Off the top of my head, the 67 points by New Orleans is the most since New Jersey gave up 79 in the 1985 playoffs to Birmingham. We are down to four unbeaten teams, two in each conference. Michigan, Jacksonville and New Jersey join Memphis at 4-0 as the Showboats win streak is now 23. We have 5 winless teams, though one of San Antonio or Boston will break their schneid unless they play to a tie Week 5.
VooDoo 67 Steamer 3
New Orleans scored touchdowns and 2 point conversions their first 3 drives to take a commanding 24-0 lead after a quarter. The VooDoo had 245 rushing yards and 448 passing while their defense held Shreveport to 152. The rest of the game was all VooDoo, with 5 TD's and a FG in 6 red zone trips, 7 for 14 on 3rd down, while holding the Steamer to 2 for 16. Socrates Rogers had 72 rushing yards and 181 receiving (1 TD), James Sheckler had 144 total yards and an Al Bundy like 4 TD's while Ricky Hash contributed 180 total yards and a TD.
Showboats 39 Gamblers 34
Houston gave it everything they had but a furious late comeback attempt fell short as Memphis hangs on for their 23rd victory in a row. The halftime score was 15-10 Showboats as the Gamblers stopped both Memphis 2 point attempts. The Showboats would extend their lead to 29-10 before Houston cut it to 29-20 early in the 4th. Memphis would extend the lead to 39-20 with 3:29 left on a James Nash TD run and the game seemed in hand after the Showboats forced a three and out. Houston still had fight left in them as the Gamblers defense forced their own three and out to give Tony Dean the ball inside the 2 minute warning. Dean immediately found Gabriel Ahrens for an 81 yard TD, and Houston recovered the onside kick. Several plays later Dean found Bruce Edwards for a 33 yard TD with 0:48 left to cut the lead to 39-34. This onside kick failed however, and two kneel downs sealed victory for Memphis.
The total yards were pretty close but they got there differently. Houston only ran for 15 yards on 7 attempts but put up 416 through the air. Memphis ran 41 times for 274 yards and converted 8 of 14 3rd downs to Houston's 4 for 14. Red zone favored Memphis as well (4 TD in 4 trips).
Gold 23 Stars 20
Baltimore came into the game 3-0 and they had more yards than Denver and a much better 3rd down conversion rate. The Stars suffered a missed FG and 3 Jon Snow interceptions however, as Denver wins their second game of the season on a last second FG. This makes Denver 3-1, good for a 3 way tie atop the West. Baltimore falls to 3-1 and tied with Washington for the Atlantic lead.
Federals 21 Stallions 19
This was an even statistical game except for sacks. Washington had 3 sacks, one for a safety while their own QB was able to keep a clean jersey. Federals All Pro kicker John Bazile made 4 FG's but Washington needed a 2 point conversion stop with 1:13 left. Birmingham QB James Lightfoot had just found Jeffrey Zimmer for their 2nd TD hook-up but Richard Sutton was ruled down just short of the goal line on the 2 point pass attempt and the onside kick failed, preserving victory for the Federals.
Wranglers 28 Invaders 20
Despite Wranglers QB Joseph Jones throwing 4 INT's, Arizona won the first 3 quarters 14-10 and also out scored Oakland 14-10 in the 4th qtr for the West Division tightening victory. Both teams had a similar number of rushing attempts (24-23 Arizona) but the Wranglers amassed 227 yards while Oakland had just 60. The entire West is just 1 game apart, with everyone but Arizona 3-1, while the win improves the Wranglers to 2-2, keeping them in the thick of the race.
Sun 12 Force 9 (OT)
Georgia and Southern California needed extra time to decide their FG kicking contest. Georgia's kicker was more accurate (3-3) but football games aren't won that way. Sun kicker Alan Grossi missed 2 FG's but was 4-6 overall and made the last kick in OT, so all is well that ends well.
Panthers 12 Wheels 6
Detroit continues to play it's best defense in the fhunt3 regime, but Michigan's defense was superior, holding the Wheels to 142 yards. Michigan scored on a safety, FG, and a TD to eke out the 12-6 divisional win to remain unbeaten.
Storm 27 Thunderbolts 20
Portland put up more yards than Cleveland but kept settling for FG's in the first half, keeping the Thunderbolts in the game. In fact, Cleveland led 20-12 entering the 4th qtr but Portland stormed back, winning the final quarter 15-0 to earn their 3rd victory of the season.
Bandits 24 Maulers 19
This game was a tale of two halves, as Tampa Bay built a 24-3 halftime lead only to stop scoring after intermission. Pittsburgh won the second half 16-0 but it wasn't enough to overcome the first half. Tampa Bay won despite not entering the red zone all day. Both teams have a 2-2 record.
Outlaws 16 Express 3
Both teams entered the game 0-3, but Oklahoma came away with the victory over ownerless Los Angeles. No matter, all wins count the same. The Outlaws defense intercepted 4 passes while the offense had zero turnovers and 4 red zone trips (1 TD/3 FG's).
Bulls 30 Renegades 10
Orlando scored first and last but Jacksonville scored everything in between to remain unbeaten on the season. The Bulls shut down the Renegade running game and forced 4 turnovers as they have a 2 game division lead already.
Hornets 17 Bell 6
Philadelphia continues to play good run defense but the Bell had no answer for the Stanley Snyder to Robert Anderson connection. The Charlotte QB/WR duo connected on 2 long TD passes to give the Hornets their first win of the season.
Blitz 34 Blazers 20
The Florida Blazers probably wish they could turn back the clock as 1987 hasn't been as good to them as 1986. Blazers QB Sidney Maggard tossed 4 INT's while Blitz WR Michael Steffes caught 4 passes for 219 yards and 3 TD's. The victory enables Chicago to remain a game behind Michigan while Florida falls to 1-3, 3 games behind Jacksonville.
(NY) Stars 24 Breakers 6
The offensive woes continue for Boston in 1987 as the (NY) Stars held them to just 121 total yards. The Stars of New York didn't light up the scoreboard but the offense seems to have found comfort knowing Willie Bust will be under center, instead of the yo-yo of the first 2 weeks. Boston falls to 0-4 while the (NY) Stars second win in a row evens their record at 2-2.
Generals 40 Gunslingers 9
In 1986, New Jersey started 10-0 before collapsing down the stretch to finish 11-5. In 1987, New Jersey is again looking like an early season bully as they pushed San Antonio around. More accurately, they passed all over them as WR Corey True caught 5 passes for 330 yards and 4 TD's. QB Ric Flair tossed 5 TD's and 434 yards. The Generals were sloppy in the red zone again, which might come back to bite them when the schedule toughens up.
Hawaiians 38 SaberCats 20
The game was knotted at 17 after a half of football and San Jose had great rushing success (26-250). The SaberCats struggled through the air however, finishing with just 86 passing yards and 3 INT's. Honolulu had 516 yards of offense, 376 through the air as they won the second half 21-3. The Hawaiians had 100+ yard receiving days from Scott Stillings (9-119-1) and Mark Moody (3-110-2). Honolulu improves to 3-1, first place in the Pacific.
