Rush stays hot, advances to quarterfinals
May 21, 2006 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Chicago Rush News Release
Nashville - It was a defensive effort of which the City of Chicago could be proud. The Rush traveled to Nashville and out-hustled and out-hit one of the league's most physical teams in defeating the Nashville Kats 55-47 in Sunday's Wild Card playoff game at the Gaylord Entertainment Center.
The win was the third in a row for the Rush (8-9), which may be peaking at exactly the right time.
"We beat a good football team today," said Rush head coach Mike Hohensee. "But we are a good football team too, and we are playing very well right now. We are relatively healthy, our defense is as sound as it has been all season and Matt D'Orazio continues to do the job under center."
"This is a playoff tested team," said Rush lineman John Moyer, who had two sacks in the win. "Coach Hohensee knows how to prepare a team for the postseason and we have shown that we have the talent to compete with anybody."
Chicago now advances to the American Conference semifinals against the Colorado Crush next Sunday, May 28, at Denver's Pepsi Center. John Elway's Crush defeated Chicago 49-43 in overtime in last season's conference final for the right to go to ArenaBowl XX.
The Rush defense pressured Nashville QB Clint Stoerner all afternoon, sacking him four times, intercepting him twice and forcing the Kats to settle for four first-half field goals as it built a 27-18 lead at the intermission.
But it was at the end of the third quarter when the Rush finally began to put the game away.
After Nashville cut the Chicago lead to 34-32 on a Stoerner to Jarrick Hillary 12-yard touchdown pass, the Rush scored on back-to-back possessions sandwiched around a Dennison Robinson interception to take a 48-32 lead with 7:31 remaining in the game.
The first TD in the 14-0 run came on the final play of the third quarter when D'Orazio scrambled out of the pocket and found Bobby Sippio wide open behind the defense for a 44-yard touchdown.
Then, after Robinson's interception, D'Orazio led a five-play 47-yard drive that he capped himself with a one-yard run to give the Rush the 16-point advantage.
D'Orazio finished his first career playoff start by completing 21 of 28 passes for 276 yards and five touchdowns, while also rushing for 30 yards and a TD.
The tone of the game was set on each team's first drive, when both the Rush and Kats moved the ball inside each other's 5-yard line before the defenses forced each other to settle for field goals.
DeJuan Alfonzo gave the Rush a 10-3 lead with 2:56 remaining in the first quarter when he made a great leaping catch on a high pass from D'Orazio in the end zone for a seven-yard touchdown.
With a lead in-hand, the Rush defense did the rest. Chicago held Nashville to three more field goals in the half, while its offense converted on five of its six first half possessions (3 TDs, 2 FGs)
Trailing 12-10 at the start of the second quarter - the only time it trailed all day - D'Orazio scrambled out of the pocket and rushed for 29 yards to the Nashville 16-yard line. On the next play, D'Orazio found a sliding Woody Dantzer in the right corner of the end zone for the TD to put the Rush back up 17-12.
After the Rush held Nashville to its third field goal, a heads-up play by Robinson extended the Rush lead to nine, 24-15. On second-and-two from the Nashville 8-yard line, D'Orazio had Sippio open inside the 5. However, the ball bounced off Sippio's hands and an alert Robinson plucked the ball out of the air and stepped into the end zone for the TD.
Notes: Rush WR/LB Etu Molden re-injured his ribs on the team's first play from scrimmage and did not return. Due to his absence Alfonzo was forced to play the entire game at WR/LB...Alfonzo led the team with 6.0 tackles, one pass broken up and four receptions for 62 yards and two TDs...Moyer and lineman Khreem Smith each had two sacks...Robinson's interception was his third in the past two weeks.
Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from May 21, 2006
- Wranglers 2006 campaign ends with 52-35 loss to Soul - Austin Wranglers
- Rush stays hot, advances to quarterfinals - Chicago Rush
- Force advance, 72-69, over Dragons - Georgia Force
- Kats end season with playoff loss to Rush - Nashville Kats
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