San Jose SaberCats Game Notes

Published on April 1, 2003 under Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
San Jose SaberCats News Release


THE QUICK FACTS:
Game: SaberCats (7-2) at Dallas Desperados (5-4).
Date: Sunday, April 6, 2003.
Kickoff: 9:00 p.m. (PDT).
Site: Reunion Arena (16,441).
Officials: Referee: Riley Johnson; Umpire: Rick DiBernado; Head Linesman: Neil Brunner; Line Judge: Paul Engelberts; Back Judge: Bud McCleskey.
Television: Sunday's game will be televised by NBC with the announcing crew of Tom Hammond (play-by-play), Pat Haden (color) and Lewis Johnson calling the action.
Radio: San Jose's flagship station KNBR-1050 will broadcast the game live with Barry Tompkins handling play-by-play duties and George Atkinson supplying the color commentary. SaberCats Sideline Report: Hosted by Bob Fitzgerald, SSR is shown every Sunday at 11:52 p.m. on NBC11. The information packed 8-minute segment will get you up close and personal with the World Champions. Internet: Log on to www.ticket1050.com to hear a live webcast of the game.
Series Record: San Jose leads 2-0.
Last Meeting: San Jose 58, Dallas 41 (June 29, 2002 in Dallas, Tex.).
Series Streaks: San Jose Won 2.
Coaches: San Jose, Darren Arbet (5th season; 48-17 regular season, 53-19 overall). Dallas, Joe Avezzano (2nd season; 12-11 regular season, 13-12 overall).

OVERVIEW: After winning their sixth consecutive game and 18th straight at home, the SaberCats take to the road for a battle with the Central Division Dallas Desperados on Sunday, April 6. Game time is set for 9:00 a.m. (PT) and will be the featured weekly NBC telecast. The SaberCats outscored Carolina 55 to 20 over the final three quarters with the help of a team and league record tying six rushing touchdowns to improve to 7-2 on the year with a 62-40 win on Mar. 28. Barry Wagner scored three times on the ground and added a fourth on an 8-yard kickoff return to earn game Ironman honors. Wagner also caught a pass in his 100th consecutive game with a reception on San Jose's first possession. Keala Keanaaina added two rushing score, increasing his league-leading total to 10. San Jose remains tied with Los Angeles atop the Western Division standings and both teams are tied with Tampa Bay for the best record in the league. San Jose and Dallas met twice last season when both were competing in the Western Division. The SaberCats won both games by a combined score of 135 to 95. Dallas moved to the Central Division with expansion Colorado joining the AFL this year.

THE SERIES: San Jose leads the series 2-0 winning both contests last season...San Jose beat Dallas 58-41 in the last meeting between the teams on June 29, 2002 in Dallas...The SaberCats' 77-54 win over Dallas on May 25 in San Jose gave San Jose a league record with three consecutive games of 77 or more points.

WHAT'S AHEAD – The SaberCats return home following their brief one-game road trip to face the Detroit Fury on Friday, April 11 in the first of a two-game homestand. The Indiana Firebirds pay a visit to HP Pavilion on Saturday, April 19. The game with Detroit will be the first ever meeting between the SaberCats and Fury.

SERIES NOTABLES: This will be the third meeting between the teams with each coming in a different venue. The teams met for the first time on May 25, 2002 in San Jose's HP Pavilion and played last season in Dallas at American Airlines Center. Sunday's game will be played in Reunion Arena...Barry Wagner's only career rush attempt against Dallas resulted in a 1-yard TD on June 29, 2002...San Jose combined to rush for 95 yards and 7 TDs compared to 1 yard and a TD for Dallas in both games last season...Dallas DS Tim Denton had a career-high 8.5 tackles and his 1st career INT at San Jose on May 25, 2002...Dallas K Jason Wells played in 8 games for San Jose during the 2001 campaign scoring 71 points. In two 2002 games against the SaberCats, Wells converted 11-of-13 PATs and 2-of-5 FGs.

