the ball once. The Rush took the opening kick and put together an elevan play drive that lasted 6:50, endured two fourth-and-long conversions, and concluded when Danny Southwick, who started for Carson Coffman, found Reggie Gray for a 19-yard touchdown pass. The Power responded with a 13-play drive of their own that spanned for the remainder of the first and set up a fourth and three on Chicago's four-yard line for the first play of the second quarter. On the fourth down play, Jordan Jefferson faked a hand-off to Kirby Griffin and instead pitched the ball to P.J. Berry who looped around the backfield and was tackled at the Chicago-2, a yard shy of the first down marker. Southwick directed a six-play, 48-yard drive that resulted in his 12-yard touchdown pass to Jared Jenkins to put the Rush up 14-0 midway through the quarter. The Power answered with am eight-play drive that consumed nearly six minutes but ended up producing nothing when Jefferson wound-up to throw a pass on first-and-goal and had the ball slip out of his hand for a fumble that was recovered by Chicago at their own 21-yard line. The Power defense stepped up to make two goal-line stands in the last four-and-half minutes of the half to keep the game within two scores. Chicago's defense was also impressive, posting a first half shutout which is a hard thing to do in the AFL. The second half got off to a much better start, Jefferson had a 32-yard run on the first play of the half and then Kirby Griffin scored on a three-yard touchdown run to make it 14-7. Despite Southwick's successful first half, Chicago head coach Bob McMillan elected to put Carson Coffman in the game to direct the offense. Coffman led Chicago on a five-play drive that resulted in J.J. Payne's three-yard touchdown run to bring the lead back to fourteen. The Rush defense forced a quick four-and-out on the Power's next possession and Jose Martinez's 27-yard field goal gave Chicago a 24-7 advantage midway through the third quarter. Jordan Jefferson would throw an eight-yard touchdown to Mike Washington to make the score 24-14 at the end of the third. The fourth quarter was dominated by Chicago, Carson Coffman threw two touchdown passes while the defense pressured, sacked, and intercepted Jefferson all quarter to turn this into a "windy city" blowout. J.J. Payne scored a second three-yard touchdown run in the final minutes to seal a 21-0 quarter by the Rush for their second consecutive win.
Stat Leaders:
Pittsburgh (0-3) Chicago (2-2)
Jordan Jefferson 18-36, 139 yds, TD, Int, Danny Southwick 17-26, 150 yds, 2TD
67 rush yds Carson Coffman 7-10, 98 yds, 2TD
Power 82 rush yds, TD as a team Reggie Gray 10 rec, 152 yds, 2 TD
Mike Washington 12 rec, 98 yds, TD Jared Jenkins 10 rec, 73 yds, TD
Chris LeFlore 8 tackles Jorrick Calvin/Joe Phinisee 11 tackles each,
Calivn Int
Darrell Campbell 2 sacks
Week 4 Players of the Week
Offensive Player of the Week: Erik Meyer, Spokane QB
- Erik Meyer earned his second "Offensive Player of the Week" award of the season by completing 27 of 43 passes for 351 yards and eight touchdown passes, while adding elevan yards and a touchdown on the ground to lead the Shock to a win in their home-opener. Meyer out-dueled his counterpart Nick Davila in order to keep the Shock perfect on the young season.
Defensive Player of the Week: Joe Goosby, Philadelphia JLB
- Goosby lead a dominate performance by the Soul defense with seven tackles, three of them for a loss, and two sacks. The entire defense caused havoc for J.J. Raterink the entire night, leading to the Soul's second straight win.
Playmaker of the Week: Jeff Hughley, Jacksonville WR
- Hughley had himself quite a night, catching only two passes but both were touchdowns and returning a missed field goal for a touchdown. He scored the first three touchdowns of a game that was well in-hand by halftime. The Sharks made easy work of their south division rivals winning 76-30 to record their fourth win of the season and their first at Sea Best Field.
For more on any of these five games, or the Arena Football League go to: http://www.arenafootball.com/sports/a-footbl/sched/afl-a-footbl-sched.html
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