Chicago Rush coaching staff lend helping hands

Members of the Rush coaching staff, including fullback/linebackers coach Bob McMillen, wide receivers coach/special teams coordinators Ryan Leonard and assistant director of player personnel Scott Bailey were in Oakbrook on Friday, helping the Salvation Army with its annual Thanksgiving Distribution. For the eighth-consecutive year, members of the Rush coaching staff passed out holiday food boxes to families who would otherwise not have a Thanksgiving meal. The coaches will again help the Salvation Army next month, at its December 18th Adopt-A-Family gift and food distribution. Groups or organization wishing to schedule an appearance with a Rush player or coach should call Laura Visin, Rush community relations manager, at (773) 243-3439.

Philadelphia Soul wins Arena Bowl

NEW ORLEANS – The Philadelphia Soul captured Virgin Mobile ArenaBowl XXII this afternoon, knocking off the San Jose SaberCats, 59-56, in front of a sold-out crowd of 17,244 at New Orleans Arena. The victory gave Philadelphia its first title in franchise history and denied San Jose its second straight ArenaBowl championship.

Soul quarterback Matt D’Orazio (Columbus, Ohio) completed 26 of 43 pass attempts for 302 yards and seven touchdowns and rushing for one score to be named Mitsubishi Motors ArenaBowl XXII MVP. Meanwhile, Philadelphia receiver Chris Jackson (Santa Ana, Calif.) was named the Offensive Player of the Game after totaling 11 catches for a game-high 146 yards and three touchdowns.

The SaberCats, who were looking to earn their fourth championship in seven seasons, had several opportunities catch up to the Soul, who posted an AFL-best 13-3 regular-season record. But early mistakes and turnovers allowed Philadelphia to jump out to a 19-point third-quarter advantage it would not relinquish.

San Jose took the opening kickoff and methodically moved down the field, scoring the game’s first points on a Rodney Wright (Bakersfield, Calif.) eight-yard touchdown catch. But the explosive Philadelphia offense responded when Brent Holmes (San Antonio, Texas) broke free behind the SaberCats defense for a 34-yard score.

The SaberCats put together their second straight 45-yard drive to retake the lead on a five-yard screen pass from quarterback Mark Grieb (San Jose, Calif.) to wide receiver/linebacker Jason Geathers (Boca Raton, Fla.). Not to be outdone, Philadelphia mimicked its opening scoring possession as well, cashing in on a 34-yard heave from D’Orazio to Jackson to knot the score, 14-14, at the end of the first quarter.

After another pair of touchdown catches by Geathers and Jackson, Philadelphia logged the game’s first defensive stop, forcing a San Jose turnover on downs. The Soul took advantage on the very next play, as Larry Brackins’ (Dothan, Ala.) 20-yard touchdown catch put Philadelphia ahead, 27-20. The Soul extended their lead to 14 points thanks to an interception by Eddie Moten (Dallas, Texas) and a D’Orazio eight-yard touchdown scramble.

Down by seven following Geathers’ third touchdown of the afternoon, San Jose head coach Darren Arbet (Stockton, Calif.) made the first challenge of a official’s call in ArenaBowl history, arguing that his team had recovered a fumble by Philadelphia tight end Phil Bogle (Spring Valley, N.Y.). Referee Bill LeMonnier upheld the call on the field, however, ruling that Bogle had recovered the ball on his own. A 20-yard field goal by Connor Hughes (Williamsburg, Va.) gave the Soul a 37-27 halftime lead.

Overall, three calls were challenged during the game, with only one being overturned following video review. Coaches challenges were approved for use during the playoffs for the first time in AFL history earlier this season.

The SaberCats finally slowed the Soul offense on Philadelphia’s opening drive of the second half when defensive back Clevan Thomas (Miami, Fla.) broke up a fourth-down pass attempt by D’Orazio. But Philadelphia took control of the ball once again after defensive lineman Gabe Nyenhuis (St. Charles, Ill.) sacked Grieb and forced a fumble. The Soul pushed their lead to17 points with Jackson’s third touchdown catch of the night.

Philadelphia’s defense continued to flex its muscle, as Raheem Orr (Elizabeth, N.J.) sacked Grieb in the end zone for a safety. San Jose responded with a defensive stop of its own, however, as a D’Orazio fumble caused by George Williams (Roseboro, N.C.) led to a 12-yard touchdown catch by Geathers. Despite the score, the SaberCats found themselves down, 46-34, with one quarter remaining.

