ATLANTA-Norm Damron showed why he is the most efficient quarterback in the AFL with a 4-touchdown performance in a 33-17 victory for the Georgia Force over the Arizona Rattlers during Week 7 of the AFL season.
Damron and the Force started things off early with a 9-play, 58-yard drive that ended with a 10-yard touchdown pass to Paden Bonewell to give Georgia a 7-0 lead with 11:49 to go in the first quarter. Arizona seemed to get a drive going, but Pablo Cadwell fumbled on a handoff, and Pete Love recovered for the Force at the Georgia 21-yard line. Damron then rattled off a 9-play, 79-yard drive. Bonewell caught a 4-yard touchdown pass from Damron to put Georgia up 14-0 with 4:09 to go in the first. The Rattlers would respond with an 11-play, 43-yard drive, and Pancho Barrow kicked a 52-yard field goal with 14:54 to go in the half to make it 14-3.
Things slowed down in the second quarter. The teams traded punts twice, and then late in the quarter, the Force would drive 47 yards on 4 plays. Damron would throw an 8-yard touchdown pass to Aaron Sidney to give Georgia a 21-3 lead with 2:04 left in the half. The Rattlers quickly responded with a 4-play, 80-yard drive, and Don Fawcett pitched a 39-yard touchdown strike to Otto Pugh with 1:06 left in the second quarter, and the Rattlers went into halftime down 21-10.
A 51-yard kickoff return by Will Meads gave Arizona the ball at the Georgia 38-yard line to start the second half, and it looked as if the Rattlers might make it a one-possession game. But Arvil Stinson fumbled at the 6, and Sputnik Havner recovered for the Force. After that, Georgia drove 92 yards on 10 plays, and had to settle for a 19-yard field goal by Wilbur Ahmad to go up 24-10 with 5:45 left in the third quarter. Hack McDonald ran another long kickoff return to give the Rattlers the ball in Georgia territory. This time, Arizona drove 42 yards on 7 plays. Shelby Lerti ran for a 6-yard touchdown on a reverse to make it 24-17 with 2:36 remaining in the third.
Georgia punted to open the fourth quarter, and Arizona fumbled the ball away again. Melvin Jones was the fumbler this time, and Ward Hilton recovered for the Force at the Arizona 34. After that, Georgia drove 34 yards on 5 plays, with Damron throwing a 3-yard touchdown pass to Gevan Crafton. The extra point was missed, and Georgia led 30-17 with 10:10 to go in the game. Arizona's next drive ended in an interception by Lin Byers. Georgia went three-and-out, but the Rattlers were turned away on fourth down on their ensuing drive. The Force killed the clock with an 8-play, 26-yard drive and Ahmad kicked a 36-yard field goal with 45 seconds left to make it 33-17 in Georgia's favor.
Georgia (3-4) gained 403 yards of total offense. The Force ran for 128 yards on 36 carries. Clem Foulks led the team with 55 yards on 19 carries. Damron was 22-of-28 passing for 282 yards and 4 TD. He was sacked once for a 7-yard loss. Bonewell led the Force with 8 catches for 131 yards and 2 TD. Georgia is on the road next week against the Orlando Predators, who they thumped in a 39-7 blowout in Week 5.
Arizona (1-6) gained 370 yards of total offense. The Rattlers ran for only 29 yards on 16 carries. Stomp Navarro led the team with 14 yards on 4 carries. Fawcett went 28-of-41 passing for 357 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT. He was sacked twice, losing 16 yards. Meads led the Rattlers with 5 catches for 64 yards. Pugh caught 4 passes for 68 yards and a TD. Arizona will play in Los Angeles against the Avengers next week, a team that the Rattlers defeated 27-17 in Week 5 for their only win.
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