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SaberCats Game Notes

May 14, 2002 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
San Jose SaberCats News Release


THE QUICK FACTS:
Game: SaberCats (4-0) at Orlando Predators (1-3).
Date: Friday, May 17, 2002.
Kickoff: 4:30 p.m. (PDT).
Site: TD Waterhouse Centre (16,613).
Officials: Referee: Darrel Leftwich; Umpire: Tom Laverty; Head Linesman: Bill Ward; Line Judge: Jim Hatfield; Back Judge: Rich Wilborn.
Television: NBC3 and WB20 will televise the game live in the Bay Area beginning at 4:30 p.m. (PT). Bob Fitzgerald will call the play-by-play and George Atkinson will supply the commentary.
Radio: San Jose's flagship station The Ticket (KTCT) 1050-AM will broadcast the game live from Orlando with Tim Roye handling the play-by-play chores and Jack Tatum adding the commentary. Internet: Log on to www.ticket1050.com to hear a live webcast of the game.
Series Record: Series tied 2-2.
Last Meeting: Orlando 59, SAN JOSE 35 (May 26, 2001 in San Jose).
Streaks: Orlando won 1.
Coaches: San Jose, Darren Arbet (34-16 overall, 4th season). Orlando, Fran Papasedero (1-3 overall, 1st season).

OVERVIEW: After winning their first three games by a combined 14 points, the SaberCats exploded for a 34-point win by defeating the Los Angeles Avengers 78-44 on May 11 to remain the only undefeated team in the Arena Football League. The SaberCats pack their bags and head for Florida for the second time in four weeks, this time to battle the Southern Division Orlando Predators. This will be the third of four games on the year against Southern Division teams. San Jose has been a member of the AFL for eight years and Orlando entered the league in 1991, but this meeting will be the first between the teams in Orlando. The all-time series is even at 2-2. Former Orlando head coach Jay Gruden, who directed the Predators to the ArenaBowl title in 1998, left his post to return to the playing field as the Predators starting QB. Gruden won four AFL titles while playing with the Tampa Bay Storm (1991-96) and was elected to the AFL Hall of Fame in 1999. This game also marks a homecoming for San Jose's Barry Wagner. Wagner played eight seasons in Orlando (1992-98) and won six straight Ironman awards (1992-97) and two MVP awards (1995, 97). With their win over Los Angeles on May 11, the SaberCats improved their record to 26-6 in regular season games since the start of the 2000 season.

THE SERIES: The teams have played four times with each winning twice, but this game marks the first played between the teams in Orlando...The two teams played each other three times within a span of 10 months over the 1995 and 1996 seasons, but just once since then. San Jose won the first-ever meeting between the teams, 54-27, on July 22, 1995. They met again in the playoffs that year with Orlando posting a 55-37 win in San Jose's first-ever playoff game back on August 13, 1995. Five games into the 1996 season San Jose defeated Orlando 42-25 on May 24...The Predators were the last team to beat the SaberCats in San Jose posting a 59-35 win in the most recent meeting on May 26, 2001. Since that loss, the SaberCats have won seven straight home games, including a playoff win last year.

SERIES NOTABLES: In their two losses to San Jose the Predators scored an average of 26 points per game. In their two wins they averaged 57 ppg...Orlando OS Siaha Burley set a San Jose opponent record with six receiving TDs in Orlando's 59-35 win on May 26, 2001...San Jose QB Mark Grieb has never faced Orlando while a member of the SaberCats. He did face the Predators in 1997 when he was with Anaheim and completed 3 of 9 passes for 38 yards in relief. Orlando won that game 41-40 on June 20 in Orlando...San Jose WR/LB Jerry Reese is the only player to have participated in all four previous meetings. Reese has totaled 8 catches for 136 yards and 3 TDs on offense and has 7.5 tackles [7,1], a PD and a FF on defense. WR/DB Barry Wagner has played in three of the four games, two with Orlando and the last meeting as a SaberCat. Wagner missed the May 24, 1996 game with a broken leg.

