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SaberCats Game Notes

April 23, 2002 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
San Jose SaberCats News Release


THE QUICK FACTS:
Game: SaberCats (1-0) at Tampa Bay Storm (0-1)
Date: Saturday, April 27, 2002
Kickoff: 4:30 p.m. (PDT)
Site: Ice Palace (20,280)
Officials: R: Perry Havener; U: Paul King; HL: Pat Garvey; LJ: Mack Gilchrist; BJ: Greg Steed.
Television: Saturday night's game will be televised live in the Bay Area on WB20 starting at 4:30 pm (PDT) and joined in progress following the conclusion of an NBA playoff game on NBC3. Bob Fitzgerald, the television voice of the NBA's Golden State Warriors, will handle play-by-play duties with former Oakland Raider defensive back and NFL Rookie of the Year George Atkinson supplying the color commentary.
Radio: San Jose's flagship station The Ticket (KTCT) 1050-AM and KNBR 680-AM will broadcast the game live from Tampa at 4:30 pm (PDT). Tim Roye will handle play-by-play duties with former Oakland Raider safety Jack Tatum serving as the color analyst.
Internet: Log on to www.ticket1050.com to hear a live webcast of the game.
Series Record: Tampa Bay leads 5-0.
Last Meeting: Tampa Bay 52, San Jose 48 (July 24, 1999).
Streaks: Tampa Bay won 5.
Coaches: San Jose, Darren Arbet (31-16 overall, 4th season). Tampa Bay, Tim Marcum (136-43 overall, 14th season).

OVERVIEW: San Jose travels to Tampa to battle the Southern Division Storm in its first road game of the season on Saturday, April 27. Kickoff from the Ice Palace is set for 4:30 pm (PDT). This will be the first meeting since the 1999 season between these teams. The SaberCats have an all-time record of 8-11 against Southern Division foes, including a 0-5 mark against the Storm. This game will be the first of four the SaberCats have with Southern Division teams as they play the entire division. The SaberCats won their fourth consecutive season opening game and fifth straight over Arizona with a 52-51 decision over the Rattlers on April 20. San Jose has a regular season record of 23-6 since the start of the 2000 season. Mark Grieb tossed an 11-yard TD pass to James Hundon with 1:40 left in the 4th quarter and rookie DS Clevan Thomas preserved the win with an endzone interception with 60 seconds left. Tampa Bay had a rough start to the season losing its opener 51-37 to Toronto at home on April 20.

THE SERIES: The SaberCats have never beaten Tampa Bay in five series meetings. This is the first meeting between the teams since July 24, 1999 when the Storm posted a 52-48 win in San Jose...Of all the teams in the Arena Football League that San Jose has played more than one game against, Tampa Bay is the only one the SaberCats have never beaten...Two of the five series games have been played in Tampa, the last on August 8, 1998 when the Storm handed San Jose a 65-46 loss in a first-round playoff game. The other time was June 1, 1996, the first-ever meeting between the teams, with Tampa Bay getting a 36-22 win...This will be San Jose's first game in the state of Florida since April 30, 1999 when the SaberCats played the Florida Bobcats in Sunrise, Fla....San Jose has an all-time record of 2-3 in games played in Florida (Miami Hooters, Florida Bobcats and Tampa Bay).

SERIES NOTABLES: Four players (Jerry Reese, Shalon Baker, Mark Grieb, Sam Hernandez) currently on San Jose's roster were also on the team's roster the last time the SaberCats and Tampa Bay played...The SaberCats have scored fewer than 30 points in a game eight times in their history, twice against Tampa Bay (22 points on June 1, 1996 and 23 points on May 1, 1998)...In their five series games against the Storm the SaberCats have averaged just 34.6 points per game...San Jose has failed to reach the 50-point mark in a game against Tampa Bay, however, since the last meeting with the Storm on July 24, 1999, the SaberCats have played 30 regular season games and have scored 50 or more points in 25 of them...Tampa Bay QB John Kaleo started seven games for San Jose during the 1997 season completing 115 of 214 attempts for 1,386 yards and 20 touchdowns. He also threw 10 interceptions that season, a number that ranks him 3rd on San Jose's career list for picks. Kaleo also tied a San Jose single-game record by throwing 3 picks at Texas on May 30, 1997 and ranks 2nd on the AFL's career list for interceptions thrown with 90.