LAST SERIES MEETING: San Jose 58, Dallas 41 (Saturday, June 29, 2002 • American Airlines Center) – San Jose quarterback Mark Grieb threw six touchdown passes and the SaberCats tied an Arena Football League record with their 11th consecutive victory by downing the Dallas Desperados 58-41 before 13,660 at American Airlines Center. With the win the SaberCats also clinched their third straight Western Division title and secured a first-round bye in the 2002 playoffs. They also snapped the Desperados 4-game winning streak. Grieb connected with Shalon Baker on a 23-yard strike to tie the game early in the first quarter and threw a pair of scoring passes in the final 30 seconds of the first half. Omarr Smith snared a 14-yard strike with a half-minute remaining to give San Jose a 23-20 lead. After a quick Andy Kelly to Shannon Culver touchdown play put Dallas back on top 27-23, Grieb connected with James Hundon from 11-yards away with one second left in the half to give San Jose a 30-27 at the break. Grieb finished the night 25-of-41 for 305 yards. Kelly staked Dallas to an early 6-0 lead with a 1-yard toss to Adrian Lunsford on the Desperados' first drive of the game and threw four first half touchdown passes. He finished the night 23-of-34 for 250 yards and six scores. San Jose's James Hundon had a pair of touchdown catches and tied the franchise single-season record with 28, which was set by James Roe last season. Hundon totaled 8 catches for 114 yards on the evening. Barry Wagner, the game's Ironman, had 9 catches for 85 yards and added a 1-yard scoring run. James Williams closed out the scoring with an 11-yard run as San Jose reached the 50-point mark in its 17th straight regular season game.

ALL-TIME SERIES SCORES

Date Score
June 29, 2002 San Jose 58, @Dallas 41
May 25, 2002 @San Jose 77, Dallas 54

THE IFS...:

If the SaberCats defeat Dallas it would...
*Be San Jose's 7th straight win.
*Give San Jose an 8-2 season record.
*Give San Jose a 3-0 series edge over the Desperados.
*Give San Jose a 78-42 all-time regular season record.
*Give San Jose a 37-24 regular season road record.
*Give San Jose a 20-11 record vs Central Division.
*Give San Jose a 12-6 road record vs Central Division.
*Be San Jose's 4th straight win over a Southern Division opponent.

THE COACHES:

San Jose – Darren Arbet, 5th season 48-17 (.738) reg. season; 53-19 (.736) overall 2-0 (1.000) career vs. Dallas

Arbet became the 8th head coach in AFL history to win 50 games and the second fastest to reach the milestone with San Jose's win at Chicago on Mar. 9. Arbet reached 50 in his 69th game while Tim Marcum got win No. 50 in 63 games. Last season Arbet guided the SaberCats to the best regular season record (13-1) ever in league history, the most victories in a season (16) and the franchise's first league title. Arbet has compiled a 48-17 (.738) career mark in regular season games and currently owns the third-best regular season winning percentage in AFL history among coaches with at least 10 victories. Named AFL Coach of the Year in 2000 and 2002, Arbet's teams have gone 47-11 (.810) overall in the past four seasons. Spanning the 2000 and 2001 seasons, Arbet led the SaberCats to a league record 15-game regular season winning streak and twice in the last three years the SaberCats have had 12-game win streaks.

Dallas – Joe Avezzano, 2nd season 12-11 (.522) reg. season; 13-12 (.520) overall 0-2 (.000) career vs. San Jose

In his first professional head coaching job, Avezzano guided the Desperados to an 8-8 overall record in their inaugural season and a quarterfinal round playoff berth. Now in his second season with the club, Avezzano owns a 12-11 (.522) career regular season record and is 13-12 (.520) overall. Avezzano spent his first AFL season in a dual capacity serving as the Desperados head coach while continuing as the Dallas Cowboys special teams coach. Avezzano played professionally with the Boston Patriots, was head coach at Oregon State University for five seasons and was an assistant at Texas A&M for four seasons before joining the Cowboys' staff.

