Playoff Hope Alive in Charleston

July 8, 2003 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Charleston Swamp Foxes News Release


NORTH CHARLESTON, SC – With three weeks remaining in the 2003 arenafootball2 season, the Charleston Swamp Foxes are amidst a tight battle for one of the six American Conference playoff berths.

Currently, Tennessee Valley stands atop the league with an unblemished, 13-0 record. They have not only clinched the South Division title, but have also earned a first-round bye in the upcoming af2 playoffs. The Albany Conquest has not yet solidified the Northeast Division crown, but has at least clinched a spot in the postseason.

That leaves four available slots open for the approximately eight teams in contention at this point of the season.

Perhaps Charleston's best opportunity to make its first postseason appearance in its four-year existence is to steal the Atlantic Division title from the Cape Fear Wildcats, who have led the division the majority of the 2003 season.

To take the divisional crown, Charleston must first win its final three regular season games at Bossier City this week and at home versus Columbus and Richmond. The Swamp Foxes have already bested both the Wardogs and Speed on the road this season by double-digits. Charleston defeated Columbus by 16, 56-40, on May 3 and slowed down the Speed by 23, 52-29 back on June 14. Charleston's final three opponents currently have a combined record of 11-29 (.275).

If the Swamp Foxes win the final three games, they would finish 9-7 and need help from around the af2 to clinch the division.

Current divisional leader Cape Fear (8-5) must drop two of its remaining three to finish at best 9-7, in a tie with Charleston. The Foxes and ‘Cats split the two regular season meetings, but Charleston has the tiebreaker in head-to-head points spread by virtue of the 24-point victory in Fayetteville, NC two weeks ago. Cape Fear can win the Atlantic Division for a second-consecutive year by defeating the Greensboro Prowlers on the road this week and Norfolk at home in two weeks.

The Prowlers came within one-point of dethroning the Wildcats in early May, falling 36-35 in Fayetteville, NC, while the Nighthawks were bested by one touchdown, 56-49 on May 3. Cape Fear's third opponent – the Memphis Xplorers (5-8) – is another team battling for its playoff hopes in the National Conference.

Norfolk (7-6) must lose at least one of its remaining three to finish at best 9-7, in a tie with Charleston. If the one necessary loss comes to Cape Fear on July 19, then Cape Fear, Norfolk, and Charleston would finish in a three-way tie. Charleston split the seasonal series with both Cape Fear and Norfolk, while the Wildcats would have swept the Nighthawks, therefore eliminating Norfolk from the three-way deadlock. Charleston would edge out Cape Fear, again, by points spread in head-to-head meetings.

Greensboro, who is currently tied with the Swamp Foxes at 6-7 but holds the head-to-head tiebreaker, must lose at least one game. That one loss would put them at eight on the season, and if the Swamp Foxes win out, the head-to-head seasonal sweep won't play a factor.

As for the wildcard, Charleston has an uphill battle. Considering both teams hold the tiebreaker over the Foxes, Charleston would need Macon (8-5) and Florida (8-5) to lose its final three games to have a shot at one of the three berths. Losing out would have both Macon and Florida finishing 8-8.

Macon has a tough schedule to finish up, including a pair of games on the road. The Knights travel to Norfolk (7/12), Arkansas (7/19) and unbeaten Tennessee Valley to end the season. Those teams have a combined record of 27-12 (.692) and Macon has already lost once to the Tennessee Valley Vipers, 56-36 on May 17.

For the defending American Conference champion Florida Firecats, its schedule is equally as difficult to conclude the season. Florida has three road contests to conclude the season, including trips to unbeaten Tennessee Valley this week, to Birmingham on July 19, and a season-finale at Columbus on July 26. Combined, the Firecats final three opponents have a 23-16 (.590) overall record.

Another point of interest for Swamp Foxes' fans is that Charleston currently holds the tie-breaker advantage in a two-team tie with three teams in front of them in the playoff race; the aforementioned tie-breakers over Norfolk and Cape Fear, with the edge over Birmingham, who currently sits in eighth place, added to the mix. Charleston defeated the Steeldogs (7-6) by one-point in late April.

Despite the home loss last week to Greensboro, the Swamp Foxes still have a very legitimate chance of making the team's first playoff appearance this season. The game plan is simple – worry about the ones you can control and then see where the chips land at the end of the day.



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