ROSEMONT, IL-Nikolai Vilmer's two first-quarter touchdowns helped propel the Grand Rapids Rampage past the Chicago Rush 31-19 in a Week 6 AFL game.
Chicago started with possession, but Arman Drummond fumbled after being sacked by Bobby Harpole, who recovered the ball at the Chicago 14-yard line. Four plays later, Curtis Wayne hit Vilmer for a 1-yard touchdown pass with 13:05 left in the first to put the Rampage up 7-0. Both teams then traded punts, until the Rampage drove 84 yards on 3 plays. A 64-yard pass to Vilmer set up a 15-yard TD from Wayne to Vilmer on the following play to put Grand Rapids up 14-0 with 1:21 remaining in the first.
Chicago punted the ball away as the second quarter began, but Wayne threw an interception by Niko Simon at the Rampage 46-yard line. Four plays later, Drummond ran in on a QB keeper from 10 yards out to make it 14-7 with 13:06 to go in the half. The Rampage would punt, and Chicago got into scoring position again, only for Dete Justen to miss a 50-yard field goal attempt. The following Rampage drive resulted in a missed 52-yard field goal attempt by George Tibbs, and the half ended with Grand Rapids up by a touchdown.
Grand Rapids started the second half with a 14-play, 81-yard drive that ended with a 4-yard touchdown pass from Wayne to Hudie Naylor with 7:39 remaining in the third to put the Rampage up 21-7. The Rush answered with a 12-play, 57-yard drive culminating with a 42-yard field goal by Justen to make it 21-10 with 1:46 remaining in the third. Grand Rapids punted as the third quarter drew to a close.
In the fourth quarter, Chicago went on a 7-play, 41-yard drive that ended with Justen kicking a 47-yard field goal with 11:58 left in the fourth to cut the gap to 21-13. Grand Rapids answered with a 9-play, 65-yard drive that ended with Toby Harrell scoring on a 4-yard touchdown run with 7:39 left in the fourth to put the Rampage up 28-13. The Rush then moved the ball 70 yards on 8 plays. Drummond ended the drive with an 8-yard touchdown pass to Ward Despain. Justen missed the extra point*, and the Rush were down 28-19 with 4:15 to go in the game. Chicago attempted an onside kick, and Lester Gartman recovered for the Rampage at the Rush 42-yard line. After a 7-play, 32-yard drive, Tibbs kicked a 27-yard field goal with 1:08 left to make it 31-19 in favor of the Rampage.
Grand Rapids (3-3) gained 419 yards of total offense. The Rampage gained 90 yards rushing on 33 carries. Harrell led the team with 54 yards on 16 carries and a TD. Wayne went 26-for-38 passing for 329 yards, 3 TD and 1 INT and was not sacked. Bud Tyrer led the Rampage with 5 receptions for 58 yards. Vilmer caught 4 passes for 84 yards and 2 TD. The Rampage host the Milwaukee Mustangs next week.
Chicago (1-5) gained 335 yards of total offense. The Rush ran for 76 yards on 22 carries. Lonnie Clements led the team with 40 yards on 11 carries. Drummond was 20-for-36 passing for 275 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT. He was sacked twice, losing 16 yards. Marty Margerum led the Rush with 10 receptions for 140 yards. The Rush will visit the New York Dragons next week.
*A quick little mini-rant about the missed extra point: When a team is down 15 when they score a touchdown, it seems to be a generally accepted theory to go for two to make it a 7-point game. I don't see it that way myself. My take is to kick the extra point to get within 8, then worry about going for two if the team scores another TD. At least you'd still be within one possession of a tie. If you go for two and miss it, you still have to score twice. Long story short (too late), making a kick is more of a sure thing (almost 96% conversion as of this writing) than going for two in that situation.
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