SaberCats Beat Gladiators 69-59
April 15, 2006 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
San Jose SaberCats News Release
Mark Grieb threw for 388 yards and 8 touchdowns and the SaberCats even their record (6-6) on the year with a 69-59 win over the Las Vegas Gladiators (5-7) in an Arena Football League game Friday night.
Grieb threw four touchdown passes in the first half to three different receivers and had thrown for 181 yards by the intermission. For the game Grieb completed 28-of-41 passes with 8 touchdowns and his yardage total was the sixth highest in San Jose single-game history.
Las Vegas rookie QB Jason Fife accounted for six touchdowns by rushing for three and throwing for three more. Fife ran for a pair of scores in the second quarter and threw a 7-yard scoring pass to OS Marcus Nash helping the Gladiators to a 31-28 halftime lead.
Fife ran for a game-high 28 yards on eight carries and completed 19-of-34 passes for 205 yards.
With the SaberCats clinging to a three point lead early in the fourth quarter lineman Joe Jacobs sacked Fife and forced a fumble in the Las Vegas endzone that was recovered by Rex Richards for the lineman's first career touchdown increasing San Jose's lead to 55-45 with 12:07 left in the game.
Gladiators' Aleric Clark returned the ensuing kickoff 56-yards for a touchdown to reduce the lead back to three points.
Grieb threw scoring passes to James Roe and Ben Nelson sandwiched around a 1-yard Joe Douglass touchdown run to closeout the scoring. Roe led all receivers with 11 catches for 147 yards and 3 scores while Nelson had a game-high 160 yards and 4 touchdowns on 9 catches.
Notes: The SaberCats won the opening coin toss for the 11th time in 12 games...Defensive Player of the Game, Clevan Thomas had his 30th career interception and a career-high 10.0 total tackles...Ironman of the Game, James Roe has his 500th career reception and 150th career TD reception...Mark Grieb had his 6th 300-yard passing game of the season setting a new team record...Lineman Fitu Tu'ua played in his first career AFL game...Marquis Floyd scored his first career rushing touchdown and has three TDs on the year, one rushing, one receiving and one interception return...The SaberCats are 46-7 all-time when scoring 60 or more points in a game...The SaberCats had 405 yards of total offense reaching the 400 mark for the second time this season and the fifth time in franchise history.
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