Late edition of the blog this week, busy weekend at work and busy life otherwise last few days. The blog will be shorter than normal as a result. The Portland Storm have been one of the best teams ever the first 5 weeks, with power ranking numbers lower than we've ever seen, so of course they don't score a TD against 1 win Pittsburgh, and it takes a whole 5 quarters plus a personal foul to come away with a 9-6 win. Any given Sunday I guess. Six of the 8 divisions are either tied or have a 1 game separation, with the New York Stars joining San Jose in having big division leads.
Storm 9 Maulers 6 (OT)
Portland came into the game #1 or #2 in every major statistical category, including points for and against, and has an extremely low power ranking number. Pittsburgh came into the game ranked 30th, and the expectation was a huge Storm win. Reality was Pittsburgh keeping Portland out of the end zone, and the Storm turning the ball over on downs, missing a FG and throwing 2 interceptions. Pittsburgh barely moved the ball on offense, gaining 185 yards in 5 full quarters, but their defense kept the Maulers in it. The game nearly ended in a tie, but an unnecessary roughness penalty helped Portland get in FG range for the game winning kick as the OT clock ran out.
SaberCats 20 Panthers 15
Mark Hsu caught 6 passes for 178 yards and a TD and San Jose intercepted 3 passes by Michigan QB Adam Scales to remain undefeated on the season.
Force 20 Express 17 (OT)
Georgia led 14-7 until 1:11 left in the game when L.A. QB Tristan Arnold fired his 2nd TD pass of the game, tying the score. The Express got the ball to start overtime and they were able to put a FG on the board, leaving 6 minutes for Georgia to try and win the game with a TD. That's just what the Force did, as Thomas Jacobi tossed his 3rd TD of the day, a 1 yard toss to John Huynh, culminating an 11 play, 75 yard drive. That was Hyunh's 2nd TD reception of the game, as he also opened the scoring today.
Gold 22 Invaders 16
Oakland scored the first 16 points of the game, but it could have been more with better red zone efficiency. That would hurt later, as Andrew Brewer tossed 2 TD passes in the final 18:42, leading Denver to a come from behind 22-16 victory.
Steamer 24 Stallions 21
This game was tied at 7 in the first half before they had 5 lead changes the rest of the way and both teams suffered 3 turnovers. Orville Barker had 105 yards rushing for Shreveport, adding 69 receiving yards and a TD. Despite all of the lead changes, the 4th quarter saw no points scored and 7 punts.
Gunslingers 21 Wranglers 16
Ugly QB play continues to haunt Arizona, as Zachary Kinkead was a dreadful 8/37, 1 TD, 5 INT for 184 yards. Incredible yards per completion, but throw in 2 fumbles and it's easy to see why Arizona got wrangled. San Antonio led 21-10 until Stanley Snyder tossed a TD pass in the final minute. The Wranglers recovered the onside kick but could not move the ball.
Showboats 48 Outlaws 0
Memphis QB David Allen threw for 5 TDs and 473 yards, with Arthur Devore catching 5 for 182 yards and 2 TDs as the Showboats rolled.
Gamblers 38 Hawaiians 22
Tony Dean had a mediocre game, tossing 2 interceptions along with 2 TD passes, yet Houston still won thanks to the ground game and Derek Henry throwing 3 INTs. Donald Turner ran for 206 yards with 3 TDs to lead the Gamblers to the win. Scott Stillings had 94 yards rushing and 94 receiving for Honolulu.
Renegades 17 Wheels 6
Bradley Austin threw 2 early TD passes as Orlando amassed a 17-0 lead, then the Renegades defense did the rest. The victory allows Orlando to keep pace with first place Tampa Bay, as the whole division won this week.
Bulls 16 Thunderbolts 3
Jacksonville's offense wasn't great today, but it was good enough to convert most of their scoring chances, even if it was mostly FGs. That's because the Bulls defense made life rough for Cleveland QB Michael McGowan, holding him to 15/32 passing, 109 yards and 2 INTs.
(NY) Stars 26 Breakers 3
William Hall ran for 233 yards and a TD to help the New York Stars rebound from their first loss of the season. Boston only had 156 total yards, thanks to only having the ball less than 20 minutes.
Stars 14 Generals 5
Baltimore scored touchdowns on both red zone trips, while New Jersey kicked a FG on their lone trip. The only other scoring was a safety by Indiana Jones of the Generals, but that wasn't enough to win.
Federals 26 Hornets 3
Scott Bieber threw 2 TD passes and John Bazile kicked 4 FGs to lead Washington to the victory over Charlotte.
Blazers 17 Blitz 3
Sidney Maggard threw two TD passes in the first half for Florida as they led 14-3 at halftime. The Blazers defense intercepted Ronald Brown twice in the second half to preserve the win.
VooDoo 40 Sun 3
New Orleans QB Bruno Wilson threw for 448 yards and 4 TDs and the VooDoo shut down the Southern California offense, limiting them to only 131 total yards.
Bandits 38 Bell 12
Melvin Driggers threw 5 TD passes and 0 INTs on 28/40 passing for 371 yards to lead Tampa Bay to the victory that keeps them at the top of the Southeast.
