We began this week with 3 unbeaten teams and we end it with one, the Baltimore Stars. Baltimore beat Washington in the first of their 2 meetings this season to seize early control of the Atlantic. Michigan faced off against Detroit for the first time and the Wheels were victorious, pulling Detroit (7-1) into a tie with Michigan atop the Midwest. Cleveland is also tied atop the Midwest as their victory over Chicago improves their record to 7-1. Those 3 teams have a lot of football left against each other and should be exciting to watch down the stretch. Let's see what happened today.
Stars 26 Federals 20
Baltimore and Washington were both 7-0 coming in so something had to give. In the first quarter the defense gave nothing until Baltimore had a chance at a 51 yard FG but Fred Boyce was wide right. Washington got the scoring underway early in the 2nd when Robert Trammell punched it in from 8 yards out. Baltimore came back to take a 10-7 halftime lead thanks to a 46 yard Fred Boyce FG and a 12 yard Jon Snow pass to Glenn Sprinkle.
Washington was forced to punt on the first drive of the second half and that produced some Wiley on Wiley crime. Ernest Wiley fielded the punt and had advanced 4 yards when he was nailed by Michael Wiley, causing a fumble. Michael Wiley scooped up the loose ball and raced into the end zone to give Washington the lead. Three plays later, Herman Hayes ran 49 yards for a TD to give the lead back to Baltimore, 17-14. Washington would tie the game on a John Bazile FG before Jon Snow's 2nd TD pass broke the tie. Snow found Orville Barker for the 2 yard TD, but Boyce missed the XP so the lead was 23-17 for the Stars. Early in the 4th, Jon Snow was intercepted by Robert Crosby, who returned it 28 yards down to the Baltimore 20 yard line. Washington was unable to score a TD so they called on John Bazile to cut the lead in half. There was plenty of time left at this point, even after each team went 3 and out. Baltimore took over with just under 5 minutes to play and they held the ball inside the final minute, adding a Boyce FG to go up 6 with 0:36 left. Washington had one last desperation drive that did not work out and the Stars hold on for the win and an 8-0 record.
Washington finished with just 217 total yards, 109 rushing and 108 passing yards on Bieber's 24 completions. Jon Snow finished with 316 yards, 2 TDs and 1 INT with RB William Halford leading the way with 8 catches, 123 yards. His 37 rushing yards gave him 160 for the game and WR John Warkentin has 115 receiving yards for his 6 receptions.
Wheels 20 Panthers 18
Detroit and Michigan faced each other for the first time in 1994 as both teams are fighting for the division title with Cleveland. Detroit got the ball first and Gabriel Flanagan led them 75 yards down the field, capping off the drive with a 12 yard scoring strike to Matthew Houston. Detroit would add a Kent Olden FG for a 10-0 lead after 1 quarter. Michigan came back in the 2nd quarter with a 36 yard Jonathan Ruch FG and a 27 yard Flanagan TD pass to James Hills to tie the game at 10. The next 2 scores before halftime came courtesy of each defense and ended up being the difference in the game. First, Detroit LDE Emilio Shealey had the trifecta in the end zone, sacking Flanagan, stripping the ball and recovering it for a Wheels TD. Inside the 2 minute warning, a Michigan punt pinned the Wheels at their own 1, and on 1st down, Michigan DT Joe Harris nailed James Fischer in the end zone for a safety and our halftime score was Detroit 17 Michigan 12.
Michigan kicked a FG midway through the 3rd and early in the 4th to take an 18-17 lead before Kent Olden's 44 yard FG midway through the 4th gave Detroit the 20-18 lead. Michigan's next drive ended when a 4th down try just inside Detroit territory failed, but Miguel Lamar intercepted Flanagan on the next play to give Michigan the ball back...except Joshua Wagner was flagged for offsides, allowing Detroit to maintain possession. Michigan's last possession began at their own 5 with just over 2 minutes to play. The Panthers faced a 4th and 13 from their own 2 and opted to punt, and they never saw the ball again as the Wheels win.
Thunderbolts 21 Blitz 0
In 1993, Cleveland placed 3 rookie defensive players on the ROY ballot and that is carrying over to 1994 as the Thunderbolts defense is the toughest to score against in the league. Cleveland held Chicago to 243 total yards and intercepted Ronald Brown twice in keeping the Blitz off the scoreboard. Offensively, Evan Hershey ran for 60 yards, Bobby Colley 58 and Tony Romo threw for 300 yards and 3 TDs. Colley added 61 receiving yards and WR James Bull caught 2 passes all day, but they covered 140 yards and both were TDs.