LAST SERIES MEETING: Tampa Bay 52, SAN JOSE 48 (July 24, 1999) – The SaberCats held a fourth quarter lead but let it slip away and dropped a 52-48 decision to Tampa Bay. QB Peter Tom Willis threw seven TD passes, including four to Charlie Wilson, and completed 20-of-40 attempts for 278 yards to lead Tampa Bay. San Jose started quickly and grabbed a 14-0 lead after the first quarter on a pair of 1-yard Steve Papin scoring runs. Tampa Bay responded with the first of Willis' TD tosses, a 15-yard strike to Wilson, to cut the lead in half. San Jose turned the ball over on its next possession and Willis connected with Wilson again to tie the game at 14-14. Papin scored his third rushing TD of the game, this one from 2-yards out, to put San Jose back up by seven with 2:50 left in the half. San Jose took a 7-point lead just 14 seconds after Tampa Bay tied the game on a 31-yard Wood to Derrick Chachere TD pass. But the Storm once again responded when Willis threw his fourth TD pass of the quarter with just 11 seconds left to knot the score at 28-28. Tampa Bay had a chance to grab the lead at halftime, but K Matt Huerkamp missed a 28-yard attempt, however, and the teams left the field for the intermission tied. The Storm scored the first 10 points of the second half and had possession of the ball when San Jose finally caught a break. Ken Talanoa stripped Willis of the ball and after a mad scramble in the endzone; Curtice Macfarlane recovered the loose ball for a SaberCats TD to close the gap to 38-35. San Jose then held the Storm on its next possession forcing a 51-yard Huerkamp FG attempt. The kick missed and Papin weaved his way through the defense for an apparent 54-yard TD return. The play, however, was brought back on a holding penalty. On the first play of the drive, FB Mike Jones scampered 28-yards for a TD to give San Jose a 42-38 lead with 11:16 left in the game. The run by Jones was the third-longest from scrimmage and his 53 total for the game was the second-most in team history. The lead didn't last long as Willis connected on a pair of TD passes in a 2:49 span to give the Storm a 52-42 lead. The SaberCats made it close when Wood hit Kyle Gary on a 32-yard TD play with 1:06 left, but the SaberCats never regained possession of the ball.

THE IFS...:

If the SaberCats defeat Tampa Bay it would...
*Be San Jose's first win over the Storm.
*Give San Jose a 4-4 record in road openers.
*Give San Jose a 59-39 all-time regular season record.
*Give San Jose a 28-21 regular season road record.
*Give San Jose a 7-4 record in April games.
*Give San Jose a 9-11 record vs Southern Division foes.

THE COACHES:

San Jose – Darren Arbet, 4th season 29-14 (.674) regular season; 31-16 (.660) overall 0-1 (.000) career vs. Tampa Bay Arbet became the SaberCats' winningest head coach when San Jose beat Arizona in the quarterfinals of the AFL playoffs last year. The win gave Arbet 30 victories in 46 career games. He surpassed former head coach Todd Shell, who posted 29 wins in 57 career games. Arbet owns a 31-16 (.660) overall record and is 29-14 (.674) in regular season games. The SaberCats are 23-6 (.793) in regular season games under Arbet since the start of the 2000 season. He was named the AFL's Coach of the Year in 2000 following a league record tying 12 regular season wins, Arbet guided the SaberCats to an AFL record 15 consecutive regular season victories (11 in '00, 4 in '01) and is the only head coach in team history to post a playoff victory.