LAST SERIES MEETING: Orlando 59, SAN JOSE 35 (May 26, 2001 • Compaq Center) – Craig Whelihan threw seven touchdown passes, six to receiver Siaha Burley, and Orlando beat San Jose 59-35. Orlando jumped to a 14-0 first-quarter lead and never trailed in the contest. It was the first time since May 12, 2000, a stretch of 61 quarters that San Jose was held scoreless in a quarter. Whelihan found receiver Bret Cooper with a 5-yard pass at the 7:17 mark of the first and hit Burley with a 20-yard touchdown strike with 1:44 left to play in the quarter. San Jose closed the gap early in the second period when Steve Papin scored on a 6-yard run, but Orlando answered with a six-play drive that included a 6-yard carry to the 1-yard line by backup quarterback Chris Wallace off a fake field goal. Whelihan dove into the end zone on the next play for a 21-7 lead. San Jose closed the gap to a touchdown when Joey Dozier blasted into the end zone from the 1-yard line on the ensuing series. Following a 6-yard Whelihan to Burley TD pass with :55 left in the half, James Roe grabbed John Dutton's 10-yard scoring toss 37 seconds later to make it 28-21 at the intermission. Burley scored his third touchdown of the game on a 7-yard reception on the opening series of the second half extending Orlando's lead to 34-21. San Jose sandwiched a 16-yard Dozier TD run, his second of the game, and a 31-yard TD strike from Dutton to Jerry Reese around a 45-yard David Cool field goal to creep within 37-35 after three quarters. Burley hauled in his fourth TD of the game, a 34-yard strike, on the first play of the fourth quarter and the game took a disastrous turn for San Jose on its next possession. San Jose drove to the Orlando 6-yard line and on first-and-goal proceeded to run the ball three times for no gain. A pass interference penalty on fourth down gave the SaberCats another shot from the 3-yard line. Three more running plays produced 2-yards and again on fourth down San Jose went for it. Dutton's pass was incomplete, but an offsides penalty against Orlando gave the SaberCats yet another chance. Papin was stuffed at the goal line and the Predators took over. On the second play of the drive, Whelihan and Burley hooked up with the dagger that ended San Jose's chances. The 43-yard bomb gave the Predators a 52-35 lead with 6:30 left in the game. Lamont Moore intercepted Dutton on San Jose's next possession leading to Burley's sixth TD catch of the game.

ALL-TIME SERIES SCORES
Date Score
May 26, 2001 Orlando 59, @San Jose 35
May 24, 1996 @San Jose 42, Orlando 25
Aug. 13, 1995 Orlando 55, @San Jose 37 (playoff)
July 22, 1995 @San Jose 54, Orlando 27

THE IFS...:

If the SaberCats defeat Orlando it would...
*Give San Jose its first-ever 5-0 start.
*Give San Jose a 3-2 series edge over Orlando.
*Be San Jose's 62nd regular season victory all-time.
*Give San Jose a 29-21 regular season road record.
*Give San Jose a 12-11 record against Southern Division foes.
*Give San Jose a 19-12 record in May games.

THE COACHES:

San Jose – Darren Arbet, 4th season
32-14 (.695) regular season; 34-16 (.680) overall
0-1 (.000) career vs. Orlando
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 34-16 (.680) overall record and is 32-14 (.695) in regular season games. The SaberCats are 26-6 (.813) 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.

Orlando – Fran Papasedero, 1st season
1-3 (.250) overall
0-0 career vs. San Jose
Papasedero became the third coach in Predators history on August 21, 2001, replacing Jay Gruden, who resigned to return to the playing field as the team's starting QB. An assistant for four years under Gruden at Orlando, Papasedero assumes his first head coaching role. A former AFL lineman, Papasedero retired in 1997 and began his coaching career the following season as the Predators line coach. In his four years as an assistant, the Predators compiled a 43-23 record, four AFL playoff trips, three ArenaBowl appearances and two titles.