RECENT RESULTS: Barry Wagner rushed for three scores and the San Jose SaberCats ran for a team and league record tying six touchdowns in winning their sixth straight game on the season and 18th consecutive at home, 62-40, over the winless Carolina Cobras. Wagner, named game Ironman, ran for seven yards on four carries, caught three passes for 41 yards and scored a fourth touchdown on an 8-yard on-side kick return. He added 5.0 tackles and a pair of pass breakups on defense. Keala Keanaaina ran for a game-high 23 yards and scored twice and Matt Kinsinger also added a rushing score as the SaberCats raised their league-leading rushing touchdown total to 32. Carolina started fast scoring a franchise record 20 first quarter points and led after the opening stanza 20-7. Robert Hall tossed a 38-yard scoring pass to Tramain Jones on the game's first offensive play for a quick 7-0 Cobras advantage. Chris Johnson caught a 34-yard scoring pass with a minute left to give the Cobras the surprising 20-7 lead. Johnson led all receivers with 113 yards on nine grabs for his first career 100-yard receiving game. Bernard Holmes amassed 184 yards on kick returns and total 221 all-purpose yards for his sixth straight 200-plus yard game. San Jose outscored Carolina 55 to 20 over the remaining three quarters in handing the Cobras their franchise record ninth consecutive loss. Keanaaina scored on a 5-yard run midway through the third period to break a 33-33 tie and following a Carolina turnover, Mark Grieb threw his only touchdown pass of the game, a 20-yarder to Kevin McKenzie, to give San Jose a 13 point bulge. Grieb completed 12 of 21 attempts for 174 yards. On Carolina's next possession, Hall was sacked in the endzone by Chuck Reed and Cedric Pittman for a safety. Wagner scored on the ensuing on-side kick attempt to give San Jose a 55-33 lead with 5:36 left in the game. Wagner caught a pass on San Jose's first offensive play to give him at least one reception in 100 straight games. He added his third rushing score of the game and 96th of his career to close out the scoring with 1:29 left.

ROSTER MOVES: The SaberCats placed WR/DB Anthony Cobbs on IR Mar. 26 with a concussion sustained in San Jose's win over Arizona on Mar. 23.

RECENT ROSTER MOVES

Date Action
3/26 Placed WR/DB Anthony Cobbs on IR.
3/22 Activated OL/DL Dan Loney, OL/DL Chuck Reed, WR/LB Jerry Reese and FB/LB James Williams off IR.
3/22 Placed OL/DL Frank Beede, FB/LB Kevin Buck and WR/DB Rashied Davis on IR.
3/7 Placed OS James Hundon, OL/DL Brian Lytle and OL/DL Dan Loney on IR.
3/7 Activated OS Aaron Bailey, OL/DL Frank Beede and OL/DL Cedric Pittman off IR.
2/28 Placed WR/LB Jerry Reese on IR.
2/27 Signed WR/LB Jerry Reese.

INJURY REPORT: Outside the usual bumps and bruises associated with a professional football game, the SaberCats remain relatively healthy. OL/DL Dan Loney went down late in the Mar. 28 game grabbing his leg, but his injury is listed as minor.

INJURY REPORT
Player Injury Status
Keala Keanaaina Quad contusion Probable
Dan Loney Leg contusion Probable
George Williams Ankle sprain Probable

MILESTONES:

*K Daron Alcorn needs 4 FGs for 100 career and 4 pts for 700 career.
*OS Aaron Bailey needs 2 TD catches for 40 career.
*FB Matt Kinsinger needs 17 rush yards for 200 career.
*WR/DB Barry Wagner needs 4 rush TDs for 100 career and 20.0 tackles for 600 career.
*DS Clevan Thomas needs 2 INTs to tie team season record and 3 to tie league season record.
*QB Mark Grieb needs 18 completions for 900 career; 75 yards for 12,000 career.
*WR/LB James Roe needs 30 receptions for 200 career and 74 yards for 2,500 career.
*WR/LB Jerry Reese needs 10 receptions for 250 career and 45 yards for 3,500 career.

