Avengers make some Orlando magic
by Tim Peterson, Mid Valley News
March 30, 2003 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
(Orlando, Fla.)- It wasn't something new to the Los Angeles Avengers. It was the fourth time this season they had won on the final play of the season. But this was something special in what is turning into a special year.
The Avengers pulled a miracle out of their hat with no time remaining to stun the Orlando Predators 64-63 Sunday before 11,322 fans at the TD Waterhouse centre. A majority of the fans were heading for their cars on the last play, and just like the people who missed Kirk Gibson's dramatic World Series home run in 1988, they will live to regret it.
The Avengers, trailing 63-58, had the ball on their own 18-yard line with 7.4 seconds left. Tony Graziani fired a pass off the net and the ball fell miraculously into the arms of Greg Hopkins in the end zone as the clock ticked off the final second. It was actually a designed play by Los Angeles Coach Ed Hodgkiss who has been living up to his label of offensive genius so far this year.
It's called a "50 Hail Mary S Post," and Hodgkiss only calls on it in do or die situations - like the one his team faced Sunday. The play has Chris Jackson streaking down the left side and under the rebound net with Hopkins following closely looking for a deflection. The other wide out, Mark Ingram, runs a post route, to take some of the secondary with him.
The play worked to perfection, as Graziani stepped up in the pocket to avoid the rush, and heaved the ball that somehow found Hopkins standing in pay-dirt.
It took some magic just to get to that point. LA was down 63-52 with only 35 seconds left when Graziani hit Jackson on a seven yard scoring strike. The Avengers Cornelius Coe then recovered an onside kick which set up the "Orlando Miracle."
Orlando clung to a 28-24 halftime lead. The teams traded touchdowns in the third quarter before the Predators moved out to what they thought was a safe 11-point advantage.
Graziani finished 19 for 31 for 319 yards and six touchdowns. He also threw a costly interception that Orlando's Kenny McEntyre turned into a 27 yard touchdown in the second quarter.
The Avengers racked up 326 total yards compared to 235 for the Predators.
It was the fourth consecutive win for the Avengers as they improved to 7-2 on the year. They share the best record in the league with the Tampa Bay Storm and the defending champion San Jose Sabercats. The Avengers are back home Friday night against the Carolina Cobras.
The Predators lost their third straight and fell to 6-3.
LA 14 10 14 26 - 64 ORL. 14 14 14 21 - 63Total yards: LA- 326, Orl- 235. First Downs: LA- 21, Orl- 16.
Passing: LA- Graziani 19-31-319-6-1, Orl- Connell 13-26-192-4-0.The opinions expressed in this column are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central.
Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from March 30, 2003
- Avengers make some Orlando magic - OSC Original by Tim Peterson, Mid Valley News
- Week Nine AFL Summaries - AFL I
- Firebirds Recapture Winning Ways - Albany/Indiana Firebirds
- Destroyers Fall To The Fury - Buffalo Destroyers
- Rampage Use Defense to Rush Past Chicago, 48-34 - Grand Rapids Rampage
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer(s), and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