RECENT RESULTS: After opening the season with three wins by a combined 14 points, the San Jose SaberCats exploded for a 78-44 victory over the Los Angeles Avengers at the Compaq Center tying the franchise's best start, which was set in 2001. Quarterback Mark Grieb was 17-for-26 with 255 yards passing and six touchdowns in helping the SaberCats improve to 4-0 and remain the league's lone unbeaten club. Three of Grieb's six touchdown passes were to OS James Hundon, who caught six passes for 94 yards. Hundon had his string of three straight 100+-yard receiving games snapped. The SaberCats opened the game scoring on their first seven possessions and took the lead for good at 13-7 when fullback Matt Kinsinger rumbled three yards for a touchdown midway through the first quarter. On San Jose's next possession, Omarr Smith made a leaping touchdown catch to push the SaberCats lead to 20-7. The SaberCats scored 11 touchdowns on 13 possessions for the game. Kinsinger scored his second touchdown on the night, this time on a two-yard run with five-and-a-half minutes remaining in the second quarter. It was the first two-touchdown game for Kinsinger. San Jose's offense remained efficient the entire night with a balanced attack. The SaberCats scored five times on the ground with four different players tallying a score and amassed 275 yards through the air. Nine of the SaberCats' 12 scoring drives lasted under two minutes. Los Angeles managed to keep the game relatively close until the second half when the SaberCats converted two Avenger onside kick attempts into touchdowns. San Jose outscored Los Angeles 34-10 in the half. San Jose lineman Sam Hernandez, already the Arena Football League's all-time quarterback sacks leader, hauled down Avengers' quarterback Tony Graziani twice to up his career record to 51.5. He also added 3.5 tackles and a pass breakup to earn game MVP honors. The win gave San Jose seven straight at home dating back to last season. In addition, the 78 points were the most the SaberCats have scored all season and the fifth highest total in team history.

ABOUT THE OPPONENT: Orlando is off to a 1-3 start for just the second time in the team's 12-year existence. The last time the Predators started 1-3 was last season when they opened with three straight losses before rattling off six straight wins. Orlando ended with an 8-6 mark last year...Orlando ranks 13th out of 16 teams in points allowed at 54.8, but in two home games the Predators are holding the opposition to 41.5 ppg...Jay Gruden is one of four quarterbacks to throw over 80 career interceptions. Gruden has thrown 6 picks this year elevating his career total to 84 and tying him with Mike Perez for 3rd on the league's career list...In six seasons with Tampa Bay, Gruden never threw fewer than 11 interceptions in a season, and had a season career-high of 15 in 1992...DS Kenny ‘The Glove' McEntyre has 33 career interceptions to rank 5th on the league's all-time list...The Predators own a 53-19 (.736) record in regular season home games.

ROSTER MOVES: The SaberCats made some changes to their practice squad roster. Waived were Chris Underwood and Eddie Williams and signed was FB/LB Kevin Buck. WR/DB Rashied Davis, who was on IR, was activated and waived. He will be added to the team's practice squad in the near future.

RECENT ROSTER MOVES

Date Action Player
5/13 Signed to PS FB/LB Kevin Buck
5/13 Activate from IR WR/DB Rashied Davis
5/13 Waived WR/DB Rashied Davis
5/13 Waived from PS FB/LB Chris Underwood
5/13 Waived from PS WR/LB Eddie Williams
5/7 Signed to PS FB/LB Chris Underwood

MILESTONES:

*WR/LB James Roe needs 2 TD catches for 40 career and 20 receiving yards for 1,600 career.
*WR/DB Barry Wagner needs 11 catches for 800 career.
*OL/DL Mike Ulufale needs 1.5 sacks for 10 career.
*FB/LB Bob McMillen needs 11 rush yards for 700 career.
*OL/DL Chuck Reed needs 3 sacks for 20 career.
*OS James Hundon needs 2 TD catches for 30 career.
*WR/LB Shalon Baker needs 13 catches for 200 career.
*QB Mark Grieb needs 225 pass yards for 8,000 career.

INJURY REPORT: Outside of the usual bumps and bruises associated with a professional football game, the SaberCats remain relatively healthy. QB Mark Grieb was kicked in the thigh and sat out one play against Georgia. It was the first time this season Grieb was not under center for an offensive play.

Player Injury Status
Chuck Reed Hip Flexor Strain Probable
Mike Ulufale Concussion Probable

TALE OF THE TAPE: It's safe to say San Jose has the top offensive unit in the AFL. The SaberCats lead the league in scoring (62.5 ppg), total offense (327.8 ypg), pass offense (302.8 ypg) and pass rating (150.8). San Jose also leads the league in sacks with 8 and rank in the top 5 in seven other categories. Despite allowing 54.8 ppg, third-worst in the league, Orlando ranks 2nd in total defense allowing an average of 229.5 yards per game.

TRENDS:

HEADS OR TAILS – San Jose has won the coin toss in all four games this year and has elected to defer to the second half.

GETTING OFFENSIVE – Dating back to last season the SaberCats have reached the 300-yard mark in total offense in 10 straight regular season games and have amassed a total of 3,591 yards, an average of 359.1 yards per game. During that 10-game span the SaberCats have a record of 9-1. The last time San Jose did not reach 300 total yards was at Los Angeles on June 2, 2001 when they totaled 236 yards of offense.