San Jose’s defense stepped up once again on Philadelphia’s next drive, forcing a field goal attempt that was botched by holder and backup quarterback Tony Graziani (Modesto, Calif.). In an unusual turn of events, however, the Soul recovered the ball on the same play after Graziani’s desperation pass attempt was intercepted and then fumbled by Rodney Wright (Bakersfield, Calif.). Philadelphia’s Bogle jumped on the loose ball, setting up a touchdown pass to Brackins that put the game virtually out of reach.

A Brian Johnson (Littleton, Colo.) three-yard touchdown catch pulled San Jose back to within 10 points, 52-42. The SaberCats could not recover an onside kick attempt, however, allowing the Soul to open up a 17-point lead with a two-yard touchdown pass to Bogle with 39 seconds remaining in the game.

The SaberCats refused to go out quietly. Wright narrowed the lead to 11 points with his 13th catch of the night, an ArenaBowl record. San Jose’s Trestin George (Berkeley, Calif.) then recovered an onside kick, setting up Geathers’ fifth touchdown grab of the night and bringing the SaberCats within a field goal. The miracle comeback came up short, however, as Philadelphia’s Rod Davis (Gulfport, Miss.) recovered the final onside kick of the night.

Score by Quarter 1 2 3 4 Final

San Jose SaberCats 14 13 7 22 56 Record: (11-5, 2-1)

Philadelphia Soul 14 23 9 13 59 Record: (13-3, 3-0)

LEADERS:

PASSING: D’ORAZIO, Matt (PHI) 26-43-302-7; GRIEB, Mark (SJS) 27-44-299-8

RECEIVING: JACKSON, Chris (PHI) 11-146-3; WRIGHT, Rodney (SJS) 13-144-2

PLAYERS OF THE GAME:

Offensive: Chris Jackson (PHI)
Defensive: Gabe Nyenhuis (PHI)
Ironman: Mike Brown (PHI)

Mitsubishi Motors ArenaBowl XXII MVP: Matt D’Orazio (PHI)

Arena Football Standings thru June 2

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ARENA FOOTBALL STANDINGS
THROUGH MONDAY, JUNE 2ND
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


AMERICAN CONFERENCE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

CENTRAL DIVISION
----------------

TEAM                WON LOST TIE   PCT   PF   PA
----                --- ---- ---   ---   --   --

X-CHICAGO            10    3   0  .769  760  587
COLORADO              4    9   0  .308  669  743
GRAND RAPIDS          3   10   0  .231  719  773
KANSAS CITY           3   10   0  .231  643  748

WESTERN DIVISION
----------------

TEAM                WON LOST TIE   PCT   PF   PA
----                --- ---- ---   ---   --   --

Y-SAN JOSE            9    5   0  .643  804  743
Y-ARIZONA             7    6   0  .538  669  749
LOS ANGELES           4    9   0  .308  693  819
UTAH                  4   10   0  .286  814  858


NATIONAL CONFERENCE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

EASTERN DIVISION
----------------

TEAM                WON LOST TIE   PCT   PF   PA
----                --- ---- ---   ---   --   --

Y-DALLAS             11    2   0  .846  683  603
Y-PHILADELPHIA       10    3   0  .769  800  655
CLEVELAND             7    6   0  .538  728  754
NEW YORK              7    6   0  .538  685  658
COLUMBUS              3   10   0  .231  621  720

SOUTHERN DIVISION
-----------------

TEAM                WON LOST TIE   PCT   PF   PA
----                --- ---- ---   ---   --   --

GEORGIA               8    5   0  .615  752  699
NEW ORLEANS           8    5   0  .615  723  640
ORLANDO               8    6   0  .571  769  778
TAMPA BAY             6    7   0  .462  690  695



X--CLINCHED DIVISION TITLE
Y--CLINCHED PLAYOFF BERTH

New York 73, Colorado 65

DENVER (TICKER) —Aaron Garcia threw for 298 yards and seven touchdowns as the New York Dragons started out hot and finished strong with a 73-65 victory over the Colorado Crush on Monday night.

Garcia, who also had a rushing score, tossed four TD passes to Jason Willis and two to Kevin Swayne for the Dragons (7-6), who outscored the Crush, 21-7, in the first quarter and by eight points in the fourth.

Swayne caught two touchdown passes in the final period to snap a 52-52 tie and give New York a lead it would not relinquish. Garcia plunged in from 2 yards out to make it 73-59 with 4:05 left to effectively seal the win.

John Dutton threw for 340 yards and eight touchdowns with one interception for Colorado (4-9).

