Desperados blow out Soul
by Fran Stuchbury
Published on February 28, 2005 under Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Philadelphia Soul
The Dallas Desperados went on a 34-8 second half run to blow out the Philadelphia Soul 72-43 Sunday at the Wachovia Center.
Dallas Desperados coach Will McClay was happy with his team's performance on both sides of the ball: "We played a full game, we made plays when we had too. We took advantage of turnovers and turn the ball over ourselves. That's how you win football games in this league."
AFL Rookie of the Year candidate Clint Stoerner led the way for the Desperados, completing 15 of 23 passes for 242 yards. Coach McClay is pleased with his development so far: "He's continuing to get better and better. He's got weapons around him, and if we use those weapons are protect him it will be hard to stop us."
OS Jason Shelly and WR/LB Bobby Sippio were the recipients of three touchdowns each.
When I asked Stoerner what interested him in playing in the AFL, he responded, "I've always been interested, always have been a big fan. The fact that I was given the opportunity to play here, I wasn't given the opportunity to play in the NFL. I was tired of chasing that." He added. " I wanted to go somewhere to play for the championship. To me at this point I just want to put a ring on my finger. Now that I'm playing in the AFL, I love it, it's awesome."
The story of the Soul was a defense that decided not to show up. They gave up 72 points, put no pressure at all on Stoerner, and the DBs seem to let the WRs constantly get behind them.
In the second quarter, the Soul defense gave up a 37- yard run to Duke Petitjohn, then later in the period gave up a 45-yard pass to WR/DB Andrew Layton.
When I spoke to Soul coach Trigg I asked him if changes were going be made on the defense. "I'll probably look at the lineup a little bit more than moving on my players. The tape will tell me where we were deficient and what we haven't done," he said.
If they want to win more games, the offense needs to be more productive as well. As coach Trigg said, the offense needs to score in the 50's and 60's to give them a chance to win.
With the defense not making stops, it's putting a lot of pressure on the offense to have mistake free games. The three turnovers the Soul had (two fumbles, one interception) helped make the game a blowout win for the Desperados.
Philadelphia does have depth at the WR position. Perhaps they would consider making a trade to get some help on the defense side.
The Soul is 2-3 but the wins have come against Austin and Nashville who are both 1-4. This Sunday the 3-1 New York Dragons team visits them, a squad that is playing great on both offense and defense.
Hopefully the Soul make some changes in personnel this week and try to bounce back, having to win this game because they can't afford to go 2-4 with both Dallas and New York playing so well.
If you have any questions or comments about this article feel free to drop me an email at arenazone@yahoo.com and I will be more than happy to get back to you.
Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from February 28, 2005
- Philadelphia Soul head coach Mike Trigg fired - Philadelphia Soul
- San Jose SaberCats game notes - San Jose SaberCats
- Desperados blow out Soul - OSC Original by Fran Stuchbury
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- Orlando Predators game notes - Orlando Predators
- Desperados Help Open New Boys & Girls Club in Dallas County - Dallas Desperados
- Week five average attendance third-highest all time - AFL I
- Dragons Defense Ties AFL INT Record - New York Dragons
- Desperados Deal Soul a 72-43 Defeat - Philadelphia Soul
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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.