THE BETTER HALF – The SaberCats have trailed at halftime in three of their four games this season but have tightened up to hold their opponent to 64 second half points and just 20 in the fourth quarter. San Jose held Georgia scoreless in the fourth quarter on May 4 and overcame a 3-point halftime deficit to post a 59-53 win. Last week San Jose held Los Angeles to 10 points in the second half, seven in the fourth quarter, and outscored the Avengers 34-10 in the last half. The SaberCats stifled Arizona on April 20 holding the Rattlers to a fourth quarter field goal and won the game by a point.

GOOD ODDS – Mark Grieb completed 65.4 percent (17 of 26) of his passes against Los Angeles on May 11 and has now completed more than 60% of his attempts in 19 consecutive regular season starts. During that stretch the SaberCats are 18-1. During his career with San Jose, Grieb has started 24 games and the SaberCats own a 21-3 record in those games.

NOTES:

J HUN – Offensive specialist James Hundon had his streak of three straight 100+-yard receiving games this year and five straight dating back to last year snapped against Los Angeles on May 11. He did, however, finish with 6 catches for 94 yards and 3 TDs to extend his string of games with at least one TD catch to 12. In those 12 career games, including two playoff contests last season, Hundon has 34 TD catches.

GOOD GRIEB! – Is it too early to start talking about Offensive Player of the Year honors? In Mark Grieb's case, probably not. Grieb completed 17 of 26 passes for 255 yards and 6 TDs without an interception against Los Angeles on May 11. In four games this season, Grieb has completed 85 of 125 attempts (68%) for 1,191 yards and 25 TDs without an interception. Including two playoff games last season, Grieb has now thrown 226 consecutive passes without being intercepted and has thrown for 50 TDs during that stretch. Dating back even further, Grieb has just one interception in his last 367 attempts while tossing 78 touchdown passes.

DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS – With all of San Jose's offensive exploits well documented, it's hard to overlook the effort by the defensive unit. The SaberCats lead the league in quarterback sacks with 8 and in pass defense rating at 98.2. The SaberCats have held their opponent to a league-low 52.9 completion percentage and have allowed just 913 passing yards, the third-lowest total in the AFL.

PAPER OR PLASTIC – Speaking of QB sacks, the SaberCats (8) and Sam Hernandez (3.5) sit atop the league's stat charts after four weeks. The SaberCats have registered 6 sacks in the last two games and all 8 sacks in the last three games. Hernandez recorded two of San Jose's three sacks against Los Angeles QB Tony Graziani on May 11 to increase his career total to 51.5. It was the 12th two-sack game for the league's career leader in sacks and the 35th time he has recorded at least a partial sack in 103 career games. Albrey Battle added his fifth career sack and first of the season against Los Angeles.

FIRSTS – A couple of former NFL stars registered an AFL first against Los Angeles on May 11. FB/LB James Williams, who spent nine seasons in the NFL as a linebacker, scored his first AFL touchdown on his first rush attempt. Williams bullied his way 4-yards for a touchdown to give San Jose a 64-44 lead in the fourth quarter. DS Wendell Davis, who was with the Dallas Cowboys for three years, nabbed his first interception late in the fourth quarter to blunt an Avengers drive. QB John Dutton scored his first career AFL touchdown when he scampered 3-yards on a bootleg to supply San Jose with its margin of victory against Los Angeles.

THE RUN RETURNS – After rushing for 5 yards and one TD on 8 carries in their first two games, the SaberCats have totaled 95 yards and 7 TDs on 24 attempts in the last two. Against Los Angeles on May 11, four SaberCats rushed for five TDs, including a career-best two by FB Matt Kinsinger. Bob McMillen, James Williams and John Dutton also scored. The five rush TDs were the second-most in a game in team history. McMillen added a team-high 13 yards and ranks 9th in the league with 38. Against Georgia on May 4, the SaberCats ran the ball 15 times, the most attempts since they had 17 against Orlando on May 26, 2001, for 55 yards, the sixth-most in a game in team history.

