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Crush Stun Fury 45-42

May 23, 2004 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Detroit Fury News Release


AUBURN HILLS, Mich – John Dutton connected with receiver Willis Marshall for a 10-yard touchdown pass with only one second remaining to give the Colorado Crush a 45-42 victory over the Detroit Fury at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Detroit had an opportunity to tie, but Fury kicker Mark Lewis’s 61-yard field goal fell short as time expired.

Earlier, the Fury had a chance to put the game out of reach with less than a minute left, but the Detroit offense was unable to capitalize and was forced to settle for a 23-yard field goal by Lewis. A critical delay of game penalty put the Fury out of reach of the end zone, but the field goal gave Detroit the 42-37 lead.

On their last possession, Colorado worked the clock until only seconds remained before running their final play. Detroit suffered a defensive breakdown, leaving Marshall wide-open for the touchdown reception. Dutton later connected with Kevin McKenzie for the two-point conversion and the three-point lead.

With the win, Colorado (10-5) clinches a spot in the 2004 ArenaBowl playoffs, and they have tied the AFL mark for the greatest single-season turnaround in AFL history. Last season, the expansion Crush finished 2-14.

The eight win improvement ties the previous mark set by the Chicago Bruisers from the late 1980Â’s. Colorado will have the opportunity to set the new AFL mark next week when they close out the regular season against the top-seeded Chicago Rush.

Detroit (4-11) has now lost seven games in a row and has not won a game since April 1, 2004.

Dutton and offensive specialist Damian Harrell led the attack for the Crush. Dutton finished the game completing 21-of-33 passes for 301 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions. Harrell, who led all receivers, finished the game with 13 receptions for 208 yards and three touchdowns.

ColoradoÂ’s defense kept the pressure on Fury quarterback Andy Kelly all game. The Crush defensive front registered three quarterback sacks in the game and seven total tackles for a loss.

Kelly and receivers Thabiti Davis and Junior Lord led DetroitÂ’s offense. Kelly finished the game completing 29-of-38 passes for 250 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions.

Davis finished the game with 12 receptions for 115 yards and three touchdowns. Lord had 10 receptions for 75 yards and one touchdown. With his performance today, Davis only needs seven receptions and 187 receiving yards to tie Fury single-season receiving records set by Robert Gordon in 2001.

Next week, Detroit will hit the road for their final game of the regular season. They will close the 2004 season against intrastate rival Grand Rapids Rampage on Saturday, May 29 at 7:30 pm ET. Earlier in the year, Grand Rapids defeated Detroit 49-45, and the win has been the RampageÂ’s only win of the season.

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