TALE OF THE TAPE: The SaberCats rank 1st in the league in pass defense rating (93.9) and interceptions (18) and are 2nd in pass defense (233.0 ypg). They will face a Dallas team that ranks 2nd in pass offense (301 ypg) and total offense (310.9 ypg)...San Jose may look to run the ball even more against a Dallas defense that ranks 14th against the run (21.1 ypg). The SaberCats lead the circuit in rushing (40 ypg) and rush touchdowns (32)...San Jose's top scoring offense (63.6 ppg) goes against the 11th ranked scoring defense (51.8 ppg) and a unit that allowed 62 points to Indiana, a team that had scored 20 points in each of its previous two games, on Mar. 29.

TRENDS:

ROAD WARRIORS – After three straight home games, the SaberCats take to the road for the first time in nearly a month with their trip to Dallas. San Jose is 3-2 on the road in 2003 and the club owns a 19-7 (.731) record in regular season road games since the start of the 2000 campaign.

OPENING SCORES – In each of the last three games the SaberCats have allowed a game opening possession touchdown to the opponent, and twice in the last three weeks the score came on the very first offensive play. Against Carolina on Mar. 28, QB Robert Hall connected with Tramain Jones on a 38-yard TD pass just 31 seconds after the opening kickoff. Buffalo's Jeff Loots threw a 45-yard TD pass to Gunnard Twyner 40 seconds after the game began on Mar. 14. In between it took the Arizona Rattlers three plays and 2:25 to score on their first possession. The early scores didn't faze the SaberCats, however, as they came back to win all three games and are 4-1 on the year when the opponent scores first.

JUST WIN – In his career as a member of the SaberCats, Mark Grieb owns a 36-6 regular season record as the team's starting quarterback. Grieb was the starter in both San Jose wins over Dallas last year.

THE MALLEY FACTOR – Since Terry Malley took over as the SaberCats offensive coordinator with six games remaining in the 1999 season, the team has reached the 60-point mark 29 times in 64 games (includes playoffs). Prior to his arrival the SaberCats had scored 60 or more points six times in 65 games. San Jose's all-time record when reaching the 60-point plateau is 32-3. All four of San Jose's 80-point games and 15 of the team's 17 70-plus point games have come with Malley as the team's offensive coordinator.

SCORING – Since the start of the 2002 season, San Jose has scored 50 or more points in 24 of 26 games. The two times the SaberCats failed to reach the half-century mark they put up 49 points. San Jose leads the league in scoring average this season at 63.6 ppg.

RUN, RUN, RUN – The SaberCats have rushed the ball exactly 13 times in each of their last three games for a total of 168 yards. Over that span the SaberCats have averaged 56 yards per game and 4.3 yards per carry and are 7-1 when out-rushing their opponent. San Jose has also scored 12 TDs in that time.

PICKIN' IT – The SaberCats have had at least one interception in eight of nine games this year and lead the league with 18 on the season. DS Wendell Davis snared his 2nd pick of the year when Carolina QB Robert Hall's pass bounced off the rebound net on Mar. 28. San Jose is on pace for 32 interceptions on the year, a number that would break Orlando's 1992 season record of 29.

SIMPLY RED ZONE – The SaberCats lead the league in red zone scoring efficiency at 97.6 percent having scored 41 of 42 times once inside the opponents 10-yard line. San Jose went 6-for-6 in red zone opportunities against Carolina on Mar. 28 with all six scores coming on the ground.

BIG GEORGE – The return of OL/DL George Williams to the SaberCats means one thing – wins. Williams played in 12 regular season games and all three playoff contests last season and the team went unbeaten. Williams was activated off IR on Feb. 21 and the SaberCats are 6-0 since his return. San Jose now owns a 21-0 record with Williams in the lineup.

