Desperados Dominate Soul, 72-43
February 27, 2005 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Dallas Desperados News Release
DALLAS - The Dallas Desperados' offense might have looked unstoppable in the first half against the Philadelphia Soul, but head coach Will McClay implored his defense to win the game in the final 30 minutes.
McClay's unit responded in the second half, stopping the Soul on its first two possessions and forcing two turnovers in the Desperados' first road victory of the season, a 72-43 thrashing of its Eastern Division foe Sunday afternoon at Wachovia Center.
"We came up with plays in the second half," McClay said of his team, which outscored the Soul 34-8 over the final two quarters. "It's all about going in and making adjustments, being in good shape and playing hard. We wanted to take the fight to them in the second half and we did."
The Desperados (4-1) extended its winning streak to three games and maintained sole possession of first place in the Eastern Division. Sunday's dominating victory also kept the Desperados in a tie for the Arena Football League's best record.
The Desperados also executed a nearly-flawless offensive attack against the Soul (2-3). Quarterback Clint Stoerner fired eight touchdown passes to four different receivers, including three apiece to Jason Shelley and Bobby Sippio. Stoerner, who completed 15 of 23 passes for 242 yards and zero interceptions, was named Offensive Player of the Game.
Desperados FB/LB Duke Pettijohn (three carries for 45 yards and a fumble recovery) took home U.S. Army Ironman of the Game honors, while Desperados DS Jermaine Jones (three tackles, one interception) was named ADT Defensive Player of the Game.
Soul quarterback Tony Graziani, who entered Sunday's game with a league-high 27 touchdowns, threw for 191 yards and three touchdowns. But the Soul's potential fourth-quarter comeback ended when Graziani threw his seventh interception of the season with 6:13 left in the game.
Neither team had a defensive stop in a fast-paced first half that featured nine touchdowns in 10 total possessions. Carlos Martinez's season-long 48-yard field goal with 1.2 seconds left gave the Desperados a 38-35 halftime lead.
After trading touchdowns with Dallas on the game's first four possessions, Graziani beat the Desperados' secondary deep for a 32-yard touchdown pass to Tyronne Jones, extending the Soul's lead to 21-14 early in the second quarter.
The Desperados tied the game on their next drive, but it didn't involve a deep pass from Stoerner to one of his talented receiving corps. Pettijohn broke free on a draw play for a franchise-record 37-yard touchdown run.
On the ensuing kickoff, Desperados DS Hamin Milligan returned a fumble by Soul OS Steve Smith for a touchdown, but the referees ruled Smith down by contact after further discussion. The Soul retained possession and eventually scored to take a 28-21 lead. Later in the quarter, OL/DL C. Weatherington recovered another fumble by Smith to give the Desperados possession inside Philadelphia's 20-yard line. Stoerner then completed a 6-yard touchdown pass to Pettis to give Dallas its first lead of the game, 35-28.
After Dallas took a 45-35 lead early in the third quarter, Chris Ryan - the Soul's 315-pound fullback - fumbled at his own 11-yard line, ending the game's streak of consecutive scoring drives. Two plays later, Stoerner found Shelley in the end zone to give the Desperados a commanding 17-point lead. Dallas then stopped Philadelphia on four straight downs inside the 5-yard line and put the game away with another Stoerner touchdown pass to Sippio.
The Desperados will now return to Dallas for next Saturday's game against the New Orleans VooDoo at American Airlines Center (7:30 p.m. CST kickoff).
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