(NY) Stars 26 Storm 7
In pre game interviews, Portland owner/GM Setherick said the Stars should be prepared for an extraordinary gameplan. Hindsight says the Storm gameplan was anything but extraordinary, whatever it was, New York was ready for it. Portland's defense got lit up for 398 yards, allowing New York 5 red zone trips, but they stiffened once the Stars got there, allowing just 2 TDs and 2 FGs. New York also converted 7/12 3rd down conversions and a combined 120 yards from William Hall. Hall had 65 rushing yards and 55 receiving and catching one of Damien Oleary's 2 TD passes.
New York led at the half 10-7, then proceeded to shut Portland out in the second half. Portland finished with 301 offensive yards but New York routinely got the Storm offense off the field before they reached the red zone, allowing just 1 trip inside their 20 all day. Oleary finished 22/33, 302 yards, 2 TD and 1 INT.
Gold 52 Sun 18
Portland's loss opens the door for Denver to tie the Storm atop the West if they get past Southern California. Get past them they did, as Andrew Brewer had a fantastic game, completing 24/26 for 499 yards and 6 TD passes. The Gold lost a fumble on their first drive, then scored on each of their next 6 first half possessions for a 38-9 lead at the break. WR Douglas Crowley caught 7 passes for 304 yards and 4 TDs with RB Jerry Murphy catching the other 2. Murphy ran 25 times for 114 yards and caught 6 passes for 89 yards, giving him 203 for the game.
Gamblers 23 Hawaiians 6
We had Pacific leading Honolulu visit Southwest leading Houston in a game dominated by defense and special teams. The Gamblers took an instant 7-0 lead when Daniel Franks returned the opening kickoff 101 yards. The rest of the first half saw just a pair of Hawaiians FGs and Houston took a 7-6 lead into halftime. Houston got those 6 points back in the 3rd quarter with a pair of Earl Castro FGs before Gamblers RB Donald Turner scored the game's only offensive TD in the 4th. Offensively, it seemed as though Tony Dean and Derek Henry were having a bad game contest, as Dean finished 18/30, 123 yards and 2 INTs while Henry was 25/41, 140 yards and 5 INTs.
Showboats 26 Gunslingers 10
San Antonio traveled to Memphis for an important Southwest division matchup where the winner has sole possession of 2nd place. Memphis got the ball first and fumbled, setting up the Gunslingers in Showboats territory. San Antonio QB Robert Fanelli then threw the first of his 3 INTs to thwart the scoring chance, then Norman Maldonado drove Memphis 72 yards for a TD for a 7-0 lead. The Showboats would add a FG for a 10-0 halftime lead. Fanelli got San Antonio on the scoreboard early in the 3rd with a 59 yard TD pass to Thomas Davila.Memphis answered that score quickly when Norman Maldonado found Mark Glenn for a 25 yard TD pass then later in the 3rd, Greg Ayala had a 2 yard TD run and Memphis had a 23-7 lead after 3 (the XP was no good after Ayala's TD). Fanelli ended up throwing his other 2 INTs in the 4th as the Gunslingers unsuccessfully attempted a comeback as Memphis hangs on for the win.
Generals 33 Bandits 6
New Jersey went down to Tampa and were rude guests as the Generals defense only allowed the Bandits to have the ball 19:13. When Tampa Bay did have the ball, Antonio Martinez was turning it over as he finished 20/48, 171 yards and 3 INTs. The Bandits also lost 2 fumbles for 5 total turnovers, which did not help time of possession. Offensively, the Generals also lost 2 fumbles but ran for 108 yards as a team, compared to 24 for the Bandits. Don Ferguson completed 40/55, 282 yards and 3 TDs, 0 INT, with TE Redd Foxx catching 2 of the scores. New Jersey was 11/23 on 3rd down but only scored 3 TDs in 6 red zone trips. Thanks to the result of the next game I'll write about, New Jersey has sole possession of first place in the East.
Blazers 13 Bell 10
Philadelphia was tied for first in the East at kickoff against Southeast leaders Florida in the 3rd game between division leaders this week. Florida got the ball first and Sidney Maggard threw an interception. In fact, Maggard would throw interceptions on the first 3 Blazers drives. Philadelphia was only able to capitalize once, with a Charles Weymouth 4 yard TD run giving the Bell a 7-0 lead. Florida would get a FG to trail 7-3 at the half and Maggard's 6 yard TD pass to William Merkel in the 3rd gave Florida a 10-7 lead. Merkel caught 13 passes in all today for 116 yards and that TD. The teams exchanged 4th quarter FGs before the Bell did what the Blazers did in the 1st, throw 3 straight interceptions. Joseph Serio threw 4 INTs in all, and the loss puts Philadelphia in second place in the East at 6-2.