PAYDIRT – San Jose has had at least one rushing TD in all nine games and leads the league with 32 on the year. The SaberCats tied the team and league record with six rushing TDs in their win over Carolina and are on pace for 57, which would shatter St. Louis' 1996 league record of 41, and make them league leaders for a fifth consecutive season. During their current six-game win streak, the SaberCats have rushed for 26 TDs.

MOST RUSH TDs (SEASON)
Rush TDs Team Year
41 St. Louis Stampede 1996
37 Orlando Predators 1996
36 San Jose SaberCats 1999
35 Milwaukee Mustangs 1997
34 San Jose SaberCats 2000
34 San Jose SaberCats 2002
33 Milwaukee Mustangs 1996
32 San Jose SaberCats 2003

NOTES:

HE KEEPS GOING – Now in his 12th AFL season, Barry Wagner just keeps going. Wagner reached another milestone when he caught a pass in his 100th consecutive game with a reception on San Jose's first possession. He also scored three rushing TDs and added a fourth on an 8-yard return of an onside kick attempt in San Jose's 62-40 win over Carolina on Mar. 28. Wagner scored four TDs in a game for the third time in his San Jose career and raised his league leading career rush TD total to 96.

CLEVAN THE MAN – After intercepting a pass in a league record 7 consecutive games, DS Clevan Thomas has not had one in his last two games. Thomas still leads the circuit with 9 INTs and needs two picks to match Tommy Jones' 1998 team record of 11 in a season and three to tie the league season record of 12. Only 13 players in the history of the league have had more INTs in a season than Thomas with Dameon Porter and Tracey Perkins leading the way with 12. Thomas ranks third on the SaberCats career INT list with 14 and trails only Jones (17) and Pat McGuirk (24) for the all-time lead.

OFF THE MARK – SaberCats QB Mark Grieb tossed his 9th interception of the year in San Jose's win over Carolina on Mar. 28 equaling his total from the past two seasons combined. Covering the 2001 and 2002 seasons, Grieb threw nine INTs in 614 pass attempts. So far in 2003, Grieb has been picked nine times in 243 pass attempts. Carolina's Ty Law picked Grieb in the first quarter on Mar. 28 extending Grieb's stretch of INTs in a game to a career-long four straight. Grieb's longest stretch of consecutive games throwing an INT had been two, which was done in 2001 and 2002.

CLIMBING THE CHARTS – QB Mark Grieb threw for 174 yards in San Jose's win over Carolina on Mar. 28 to raise his career passing yardage total to 11,925 and moved past Ron Lopez (11,887) into sole possession of 14th place on the league's career list. Grieb started the season in 16th place but moved past Kurt Warner in Week 3 and caught Lopez last week. Next on the list is Pat O'Hara, who has 12,712 career passing yards.

SACK EXCHANGE – After recording two sacks in their first four games, the SaberCats have registered seven in their last four contests, including a season high tying three against Carolina on Mar. 28. Playing in just his 2nd game of the year, OL/DL Cedric Pittman was credited with 1.5 sacks and now has 2.5 on the year. Pittman and Chuck Reed combined to sack Carolina QB Robert Hall in the endzone for a safety and Pittman's solo sack in the game resulted in a forced fumble that led to a San Jose TD.

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR? – Rookie FB/LB Keala Keanaaina continues to make a case for league Rookie of the Year. K.K. ran for a game-high 23 yards on 5 carries and scored a pair of TDs for the second straight game and third time this year. Keanaaina currently leads the league in rushing with 167 yards, a total that represents the 3rd highest season mark in team history, and he leads the league with 10 rush TDs, which is tied for the fourth most in team history. Keanaaina needs 48 yards to eclipse Tom Petithomme's 1996 club record of 214 yards.