Tampa Bay – Tim Marcum, 14th season. 115-36 (.762) reg. season; 136-43 (.760) overall 5-0 (1.000) career vs. San Jose Marcum is the AFL's all-time winningest coach with 136 career victories and .760 winning percentage and is a charter member of the AFL Hall of Fame. In seven seasons as Tampa Bay's head coach, Marcum has compiled an 81-30 (.730) record, five Southern Division titles, two ArenaBowl Championships (95, 96) and a Coach of the Year Award (98). He was the coach of the AFL's first-ever champion, the Denver Dynamite, in 1987 and led the Detroit Drive to five Arena Bowl appearances in five seasons (88-89, 90-93) with three titles.

RECENT RESULTS: San Jose QB Mark Grieb threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to James Hundon with 1:40 left in the fourth quarter and rookie defensive specialist Clevan Thomas preserved the SaberCats fifth straight win over Arizona with an endzone interception of Sherdrick Bonner as San Jose escaped with a 52-51 win over the Rattlers in the Arena Football League season opener for both squads. Arizona grabbed its last lead of the game at 48-45 when Hunkie Cooper scored on a 1-yard run as time expired in the third quarter. San Jose kicker Daron Alcorn hit the upright on a 44-yard field goal attempt that would have tied the game early in the fourth quarter. Following the missed field goal, Arizona used over seven minutes off the clock and culminated its drive with a 23-yard Chris Sailer field goal for a 51-45 lead with 4:12 left. San Jose responded with a 3-play drive that resulted in Grieb's touchdown pass to Hundon. Alcorn converted the PAT to give the SaberCats the one-point margin. Grieb set a career-high with 42 pass attempts, the third-most by a San Jose signal-caller in a game, and connected on 27 for 310 yards. The SaberCats gambled with an onside kick on the ensuing kickoff and the plan failed as Arizona's Kevin Cobb recovered on San Jose's 9-yard line with 1:28 remaining. On the first play of the drive, Thomas stepped in front of Bonner's offering in the corner of the endzone and nabbed his first career interception. San Jose needed to convert a first down to run out the clock and Grieb hit Wagner with a 10-yard pass play with 42 seconds left. The SaberCats grabbed an early 7-0 lead on their first offensive possession when Grieb hit Jerry Reese on a 21-yard touchdown pass. The lead changed hands six times in the first half and 13 times total with Arizona having the upper hand at the break when Bonner threw his fifth touchdown pass of the stanza to Chris Horn from 7-yards out for a 35-31 lead. Thomas earned game Ironman honors adding a game-high 7.5 tackles and returning six kicks for 134 yards to go along with his game-saving interception. Grieb was named MVP. Hundon had a game-high 10 catches, the third time in his seven-game AFL career he's reached double figures in receptions, for 103 yards and three scores. Barry Wagner added nine catches for 112 yards.

ABOUT THE OPPONENT: Storm QB John Kaleo sustained a knee injury in the season opener against Toronto and his status is uncertain...Tampa Bay opened the season with a 51-37 loss to Toronto at home. In the history of the franchise (Pittsburgh Gladiators, 1987-90; Tampa Bay 1991) no team has started a season with consecutive home losses. The 2000 Tampa Bay team lost its first three games of the season, but two of those losses were on the road...Tampa Bay has the most regular season wins of any team in AFL history with 104 and is tied with Orlando for the most playoff wins with 16...Tampa Bay has an all-time record of 54-18 (.750) at home.

ROSTER MOVES: The SaberCats added two players to their practice squad by signing WR/LB Eric Del Conte and WR/LB James Battle. Battle played both preseason games with the SaberCats and could be a valuable commodity if injuries hit the squad.