Steamer 22 Stallions 9
Shreveport and Birmingham had a kicking and turnover contest with an offensive TD thrown in for good measure. The game started with a punt, punt, INT, INT, lost fumble then Birmingham got on the board first with a FG. Birmingham's defense played well, allowing 237 total yards with a sack, INT, and 2 fumble recoveries, holding the Steamer to 4/17 on 3rd down. Shreveport's defense was better though, allowing just 165 yards, sacking Marvin Benford once and intercepting him 4 times, holding the Stallions to 2/18 on 3rd down and 0/3 on 4th. Shreveport K Jeffrey Smith made 5 FGs while Birmingham K Gerald Hinton made 3 and George Marcil threw a 22 yard TD pass to David Shafer to help the Steamer improve to 5-3, good for first in the South.
SaberCats 43 Express 3
San Jose QB Jake Plummer had his best game of the season, completing 25/34, 383 yards and 4 TDs, producing a pair of 100 yard WRs not named Mark Hsu. The former All World WR is now relegated to average status as the key to his success was former owner/GM hollyhh2000. With him gone, Hsu just can't find the same success and it's affecting the whole team as their stranglehold on the Pacific seems over. Plummer came into this game with a TD/INT ratio of 3/15 and had been sacked 25 times, so count the battered QB among those who are happy the AI took over for the owner/GM who left abruptly.
VooDoo 17 Maulers 14
New Orleans and Pittsburgh came into this game with just 1 win between them, so it's hard to believe their last game against each other was last year's Wildcard round. Joseph Jones got New Orleans on the scoreboard first with a 2 yard TD pass to Ellis Portugal, and the VooDoo led 7-0 after 1. Will Allison got Pittsburgh on the board in the 2nd with a 45 yard TD pass to David Plante, then found Franklin Cherry for a 65 yard TD pass later in the quarter as the Maulers led 14-7 at the half. The second half was all VooDoo as a FG and a 4 yard Jones TD pass to Thomas Thomas saw New Orleans take a 17-14 lead with 4:50 to play. Pittsburgh had a chance to send the game to overtime but Brett Bowman was wide right on a 42 yard FG attempt allowing New Orleans to escape with their second win of the season.
Breakers 10 Bulls 6
Jacksonville put up 365 yards of offense but Boston scored the only TD of the game which was enough for the Breakers to win. Jacksonville ran for 112 yards but QB Emanuel Fugate was an inefficient 21/46, 262 yards, 2 INTs and a sack. The Bulls also committed 7 penalties to just 2 for Boston. Adam Scales did not have a bunch of yards, but he completed 18/24, 161 yards and a TD pass to Ralph Harris. Jacksonville was trailing late, 10-6, when Fugate had the Bulls driving in Breakers territory but an interception by Dion Williams sealed it for Boston.
Force 13 Hornets 6
Charlotte scored first and last, but both scores were FGs, and Georgia won the in between 13-0 to give the Force the victory. Charlotte QB Robert Ament had just 3 passes hit the ground, completing 22/26 for 163 yards and an INT, but the Hornets running game lacked sting. Milton People also completed 22 passes, albeit with 10 more attempts although People did throw a TD pass to Matthew Taylor. Charlotte was threatening to send the game to overtime as the Hornets made it inside the Force red zone but the clock hit 0:00 before they could crack the end zone.
Renegades 33 Outlaws 10
I don't always check time of possession, but Orlando held the ball in this game even longer than New Jersey did against Tampa Bay. The Renegades held the ball 41:24, leaving 18:36 for Oklahoma. The Outlaws didn't do much when they did have the ball, gaining 155 total yards with 74 of that coming on their lone TD. The Outlaws ran 11 times for 5 yards and suffered 3 INTs. When Orlando had the ball, good things happened. The Renegades ran for 251 yards on 51 carries, with Ben Dehaven gaining 125 yards and 2 TDs. QB Trey Lyons didn't have to do much, but he did finish 16/19, 143 yards and a TD.
Invaders 7 Wranglers 0
This was probably Arizona's best game of the season as the Wranglers held Oakland to 217 total yards, 2/14 on 3rd downs and sacking Andrew Moreno 3 times. Offensively they only had 198 yards, converting 2/16 3rd downs, but more importantly they did not turn the ball over and allowed just 1 sack. Baby steps. Late in the 3rd, Moreno found Nelson Martinez for a 43 yard TD which proved to be the only points of the game as Oakland wins 7-0. Martinez finished with 4 catches, 125 yards and that TD.
