Co-Offensive: Jacksonville QB Aaron Garcia
and Tampa Bay QB Brian Zbydiewski
Defensive: Tulsa DB J.C. Neal
Ironman:
Pitt WR Jerome Mathis
Catch:
Tulsa WR Al Hunt
Playmaker: Jacksonville WR/DB Jeron Harvey
Highlight: Spokane DB Terrance Sanders
AZ
v San Jose: How it will go:
Last game between these
two teams was an
AZ 65-43
win in San Jose. The
Rattlers
are National Conf/ West Div leaders at 11-2 and
are 6-1 Home, 5-1 Away. They have scored 804
points against 596 .
The Saber Cats
are National/Conf West Div 3rd at 5-7
in 3 way tie for 2nd with Utah and
Spokane. Home 4-3, Away 1-4 one of those home
losses was to AZ. They have scored 698 and given
up 704 points.
What the Cats
bring: Mark
Grieb
has thrown for 3,497 yards and 62 TD’s so
far. San Jose’s offense ranks in the league's
top-five, 58.0 points a game and 317.3 yards of
total offense. Not bad for tired Cat.
No one is looking ahead, but for the fans
AZ is on the road at Philly next then host the
Spokane Shock. A team they have never beaten and
the team that won it all last season.
Team
Sacks: AZ - 22
SJ - 22
For
AZ it
is Pittman and Hawthorne with 6. Glasper 5.5,
Harrington 3.5. For
SJ it
is Maka and Hypolite 5, Huebner 4, Phillips and
Nyenhuis 2.
Team INT:
AZ 28
SJ
12
For
AZ
Gray 8, Floyd 7, Hill, McCullough 5, Swanson 2,
Pittman 1.
For
SJ it
is spread around six players with Brookins and
Moten having 3 each.
BU QB
“Parachute Tester”
ATT COM YD
TD
Trevor Harris
31
20
238
5
Other Rattlers
Threats:
Receiving
REC YDS AVG TD
Rod Windsor
126 1491 11.83 26
Trandon Harvey 95
1156 12.17 29
Jason Geathers
59 709
12.02 16
Nate Forse
19
212 11.16 6
Kerry Reed
12 124 10.33 3
All
Purpose Leaders: AZ has Top Snake Trandon
Harvey for a while, his 1551 yards is a big
chunk of AFL real estate. But Windsor 1493, Gray
1056, and Geathers 717 will pick up the pace. It
will however be interesting to see just how much
Harvey will be missed. He is an amazing talent
that scored 29 TD’s. Windsor has 26 and Geathers
16.
AZ is a good position,
not only do they have a scoring defense and
offense they have great replacement parts, er,
players.
One of note is backup
QB Trevor Harris, he is solid
and can move the team while spreading the ball
around. Probably the best BU QB for AZ in a long
time.
Playing the backup role
in Arena Football is a tough assignment.
Practice is of no help as it pertains to game
conditions. At
practice they are running plays not testing
players. When they come in it is risky.
Being a backup is like being a
parachute tester. Everything looks good
in its shiny new gear. You won’t know if it is
pass or fail until after you pull the pin.
Then only two things
matter, it opens and does its job. Or it opens
and does not do its job or worse, not open.
Unlike chicken nuggets; parts is not parts in
the AFL for QB’s. You either have all the right
components on the field or you get replaced by
the next chute tester. Not a good thing.
AZ is confident that the
team will continue to win with anyone that is in
the Rattler camp. Coach Guy expects his players
to step in and function as if they have always
been in and starting. If not, he gets new parts.
At practice this Wed the
coaches and players were both relaxed and
pressing hard.
Everyone knows if they do their jobs the
team can lock in a first round playoff game. A
take no prisoners attitude is what I saw.
I did ask coach if
sweeping the Cats was important. He said, “It is
just another game for us, one we need to win.
They are a team I used to work for. We are
working on getting ourselves prepared.”
Spokane
Shock played on National TV and had a QB
Erik Meyer make his first start this season in a
big win and their highest point total this
season as they beat the Soul 75-54. A big loss
for a surging Philly team that just had back to
back wins.
It did not help that the Soul had 3
turnovers and gave up 2 sacks in the second
half. NOTE, this game was between the last 2
Arena Bowl Champs.
Mustangs
bust up KC with a 54-34 upset. OK, maybe not
an upset but the Command was not happy. When it
was over, six game awards were given with five
going to Milwaukee.
It looks like the Ironman for KC’s WR/LB
Bradly Chavez was the bright moment of the night
for KC.
Pitt
Powerless in middle of Storm: A 55-62 loss
in Tampa Bay was a setback for the surging Power
and their 4 game streak.
The Storm
Defense led by Erick McIntosh had five important
stops that include 3 turnovers. Nearly 12
thousand saw the game.
Preds v Sharks SMD’s
are born:
Yep, the Sharks put the bite on the Predators
but most importantly won the Social Media and
Battle of the Billboards. Since this is surely
going to be a trend amongst sports teams it
deserves a name. How about this:
Social
Media Disease. Spraying the public with
rants, challenges and some questionable jargon
has jumped, in a pandemic fashion from Talk
Radio onto the internet and our roadways.
Now it ranks right up
there with belching contests, graffiti and beat
down rants that never end. In a world where
Crass is Class the AFL is now the proud parent
of team sponsored rants. Nice, the game is one
step closer to the real life playing out of the
football movie “The Last Boy Scout.”
Finally,
a game to die for. Oh, the Orlando Predators
lost 68-67 before a crowd, er, flash mob of
almost 13,000. Woo Hoo.
****The opinions
expressed here are not necessarily the opinions
of, never mind, it is what I think.
San Jose Signs Rattler
Killers:
The Saber Cats lost a home game to former
assistant coach Kevin Guy when he, as the HC of
AZ brought the Rattlers to the bay and stomped
the kitty litter out of them.
Wanting to get back in the playoff hunt
and do it by going to AZ and skinning the Snakes
in their own Pit.
SJ has signed DFL
veteran Kai Ellis DL, former Blaze WR/DB Quinton
Andrews, WR Marco Thomas and OL Ailao Eliapo.
They also activated Bobby Guilloy from the
exempt list.
I get the feeling that even if the Cats
should lose all the rest of their games but win
this one in AZ, then at least they can smile.
Sometimes a team just needs get their mean on
against a rival.
CFL Canada:
Pre Season begins June 14 with BC at Calgary
then more pre season games to follow until 6/24.
Regular Season starts
on June 30th with BC at Montreal
games will be played on Thu, Fri, and Sunday.
Montreal Alouettes
were in the last three Grey Cups winning in 10,
09 and losing in 08. Since 2000 the Alouettes
have played in a total of 8 Grey Cups winning 3
and losing 5. The CFL has games on the web and
to get their schedule and watch use this link:
http://www.cfl.ca/page/game_broadcast
CFL Schedule Page:
http://www.cfl.ca/schedule/year/2011/time_zone/0#
United Football League
UFL:
Schedule
http://www.ufl-football.com/schedule
Opens play on Aug 13
with Hartford Colonials at Virginia Destroyers,
then on 8/14 it is Omaha at Sacramento.
2009 Champs 11/27/2009
Sam Boyd
Stadium, Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas
Locomotives (20, OT) Florida Tuskers (17)
HC Jim
Fassel
MVP DeDe Dorsey (Las Vegas RB)
2010 Champs 11/27/2010
Johnny
Rosenblatt Stadium, Omaha, Nebraska
Las Vegas
Locomotives (23)
Florida Tuskers (20)
HC Jim
Fassel MVP Chase Clement (Las Vegas QB)