MILESTONES:

*OL/DL Sam Hernandez needs 2 sacks for 50 career.
*K Daron Alcorn needs 2 points to reach 500 career.
*QB Mark Grieb needs 126 yards passing to reach 7,000 for his career.
*OS James Hundon needs 177 receiving yards for 1,000 career.
*WR/LB James Roe needs 2 TD catches for 40 career.
*WR/DB Barry Wagner needs 1 rush TD for 80 career.
*WR/LB Jerry Reese needs 2 receptions to move past Titus Dixon into 2nd place on San Jose's career list and 3 TD catches to move past Steve Papin and become the SaberCats career leader.

INJURY REPORT: The SaberCats escaped their opener without serious injuries. The team did place four players: FB/LB Keala Keanaaina, WR/LB Shalon Baker, OL/DL Chuck Reed and OL/DL Dan Loney on IR April 15.

NOTES:

ROAD OPENERS – The SaberCats have an all-time record of 3-4 in season opening road games. Last year the SaberCats opened the road portion of their schedule with a game in Charleston, W.V., and posted a 62-57 win over the Houston ThunderBears. San Jose's record in regular season road games is 27-21.

TRAVEL SQUAD – With their four non-division road games in the Eastern Time zone this season, the SaberCats will rack up a total of 23,596 miles in travel for their seven road games. That total ranks as the fourth-highest ever. The old Portland Forest Dragons hold down the top two spots with 25,674 miles traveled in 1998 and 25,486 in 1999. The 1998 San Jose squad traveled 24,508 miles in 1998.

NFL EXPERIENCE – With FB/LB James Williams signed to the active roster on April 9, the SaberCats now have nine players with 31 years of experience in regular season NFL games. Williams is a 9-year NFL veteran who played five seasons with the New Orleans Saints after being drafted in the 5th round in 1990. He also played one season in Jacksonville, two seasons with San Francisco and a season with Cleveland. OL/DL Frank Beede is next in line with five seasons of NFL experience as a Seattle Seahawk. Other former NFL players include James Hundon (4 yrs w/Cincinnati), James Roe (4 yrs w/Baltimore), Wendell Davis (3 yrs w/Dallas), George Williams (3 yrs w/NY Giants), Matt Keneley (1 yr w/San Francisco), Jerry Reese (1 yr w/Buffalo) and Mike Ulufale (1 yr w/Dallas).

CLIMBING THE CHARTS – QB Mark Grieb continues to imprint his name in San Jose's record book. Grieb completed 27 passes, the second-highest single-game total in team history, in the opener against Arizona on April 20 to move ahead of Tony Kimbrough as the SaberCats career leader in pass completions. Grieb now has 417 completions in his SaberCats career moving past Kimbrough who has 415. Grieb's 42 pass attempts in the game were a career-high and also the third-highest single-game total in team history. Grieb is closing in on the top spot in career pass attempts trailing 2nd place Scott Wood by 26 and leader Kimbrough by 43. Grieb is already San Jose's career leader in passing yards (5,871) and touchdowns (117).

SIZE MATTERS – The nine linemen on San Jose's 24-man roster stand an average height of 6-4 and combine to weigh 2,576 pounds, or an average of 286.2 pounds per man. Three players tip the scales at or above 300 pounds, including Albrey Battle at 306, and George Williams and Frank Beede each at 300. Ironically it's the smallest lineman, Sam Hernandez at 6-3, 255 pounds, who is the leagues all-time sack leader with 48.0.

ROOKIE SENSATION – Rookie DS Clevan Thomas started his AFL career with a big night against Arizona on April 20. Thomas had a game-high 7.5 tackles and his interception of Sherdrick Bonner with one minute left in the game preserved San Jose's 52-51 win. Thomas became the third player in SaberCats history to record an interception in his first game joining Herschel Currie (5/30/97 at Texas) and Terrance Joseph (5/19/00 at Buffalo). Thomas also handled the kick return chores gaining 114 yards on 5 KORs and 20 yards on a MFG return. Thomas earned game Ironman honors.