SECOND QUARTER BLUES – We spoke about the success San Jose has had defensively in the second half and fourth quarter of games. But to get to that point the team has had to struggle in the second quarter. While being the most successful quarter offensively, San Jose has scored 77 points in the second quarter, it has also been the worst defensively. Exactly one half of the points allowed on the season have come in the second quarter. The SaberCats have allowed 202 points on the year with 101 coming in the second quarter. Georgia set a SaberCats opponent record by scoring 29 second quarter points but was shutout in the fourth quarter. The second quarter has been equally disastrous for Orlando. The Predators have been outscored 77-37 in the second quarter of their games.

ROOKIE SENSATION – DS/KR Clevan Thomas, who was named the AFL's Rookie of the Month for April, has done just fine since the calendar changed. For the second time in four games Thomas led the team in tackles by registering 6.5 [6,1] against Los Angeles on May 11. Thomas leads the team and ranks 7th in the league with 24.0 tackles and is 9th in the AFL with 5 passes defended. Thomas is also the only SaberCats player to return a kick in four games.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK – For the second time in three weeks a SaberCats player was named the AFL's "ADT" Defensive Player of the Week. OL/DL Sam Hernandez was honored this past week after posting 2.0 sacks and 3.5 tackles in San Jose's 78-44 win over the Los Angeles Avengers. It was the first 2-sack game for Hernandez since June 9, 2000, and the 12th time in his career he has had two or more sacks in a game.

BAKER'S DOZEN – WR/LB Shalon Baker has returned to the SaberCats lineup and added a new wrinkle to the offense. Prior to the 2002 season Baker had two rush attempts in 43 career games. In two games this season, Baker has already equaled his career total in rush attempts. Against Los Angeles on May 11, Baker ran for 12 yards on his only carry and in his first game of the season, after being activated from IR, he had an 8-yard carry against Georgia on May, 4. Baker is 3rd on the team with his 20 yards on just two carries.

EFFICIENCY – The SaberCats lead the league in total offense with 1,311 yards, an average of 327.8 per game, and have 81 more yards then second place Arizona. San Jose averages a league-best 8.2 yards per play. Against Tampa Bay on April 27, the SaberCats averaged 11.9 yards per play, a league season-high. Against Los Angeles on May 11, the SaberCats averaged 8.8 yards per play and scored 11 touchdowns, also a league season-high and the second-most in team history, in 13 offensive possessions. San Jose leads the league with 35 offensive touchdowns scored.

PLAYERS/MATCH-UPS TO WATCH: JAY GRUDEN – All eyes will be on former head coach and current starting QB Jay Gruden. In six seasons (1991-96) as QB of the Tampa Bay Storm, Gruden completed 1,182 of 1,983 passes for 15,514 yards and 280 touchdowns, and led the Storm to four Arena Bowl titles (1991-93-95-96) and was voted league MVP in 1992. He is still the Storm's leader in all four career categories.

MARK GRIEB vs KENNY MCENTYRE – San Jose QB Mark Grieb leads the league in pass rating (150.4), passing yards (297.8 ypg) and total offense and has yet to throw an interception this season in 125 attempts. Dating back to last season and including postseason play, Grieb has thrown 226 consecutive passes without being intercepted. Lurking in the Orlando secondary is two-time AFL "Defensive Player of the Year" Kenny McEntyre. McEntyre is the only player in league history to record back-to-back seasons with 10 or more picks (10 in '01 and 11 in '00) and currently leads the league with 5 interceptions.

JAMES HUNDON – Hundon has been the go-to guy for San Jose this season. He leads the team in receptions (35), receiving yards (513) and receiving TDs (13) through four games and is tied for the league in scoring with 78 points. With his 13 TD catches so far, Hundon is nearly half way to the team's season record of 28, which was set by James Roe in 2001. At his current pace Jhun will have 122 catches, 1,795 yards and 45 TD catches and will obliterate the team season records. Steve Papin holds the season record for receptions (91 in ‘99) and receiving yards (1,256 in ‘98) and James Roe is the single-season TD reception leader (28 in '01).

SAN JOSE OFFENSE vs ORLANDO DEFENSE – The SaberCats boast the league's top offensive unit while the Predators rank 2nd in pass defense and total defense. San Jose has thrown for the most yards (1,211) and TDs (25) and lead the AFL with 302.8 passing yards per game. Orlando has allowed 809 passing yards, the second fewest in the league, and give up just 202.2 per game. The Predators' 5.9 yards per pass play is the lowest in the league while their 14 pass TDs is tied with Carolina for the fewest allowed.

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