Resilient Dragons rebound for big win

by David Holusha
Published on April 30, 2006 under Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
New York Dragons


Deep into the fourth quarter, the New York Dragons found themselves behind by a point in a game in which they had led most of the way. After dominating the Philadelphia Soul throughout the first half, all the good fortune of their hard work had been erased and now it was do-or-die time. Capitalizing on an overaggressive Soul defense that committed one penalty after another during this series, Dragons QB Nick Browder connected with WR Kevin Swayne for the crucial touchdown. However, having been behind by a point meant New York had to go for the 2 point conversion. Once again Browder found just enough grit and determination to find one of his receivers, this time Mike Horacek, alone in the endzone for the necessary two points.

When the final seconds ticked off the clock, the Dragons held on for an exciting 65-58 victory. The packed arena of 12,063 fans had witnessed another nail-biting performance from Coach Weylan Hardings never-say-die men. Fortunately for the Dragons, the officiating was rock solid when it mattered the most.

"I'm glad they officiated a fair game," said a relieved coach Harding.. "I'm really not counting on those calls, though. Our guys have to find a way to get loose. Our motto is no excuses. If the defender is holding, they've got to get off. I'm never going to count on a call, but I'm glad the officials had to guts to make them when they did.

With still over three minutes left on the clock, Philadelphia would get the ball back to mount one final drive. The Dragons Defense, which had played so well through the entire game, did an excellent job of keeping the play away from the sideboards, allowing the clock to run down to the 1:00 mark. Four passes later had Philadelphia on the Dragons 13 yard line with 19 seconds left on the clock. Soul QB Connell Maynor sprinted out to the right side and barreled towards the endzone. But before he could make it all the way, LB Chris Anthony came flying across the field to drill Maynor into the boards, stopping his progress at the 2. It was as critical a defensive play as was yet to come.

"It was huge," said Harding. "We had a run stop defense and basically that was his gap to fill. He made the play. I've got to give credit to our line too, who gave a pretty good push up the middle."

So now with the ball on the Dragons 2 yd line, Mayor completed short to WR Sean Scott, but the Dragons defense held strong, with DB Angel Estrada stopping Scott at the 1. The final dramatic play had Mayor attempting to rush the ball into the endzone, only to have DL Andrew Tippins stuff the QB for no gain. The final seconds ticked off the clock and the Dragons held for a heart-stopping victory.

"I wasn't surprised they attempted that at the end," continued coach Harding. "You've got 0.6 seconds left and hell of a scrambler in Connell Maynor with the ball in his hands. He single-handedly brought them back in the second half. A lot of their drives were kept alive by his legs. So I kind of felt like that was something they were going to try to do. We had a run stop defense in, to plug up the gaps. Thank God it was the right call at the right time."

"I wasn't necessarily expecting a run there," said Tippins. "After the snap I saw the quarterback held onto the ball, so I just had to go there and get him. I mean, its not like he was that far away from me or the endzone. This was a huge win for us," continued Tippins. "One more step to clinching a playoff spot, and that's what we want."

The Dragons were also led by another outstanding effort from Kevin Swayne who topped all receivers with 8 catches for a total of 66 yards, 5 touchdowns and was named Offensive Player of the Game. Complimenting that was the solid performance by WR/DB Mike Horacek, who, in addition to his critical defensive plays, caught 4 passes for 2 TD's and a total of 72 yards. For his efforts he was named Ironman of the game. Horacek also became only the sixth player in league history to record 200 career touchdown catches. "It's a great accomplishment," said Horacek. "Its just as much a tribute to the great guys I've played with."

So now the Dragons appear hold the very real possibility of hosting their first round playoff game at home. Does coach Harding think so as well?

"I'm not worrying about that," said the coach. "We're just trying to get in. Our motto has been one game at a time. We'll let everything sort itself out. I think once you get into all those things - worrying about seedings and all that other stuff - you can lose your focus. Win the next game - win the next one after that - then we'll get to the second season and deal with it when it happens.

The Dragons host the Georgia Force next Saturday at 7 p.m.

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Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from April 30, 2006


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