NASHVILLE-George Tibbs kicked a 53-yard field goal with a little over a minute left to help the Grand Rapids Rampage prevail over the Nashville Kats 20-17 in Week 12 of the AFL season.
The teams would trade punts to start the game, then the Rampage drove 36 yards on 5 plays. Tibbs would kick a 34-yard field goal to give Grand Rapids a 3-0 lead with 9:41 remaining in the first quarter. Nashville would answer with an 11-play, 65-yard drive. Curt Wardlaw finished the drive with a 10-yard quarterback keeper to give the Kats a 7-3 lead with 4:37 left in the first.
After a Rampage punt, Nashville's next scoring threat was thwarted when an Oliver Osler fumble was recovered by Merrill Fernandez at the Grand Rapids 29-yard line. After a 10-play, 65-yard drive, Tibbs kicked a 23-yard field goal to make it 7-6 with 7:36 left in the second quarter. Nashville would punt, then the Rampage were thwarted late in the half when Danny McKenzie picked off Curtis Wayne at the Kats' 11-yard line. The Kats ran out the clock to end the half.
Nashville opened the second half with a 10-play, 49-yard drive. Wardlaw would finish it off with a 27-yard touchdown pass to Vittorio Swane to make it 14-6 with 9:58 remaining in the third quarter. Following a Grand Rapids punt, the Kats drove 16 yards on 6 plays, and Daniel Stevenson kicked a 51-yard field goal to make it 17-6 with 5:21 to go in the third.
The Rampage would answer with a 10-play, 69-yard drive ending with Tibbs connecting on a 30-yard field goal to make it 17-9 with 14:18 remaining in the fourth quarter. After trading punts, Orville Brill picked off Wardlaw at the Nashville 32-yard line. Four plays later, facing a fourth-and-2, Bobo Cushing received the handoff and took off for a 24-yard touchdown run. The 2-Point Conversion was good, and the game was tied at 17 with 7:44 to go in the fourth. After the Kats punted, the Rampage would drive 38 yards on 12 plays, and Tibbs drilled the 53-yard game winner with 1:01 left in the game to make it 20-17.
Grand Rapids (7-5) gained 339 yards of total offense. The Rampage ran for 83 yards on 30 carries. Cushing led the team with 38 yards on 8 carries and a TD. Wayne was 22-of-31 passing for 257 yards and 1 INT. He was sacked once for a 1-yard loss. Thomas Kinzer led the receivers with 5 catches for 49 yards. The Rampage host the Detroit Drive next week.
Nashville (7-5) gained 264 yards of total offense. The Kats ran for 93 yards on 24 carries. Osler led the team with 46 yards on 14 carries. Wardlaw was 19-of-32 passing for 212 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT. He was sacked six times, losing 41 yards. Swane led the receivers with 5 catches for 73 yards and a TD. The Kats host the Orlando Predators next week.
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