Rush's final-play field goal gives Crush 51-48 ArenaBowl XIX victory
Published on June 12, 2005 under Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Colorado Crush News Release
LAS VEGAS -- Clay Rush drilled a 20-yard field goal as time expired to give the Colorado Crush a 51-48 ArenaBowl XIX win over the Georgia Force at the Thomas & Mack Center on Sunday afternoon, giving the Crush its first-ever Arena Football League championship in just its third year of existence.
Rush's connection gave the Crush its final lead of a game in which the team never trailed, building an 11-point lead in the second and third quarters before withstanding a rally in which the Force forged three tie scores in the final period -- at 34-, 41- and 48-apiece. The final deadlock came with 18 seconds remaining after Matt Nagy found Chris Jackson for a 20-yard score, but it left just enough time for the Crush to strike back.
Colorado got the ball back with 18 seconds left at its 5-yard-line, and quarterback John Dutton capitalized on man-to-man coverage to find wide receiver/linebacker Kevin McKenzie for a 37-yard reception that moved the Crush to the Georgia 8-yard-line. An illegal-hands-to-the-face infraction against Georgia moved Colorado to the Georgia 4, setting up Rush's final-play kick.
In a rare reversal of Arena Football form, it was the ground attacks that dominated throughout the first half, as all six of the touchdowns in the game's first 30 minutes came on runs. That represented the most rushing touchdowns in an ArenaBowl since the Dallas Texans and Detroit Drive combined for eight rushing scores in ArenaBowl IV (dubbed ArenaBowl '90 at the time).
Colorado's Willis Marshall ran for three scores in the first half, the most for one player in an ArenaBowl since Detroit's Art Schlichter ran for four touchdowns in ArenaBowl IV.
NOTES: Colorado's three inactive players were wide receiver/defensive back Toure' Carter, wide receiver/linebacker Darcey Levy and fullback/linebacker Chad Dukes ... The Crush won the toss and elected to receive ... The five first-half rushing touchdowns were the most in an entire ArenaBowl game since ArenaBowl '90 (Detroit Drive vs. Dallas Texans) ... Neither team had a passing touchdown in the first half; it's the first time that's happened since ArenaBowl '89 (Detroit Drive vs. Pittsburgh Gladiators).
GAME TRACK FIRST QUARTER
Colorado began the game at its 5-yard-line after Nelson Garner's kickoff sailed over the rebound nets for a touchback. Four plays and less than three minutes later, the Crush had the first score of ArenaBowl XIX when Willis Marshall burrowed between a scrum of linemen for a 1-yard touchdown run. Marshall had most of the yardage on the drive, grabbing a 32-yard pass from John Dutton to move the Crush to the Georgia 1 for the score. Clay Rush tacked on the extra point for the early 7-0 lead.
Rush's ensuing kickoff went off the right rebound net, and Chris Jackson fielded it in the end zone and advanced to the Georgia 9. But the Force's possession lasted just one play, as Matt Nagy floated a pass for Jackson that Ahmad Hawkins snared at the Colorado 12-yard-line. The Crush could not take full advantage, as the drive stalled at the 4-yard-line when three straight passes for the back right corner of the end zone fell out of play, perhaps affected by the rounded corners of the Thomas & Mack Center. Rush managed to salvage three points from the drive with a 20-yard field goal that extended the Crush lead to 10-0.
It took six plays and a strange sequence for Georgia to strike back and find the scoreboard for the first time with a 1-yard Nagy touchdown run around right end. Nagy's score followed a sequence where Kevin Aldridge fumbled at the goal line, causing the ball to soar back to the 5, where Troy Bergeron fielded it and was clobbered by a host of Crush defenders. But Maurice Anderson drew a personal-foul penalty for contact with the Force's Derek Lee after the play had gone dead, giving the Force the ball at the 1 and setting up Nagy's score. Garner nailed the extra point to pull Georgia within 10-7.
Marshall fielded the kickoff in the end zone and made two moves up the left sideline to reach the Georgia 20, but a holding penalty on Bryant Shaw knocked the Crush all the way back to its 8-yard-line as the quarter ended.