TEAM RUSHING RECORDS (SEASON)
Rush Yds Player Year
214 Tom Petithomme 1996
188 Joey Dozier 2001
167 Keala Keanaaina 2003

Rush TDs Player Year
13 Steve Papin 1999
12 Derrick Chachere 1999
11 Steve Papin 2000
10 Keala Keanaaina 2003
10 Barry Wagner 2002
10 Joey Dozier 2001

BATTLE SHIP – A cornerstone on the SaberCats line for the last four years, Albrey Battle is putting up his best season statistically in 2003. Battle has played in 44 games since signing as a free agent prior to the 2000 season and has started every game on the line this year. Battle leads all San Jose linemen with 12.0 tackles, a new season career-high for him, bettering his 2000 total of 7.5 tackles. Battle tied his game career-high with 2.5 tackles against Carolina on Mar. 28 and added his 1st sack of the year and 6th of his career. In the previous three seasons, Battle totaled 18.5 tackles.

HAPPY RETURNS – Clevan Thomas returned a kickoff 55 yards for a TD against Carolina on Mar. 28 giving him 10 combined kick return scores (9 KO, 1 MFG) in his brief 2-year career. Barry Wagner added an 8-yard return for a score on an on-side kick attempt to give the SaberCats two kickoff return scores in a game for the fifth time in team history.

ROE, ROE, ROE –WR/LB James Roe, who has emerged as the ‘go to guy' since OS James Hundon was put on IR. In four games with Hundon out of the lineup, Roe has caught 30 passes for 339 yards and eight TDs. Roe led all San Jose receivers with 6 catches and 70 yards in San Jose's 62-40 win over Carolina on Mar. 28 and leads the team with 56 catches and 684 yards and is tied for the team lead with 14 TD grabs. Over the last four games Roe has caught 40 percent of QB Mark Grieb's passes (30 receptions, 75 completions).

GET YOUR KICKS – Although he's struggled lately missing 11 PAT attempts in his last three games, San Jose K Daron Alcorn has had much success against Dallas. In fact, Alcorn has not missed a kick attempt in two career games against the Desperados. Alcorn tied a San Jose record by converting all 11 PAT attempts in a 77-54 win on May 25 and was successful on all 7 PAT attempts and a 28-yard FG in San Jose's 58-41 win on June 29. Alcorn is four points shy of becoming the 4th kicker in league history to score 700 points.

WEEKLY BESTS – WR/LB Kevin McKenzie caught his 1st TD pass as a SaberCat, and 15th of his career...Gana Joseph played his 1st career game and posted 1.5 tackles and a FF...DS Wendell Davis tallied his 4th career interception...Barry Wagner recorded his 6th career KO return TD when he went 8-yards with an on-side kick attempt...A blocked PAT attempt by George Williams was the first for San Jose since June 15, 2002 when Sam Hernandez blocked a Chicago PAT.

DALLAS PLAYERS TO WATCH:

OL/DL TOM BRIGGS: The league leader in QB sacks with 8.5, Briggs is close to the season record of 13.0 set by Pittsburgh's Craig Walls in 1987. Since joining the league in 1997 with Anaheim, Briggs has played against the SaberCats 13 times as a Western Division foe, he was also with Portland and Oklahoma before joining Dallas. In those 13 games, Briggs has recorded 25.0 tackles (18 solo) and has two TD receptions, but he has never recorded a sack against San Jose.

QB JIM KUBIAK – Despite a 5-4 record, the Desperados continue to be one of the top offensive teams in the league thanks to quarterback Jim Kubiak. As a member of the Buffalo Destroyers in 2001, he set league rookie records for pass attempts (484), completions (295), yards (3,787) and TDs (64). This season, Kubiak ranks 2nd behind New York's Aaron Garcia in passing yards (2,734), pass rating (123.1) and total offense (2,739). The former Naval Academy grad has five 300-plus passing yard games this season, including two straight, and has completed 122-of-177 (68.9%) passes for 1,528 yards and 29 TDs with three INTs in five Dallas victories.

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