Utah 63, Grand Rapids 56

GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN (TICKER) —Joe Germaine tossed four touchdown passes to power the Utah Blaze to a 63-56 triumph over the Grand Rapids Rampage on Sunday.

Germaine completed 19-of-34 passes for 304 yards while connecting on a pair of touchdown passes to both J.J. McKelvey and Huey Whittaker.

Rodney Filer also ran for two touchdowns for the Blaze (4-10).

James MacPherson completed 24-of-33 passes for 295 yards and four touchdowns for the Rampage (3-10).

Arizona 60, Orlando 53

ORLANDO, FLORIDA (TICKER) —Matt Sauk threw for six touchdowns and ran for another as the Arizona Rattlers withstood a huge rally by the Orlando Predators in a 60-53 victory Saturday night.

With the Rattlers (7-6) holding a commanding 50-29 lead early in the fourth quarter, Orlando quarterback Shane Stafford threw three of his six scoring passes in the final 8:28, including one with 44 seconds to play that deadlocked the game at 50-50.

Sauk needed just three plays to deliver the winning touchdown, hitting Siaha Burley with a 19-yard scoring pass with five seconds remaining.

Burley had eight receptions for 105 yards and three touchdowns for the Rattlers.

T.T. Toliver also had eight catches for 105 yards with a pair of touchdowns for Orlando (8-6).

San Jose 66, Los Angeles 56

LOS ANGELES (TICKER) —Mark Grieb tossed seven touchdown passes to guide the San Jose SaberCats to a 66-56 triumph over the Los Angeles Avengers on Saturday.

Grieb completed 25-of-35 passes for 298 yards for the SaberCats (9-5), who have won six of their last seven games.

James Roe had 10 catches for 117 yards and three scores for San Jose.

Sonny Cumbie completed 21-of-35 passes for 262 yards and five touchdowns for the Avengers (4-9), who have lost five of their last six contests.

Georgia 56, Tampa Bay 55

ATLANTA (TICKER) —Chris Greisen threw four touchdown passes and rushed for a score in the final seconds as the Georgia Force erased a 13-point, fourth-quarter deficit and escaped with a 56-55 victory over the Tampa Bay Storm on Saturday.

Greisen, who completed 31-of-39 passes for 286 yards, ran in over the right side as time expired and Carlos Martinez kicked the extra point to give the Force the win.

Georgia (8-5) trailed, 41-28, entering the fourth quarter. Matt Huebner ran for three scores - two of which came during the big comeback - with the last cutting the deficit to 55-49 with 1:34 left.

Torrance Marshall ran for four TDs and Brett Dietz completed 20-of-29 passes for 222 yards and four scores for Tampa Bay (6-7).

Chicago 52, Kansas City 47

ROSEMONT, ILLINOIS (TICKER) —Russ Michna tossed five touchdown passes and ran in the game-winning score from one yard out with 11 seconds left to propel the Chicago Rush to a 52-47 comeback victory over the Kansas City Brigade on Saturday.

Michna, who completed 25-of-37 passes for 296 yards, made a critical mistake that nearly cost his squad the game in the fourth quarter, as Chris Demaree returned an interception for a 42-yard touchdown that gave the Brigade (3-10) a 47-35 edge with 9:21 remaining.

The Rush (10-3), however, came right back as Michna’s five-yard touchdown strike to Donovan Morgan closed the gap to 47-42. Michna then rushed for a one-yard score to provide a lead for Chicago, which added a safety for the final margin.

Morgan hauled in 14 passes for 153 yards and Damian Harrell made five receptions for 45 yards and two scores for the Rush, who have won six of their last seven games.

New Orleans 83, Columbus 61

NEW ORLEANS (TICKER) —Danny Wimprine threw seven touchdown passes and ran for another score as the New Orleans VooDoo ended a three-game slide Friday with an 83-61 triumph over the Columbus Destroyers.

Wimprine, who was 18-of-28 for 265 yards, connected with Javarus Dudley and James Jordan for three TDs apiece en route to setting a franchise record for points in a game. Dudley hauled in scoring passes of 15, eight and nine yards, while Jordan had 10-, 38- and six-yard touchdown receptions.

Sale Key also caught a six-yard TD pass and added a three-yard net recovery for a score for New Orleans (8-5), which improved to 4-0 all time against Columbus.

Matt Nagy threw seven touchdown passes for the Destroyers (3-10), including three to Calvin Russell, who also ran for a five-yard score. Nagy completed 33-of-47 passes for 339 yards with one interception.

Derek Lee had a pair of TD receptions for Columbus, while Harold Wells caught a scoring pass and also found the end zone on the ground.