OLD FRIENDS REUNITE – Quarterback Mark Grieb, OL/DL Chuck Reed (currently on IR) and OL/DL Sam Hernandez were all teammates with the Anaheim Piranhas in 1997. DS Wendell Davis and OL/DL Mike Ulufale were both drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the 1996 NFL Draft. Ulufale was a 3rd round pick (95th overall) and Davis was selected in the 6th round (207th overall). The two played together on the '96 Cowboys squad that finished the season 10-6, won the NFC East title and advanced to the Divisional Playoffs.

J HUN – Offensive specialist James Hundon was just that against the Rattlers on April 20. JHun hauled in a game high 10 catches for 103 yards and 3 TDs, including the game-winner with 1:40 left in the fourth quarter. Hundon reached double-digits in receptions for the third time in his seven-game AFL career. Steve Papin holds the SaberCats record with six double-digit reception games followed by Titus Dixon with five.

HELLO AGAIN – Veteran Barry Wagner came to camp this year in what he said was the best shape of his career. Wagner displayed that form by matching his San Jose career-high for receptions in a game with 9 against Arizona on April 20. He also had a game-high 112 receiving yards in the contest. Wagner is no stranger to the Tampa team being a division rival for eight years as a member of the Orlando Predators. In 20 career games against the Storm, including playoffs, Wagner has 97 receptions for 1,394 yards and 24 touchdowns. In true Ironman form, Wagner has also tallied 87.0 tackles and seven interceptions. He had a league playoff record 15.0 tackles against Tampa Bay on August 15, 1992.

PAPER OR PLASTIC – OL/DL Sam Hernandez, the AFL's career leader in quarterback sacks, has had success against the Storm. Five of Hernandez's 48 career sacks have come against Tampa Bay, the second-highest total against any team. During his 9-year career, Hernandez has spent the most time in the Milwaukee backfield posting 5.5 career sacks against the Mustangs and he also has 5.0 career sacks against Grand Rapids. Hernandez has recorded more than one sack in a game 14 times in his 100-game career and he's done it twice against Tampa Bay.

ROOKIES? – The SaberCats have six AFL rookies on their 24-man roster, but you can't really consider them rookies in the true sense. Of the six, four have spent time on an active NFL regular season roster, one played in two NCAA Division I National Championship games and another was a four-year player at a D-I school. FB/LB James Williams spent nine years in the NFL, OL/DL Frank Beede spent five seasons with the Seahawks, OL/DL George Williams was with the New York Giants for four seasons and Wendell Davis was a Dallas Cowboy for three years. DS Clevan Thomas was a starting DB at Florida State and the local kid, Travis Seaton was a four-year player at San Jose State.

PLAYERS/MATCH-UPS TO WATCH:

SAN JOSE OFFENSE vs TAMPA BAY DEFENSE – Dating back to last season the SaberCats have amassed over 300 yards in total offense in seven straight regular season games and have scored 442 points (63.1 ppg) over that span. San Jose totaled 304 yards of offense last week, the lowest total in the 7-game span. Tampa Bay consistently has one of the best defensive units in the AFL. Last season the Storm allowed just 43.8 ppg, second-best in the league, and was 7th in total defense allowing 263.1 yards per game.

MARK GRIEB – In his last seven regular season starts QB Mark Grieb has completed 69.2 percent of his passes (166-of-240) for 2,405 yards (343.6 ypg) with 48 TDs and just three interceptions. He has thrown for over 300 yards in a game five times during that span and has seven 300-yard games in his SaberCats career. Grieb owns an 18-3 record in 21 career starts with San Jose.

THE KICKING GAME – Two of the AFL's best matchup in this game. Tampa Bay's Mike Black is the AFL's career leader in kick scoring (1,105), PATs made (631) and attempted (698) and field goals made (159) and attempted (333). San Jose's Daron Alcorn ranks fifth in career kick scoring (488) and fourth in career field goals made (84). Alcorn also holds the league record for most field goals made in a season with 32 when he was a member of the Portland Forest Dragons in 1999 and his 27 field goals made in 1997 is the second-highest single-season total in AFL history.

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