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AFL I Arizona Rattlers

Arizona Rattlers game notes

March 30, 2005 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Arizona Rattlers News Release


The Stakes: One of the most heated rivalries in AFL history is renewed tonight, when the Arizona Rattlers meet up with the San Jose SaberCats. Arizona comes in after a win over Nashville, while the SaberCats took care of Las Vegas.

The Series: This will be the 25th meeting between these two bitter rivals, with Arizona holding a 13-11 advantage. The SaberCats are 7-7 at the HP Pavilion versus the Rattlers.

TV: Tonight's game will be broadcast on FSN Arizona. It will also be shown on a tape delay basis on FSN Bay Area.

Radio: All Rattler games are broadcast on KMVP 860 AM. Kent Derdivanis and Ron Wolfley will provide the commentary.

ARIZONA RATTLERS (2-7)
Date Opponent Time TV
1/28 @ Grand Rapids Win 58-38
2/3 ORLANDO Loss 40-51
2/12 @ Georgia Loss 47-61
2/19 COLORADO Loss 69-74
2/27 @ New York Loss 37-61
3/6 LOS ANGELES Loss 29-33
3/13 @ Tampa Bay Loss 56-59
3/19 LAS VEGAS Loss 63-66
3/28 @ Nashville Win 48-35
4/3 @ San Jose 6:00 FSNAZ
4/8 COLUMBUS 7:00 FSNAZ
4/22 AUSTIN 7:00 FSNAZ
4/30 @ Los Angeles 7:30 -
5/6 CHICAGO 7:00 FSNAZ
5/14 SAN JOSE 7:00 -
5/22 @ Las Vegas 12:00 NBC

SAN JOSE SABERCATS (5-3)
Date Opponent Time TV
1/30 @ Tampa Bay Loss 33-63
2/5 LAS VEGAS Win 66-31
2/13 @ New Orleans Loss 61-62
2/20 @ Los Angeles Loss 69-71
3/6 @ Orlando Win 57-38
3/11 PHILADELPHIA Win 52-26
3/18 GRAND RAPIDS Win 72-48
3/28 @ Las Vegas Win 81-75
4/3 ARIZONA 6:00 FSN
4/10 @ Chicago 10:00a NBC
4/15 DALLAS 7:30 FSN
4/22 @ Colorado 6:00 -
4/29 NASHVILLE 7:30 FSN
5/7 LOS ANGELES 7:30 FSN
5/14 @ Arizona 7:00 -
5/21 GEORGIA 7:30 FSN

Head Coaches: Todd Shell is in his first season as Head Coach of the Rattlers. The 2003 AFL Coach of the Year has a regular season record of 48-43 (.527), with stints in San Jose and New York. Shell has won three division titles, including back-to-back Eastern Divisions with New York in 2003 and 2004. Shell was Arizona's original Defensive Coordinator, helping lead the team to the 1994 ArenaBowl Title.

Darren Arbet is in his seventh season as Head Coach in San Jose. Arbet has accumulated a 77-30 career record, including two ArenaBowl titles and two Coach of the Year awards. Arbet has won ten games or more in every season in San Jose except his first.

Last Meeting: In perhaps the greatest ArenaBowl in AFL history, San Jose defeated Arizona 69-62 to claim their second AFL title. Mark Grieb threw eight touchdown passes, including five to James Roe to give the Cats the crown. Sherdrick Bonner had seven TD passes in the losing effort.

Next Week: The Rattlers return home for a match-up with the Columbus Destroyers on Friday night, April 8th. The 7:00 game will be shown on FSN Arizona.

Officials: Officials for today's game are: David Lambros (Referee), Al Granado (Umpire), Mike McCabe (Head Linesman), Gary Cavaletto (Line Judge), and David Cutaia (Back Judge).

Last Week: Arizona snapped their franchise record seven game losing streak, downing the Nashville Kats 48-35 in Tennessee. Joe Germaine had six touchdown passes for Arizona, and the Rattler defense held the Kats scoreless in the final period to give the Rattlers the victory.

#1 Tackler: With his seven tackles against the Storm on 3/13, Randy Gatewood passed Cecil Doggette to become the franchise's all-time leader in tackles. Gatewood now has 293 tackles for his career, besting Doggette's 280.

"O" Baby: Orshawante Bryant made his 2005 debut against the Kats, and didn't appear to miss a beat from his fantastic 2004 playoff run. Bryant had five receptions for 65 yards and two scores in his first action of the season.

Penalty Marker Down: The Rattlers have committed 85 penalties so far this season, after being flagged 119 times last season. Those flags have translated into 528 yards, or 58.7 yards a game. They have given opponents 27 first downs via the penalty.

Slippery Fingers: The Rattlers have turned the ball over 21 times already this season, after giving it up only 22 times last season. The Rattlers are tied for second in the league in giveaways and third in turnover differential at -7.

Roster Moves: Arizona made several moves in preparation for the Nashville game. The Rattlers placed OL/DL Wendall Gaines on Injured Reserve, while activating QB Travis Cole and WR/DB Orshawante Bryant. The team also waived WR/LB Wilson Thomas. Prior to this week's game, the Rattlers placed FB/LB Frank Trentadue on IR.

Former Snakes: It's always a reunion of sorts when these two squads meet up. There are four former Rattlers on the SaberCats roster. Calvin Schexnayder starred for the Rattlers in the 90's helping lead them to two AFL titles. Sebastian Barrie spent five seasons in Arizona before joining San Jose last year, and Tony Plantin and Jason Andersen were both members of the Rattlers last season.

They Know The Way: Rattlers Head Coach Todd Shell was the first coach in SaberCats history, leading the franchise for four years. During Shell's four seasons with the club, the SaberCats went 29-28, including three postseason appearances and a Western Division title. The 1995 division crown marked the first time an expansion team had ever won a division championship. Defensive Coordinator and Special Teams Coach Derrick Chachere was an original SaberCat legend. Chachere is the all-time leading rusher in SaberCats history, scoring the first touchdown and recording the first sack in San Jose history.

He's Learned Jack: Against the Kats, Randy Gatewood played the WR/LB position for the first time in his career. Gatewood, who has 30 career interceptions as a WR/DB, stepped in as a WR/LB after the Rattlers waived Wilson Thomas. Arizona's all-time leading tackler also added two more touchdowns on Saturday night, giving him ten for the year.

Burley Stats: Siaha Burley leads the AFL in scoring, thanks in part to his league leading 26 touchdowns. Burley has scored 158 points, 12 more than Marcus Nash...Burley is second in the AFL with 78 receptions, two behind Aaron Bailey, and second in yards, 53 behind Marcus Nash. Burley has 1,050 yards on the season.



Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from March 30, 2005


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