SECOND QUARTER
Six plays later, Colorado was back in front by 10 as Marshall ran into the end zone for his second score of the day. Marshall's touchdown capped a 42-yard drive that saw Dutton complete all three of his passes for 37 yards to move the Crush to the Georgia 5, setting up Marshall's run. Delvin Hughley forced a Bergeron fumble that Ahmad Hawkins recovered on the Force's next offensive series, but the Crush offense went backward from there, losing six yards on a first-down pass and five more on a third-down false-start penalty. Rush tried to ssave the possession with a 46-yard field-goal try, but it missed wide right, and the Force got possession at its 10.
Four plays later, Georgia was in the end zone when Aldridge rambled around right end for a 27-yard touchdown run -- the third-longest touchdown in ArenaBowl history, and longest in a championship game not involving the Tampa Bay Storm. The Force only pulled within 17-13, as Garner missed the extra point wide right.
The Crush appeared to be in serious trouble on its next possession, as three straight incompletions forced the team into fourth-and-10 at its 15-yard-line with 2:07 left. Colorado went for it, and the gamble paid off when Damian Harrell dove for a deep pass down the right sideline, grabbing it at the Georgia 6 for a 29-yard gain. Marshall scored his third touchdown of the half two plays later to put the Crush in front 24-13 with 52 seconds left before intermission.
Hoping for another possession, the Crush tried an on-side kickoff, but Kevin Gaines recovered for the Force at the 10, setting up a first-and-goal situation. An 8-yard Nagy pass to Rob Carey moved the Force to the Crush 2 with 44 seconds left in the half, but a second-down pitchout to Carey lost a yard, pushing the Force back to the Crush 3 with 37 seconds left before intermission. Colorado's defense forced a third-down incompletion, but a roughing-the-passer penalty gave the Force the ball at the 2, and Robert Thomas subsequently found the end zone with a 2-yard run. Garner made the extra point to narrow the Crush's lead to 24-20 with 29 seconds left in the half.
Colorado had one last chance to score, but only completed one of five passes as the last 29 seconds evaporated from the clock.
THIRD QUARTER
Chris Jackson returned the kickoff to the Georgia 17, but an illegal block in the back knocked the Force back to its 3, where it began the second half. Nagy's first-down pass for Bergeron fell incomplete. A second-and-10 pass for Derek Lee netted 18 yards and got the Force out to its 14-yard-line. Another 11-yard pass -- this one to Jackson -- got the Force to midfield. But from there, the Crush defense sstiffened, and forced the Force into a fourth-and-10 at the Crush 13. At that point, Rashad Floyd made the defensive play of the game to that point, swatting away a pass at the goal line to save a touchdown and give the Crush a stop. Three plays later, Colorado was in the end zone when Harrell scored on a 12-yard pass from Dutton, keeping his streak of consecutive games with a touchdown alive and putting the Crush up 31-20.
Georgia responded with its first touchdown pass of the day, when Nagy found Lee for a 2-yard scoring strike, capping a six-play, 37-yard drive. Garner drilled the extra point to put the Force back within 31-27. Colorado began its next possession at its 5-yard-line, and advanced to the Georgia 10 via a 29-yard pass to McCullough as the period ended.
FOURTH QUARTER
Colorado's struggles near the Georgia goal line continued, as the Crush was unable to find the end zone thanks to two incompletions and a series of penalties, including a pass-interference call on Harrell that nullified a touchdown pass to McKenzie. A third-and-goal pass for Harrell sailed high, but Rush salvaged three points from the drive with a 26-yard field goal, putting the Crush up 34-27 with 12 minutes left.
The Crush had Georgia in fourth-and-15, but could not record the stop, as Nagy heaved a pass for Lee in the end zone that Lee caught for a touchdown. Lee appeared to shove Floyd as the pass was en route, but a pass-interference penalty was called against the Crush defensive specialist, and the Force declined the penalty. Garner drilled the extra point to knot the game at 34-apiece with 9:06 left. An exchange of long touchdown passes on the possessions that followed brought the game to a 41-all deadlock with 4:05 left. Another exchange of touchdowns in the final three minutes deadlocked the game at 48-apiece, setting up the final, three-play drive to Rush's 20-yard game-winner as time expired.
Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from June 12, 2005
- Rush's final-play field goal gives Crush 51-48 ArenaBowl XIX victory - Colorado Crush
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