ATLANTA-Everything that could've gone wrong for the Orlando Predators did. Conversely, almost everything the Georgia Force did was right, as they clobbered Orlando 39-7 in Week 5 of the AFL season.
The Force began the game with a 7-play, 32-yard drive that ended with Wilbur Ahmad kicking a 52-yard field goal with 10:43 left in the first to take a 3-0 lead. Orlando went three-and-out on their first drive, a harbinger of things to come. Even after Georgia's Prince David fumbled at the Orlando 22, and the ball was recovered by Eddy Guess of the Predators, Orlando's offense couldn't get out of its own way. DJ Haji was sacked by Conroy Spencer for a huge loss and fumbled. Pete Love recovered at the Predators 18-yard line. After three plays, Ahmad kicked a 32-yard field goal to put the Force up 6-0 with 5:36 remaining in the first. Orlando punted again, and appeared to catch a break when Silas Garris intercepted a Norm Damron pass and returned it to the Predators 43 late in the first quarter. But the Predators were again forced to punt early in the second quarter.
From there, Georgia enbarked on a 7-play, 62-yard drive. Damron ended it by scrambling for a touchdown from 5 yards out to take a 13-0 lead with 11:23 left in the half. Then the punters dominated play until late in the half. At that point, the floodgates opened and Georgia unleashed a tidal wave of points. Sputnik Havner recovered a Labe Felts fumble for Georgia at the Orlando 18-yard line at the two-minute warning. Three plays later, Damron hit Gevan Crafton for a 19-yard touchdown with 1:01 remaining in the half to make it 20-0. Haji's first pass of the ensuing Orlando drive was intercepted by Lin Byers and returned to the Predators' 15-yard line. Four plays later, Damron snuck it in from the 1, and the Force took a 27-0 lead with 18 seconds remaining. RW Warden returned the ensuing kickoff 40 yards but fumbled, and Buster Teague recovered for the Force at the Orlando 38-yard line. After a defensive holding penalty, Ahmad kicked his third field goal, this one a 50-yarder to end the half with Georgia up 30-0.
Georgia punted early in the third quarter, and Warden returned the punt 60 yards to the Force 1-yard line. From there, D.J. Giles scored on a 1-yard run to make it 30-7 with 12:42 to go in the third, and Orlando seemed to start getting momentum. Momentum that lasted all of 15 seconds, as Bo Bull fielded the ensuing kickoff and returned it 98 yards for a touchdown. The extra point made it 37-7 with 12:27 left in the third quarter.
For all intents and purposes, the game was pretty much over at that point. Orlando pretty much had to pass on every down, and Georgia was content to run out the clock. Ahmad missed a 48-yard field goal early in the fourth, but the only score came when Havner sacked Haji in the end zone for a safety with 4:16 left in the game to make it 39-7.
Georgia (2-3) gained 284 yards of total offense. The Force gained 128 yards rushing on 44 carries. Walter Halley led Georgia with 72 yards on 15 carries. Damron gained 9 yards rushing on 9 carries and 2 TD. He was 15-for-25 passing for 164 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT. He was sacked twice, losing 8 yards. Raven Bannon was Georgia's leading receiver with 3 catches for 36 yards. Georgia travels to San Jose to face the Sabercats next week.
Orlando (1-4) gained 50 yards of total offense. The Predators gained 36 yards rushing on 12 carries. Giles was the leading "rusher" with 18 yards on 8 carries and a TD. Haji was 9-for-27 passing for 64 yards and 2 INT, and was sacked six times, losing 50 yards. If you take passer ratings seriously, Haji had an 11.5 rating for this game. Damron's rating was 76.1, if you're curious. Farren Smithson was Orlando's leading receiver, with 3 catches for 19 yards. Orlando also set a record with 16 penalties for 131 yards. The Predators are on the road next week against the Colorado Crush.
No comments:
Post a Comment