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Utah Blaze game notes

February 28, 2006 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Utah Blaze News Release


THE QUICK FACTS:
Game: San Jose SaberCats (1-4) at Utah Blaze (2-3).
Date: Saturday, March 4, 2006.
Kickoff: 7:00 p.m. (MT).
Site: Delta Center (15,577) Salt Lake City
Officials: Referee: Terry Brown; Umpire: Rick Lowe;
Head Linesman: Rod Pearson; Line Judge: Art Lucky; Back Judge: Scott Helverson
Television: FSN Utah with Tim Neverett (play-by-play), Jay Leeuwenberg (commentary) and Alema Harrington (sideline) calling the action.
Radio: Utah's flagship station 1280 The Zone will broadcast the game live with Ryan Hatch (play-by-play) and Keith Embray (commentary).
Blaze Coaches' Show: Ryan Hatch hosts the Blaze Coaches' Show every Wednesday night on 1280 The Zone at 7-8 p.m.
Internet: Log on to www.1280thezone.com to hear a live webcast of Saturday's game.
Series Record: Utah leads series 1-0.
Coaches: Utah, Danny White (14th season; 123-58 regular season, 143-68 overall). San Jose, Darren Arbet (7th season: 66-30 regular season, 75-33 overall).
League Stats:
http://www.aflmedia.com/public/leaders/confstat.htm

OVERVIEW: The Blaze are looking for their second win against division foe San Jose SaberCats. The Blaze, who have the No. 1 offense in the AFL (57.6 PPG), are also looking to win their second straight divisional game after a dramatic come-from-behind 68-66 victory over the Los Angeles Avengers in the STAPLES Center last weekend. The win gave Utah sole possession of first place in the Western Division, as all the other four teams in the division lost over the weekend to fall to a second place tie at 1-4. The Blaze opened up the season with a 48-35 victory over the SaberCats in Week 1. San Jose is coming off a 54-48 overtime loss to Chicago. San Jose is also looking forward to finishing five-game road trip at the Delta Center on Saturday. The SaberCats have not played at home since the season-opening loss to the Blaze. The SaberCats have won two of the last four ArenaBowl titles.

THE SERIES: This will be the second meeting between the San Jose SaberCats and the Utah Blaze. There is a history between DANNY WHITE and the SaberCats. White is 14-11 against the SaberCats. This will mark the first meeting at the Delta Center.

WHAT'S AHEAD: The Blaze will play two of their next three games at the Delta Center with a game on Friday March 10 against the Nashville Kats. The Blaze then travel to Grand Rapids on March 16th for a Thursday night game against the Rampage. Utah will finish out the month with a divisional home game against the Las Vegas Gladiators on March 24th.

THE SCHEDULES:

2006 Utah Blaze (2-3)
Date Opponent Result Score
Jan. 28 @ San Jose Won 48-35
Feb. 4 DALLAS Lost 53-56
Feb. 11 NEW YORK Lost 81-84
Feb. 18 @ Arizona Lost 38-45
Feb. 25 @ Los Angeles Won 68-66
Game Opponent Time (PT) TV
Mar. 4 SAN JOSE 7:00 p.m. 1280/FSN
Mar. 10 NASHVILLE 7:00 p.m. 1280
Mar. 16 @ Grand Rapids 5:00 pm 1280/FSN
Mar. 24 LAS VEGAS 7:00 p.m. 1280/KJZZ
Apr. 1 @ Tampa Bay 5:30 p.m. 1280
Apr. 7 ARIZONA 7:00 p.m. 1280/FSN
Apr. 15 LOS ANGELES 7:00 p.m. 1280/KJZZ
Apr. 21 @ Colorado 7:00 p.m. 1280
Apr. 28 @ Las Vegas 8:30 p.m. 1280
May 6 @ Chicago 6:00 p.m. 1280/FSN
May 12 KANSAS CITY 7:00 p.m. 1280/KJZZ

2006 San Jose SaberCats (1-4)
Game Opponent Time (PT) TV
Jan. 28 UTAH Lost 35-48
Feb. 6 @ Las Vegas Lost 48-51
Feb. 12 @ Arizona Won 58-50
Feb. 19 @ Grand Rapids Lost 52-66
Feb. 26 @ Chicago Lost 48-54 (OT)
Game Opponent Time (PT) TV
Mar. 4 @ Utah 6:00 p.m. WB20
Mar. 12 LOS ANGELES 5:30 p.m. NBC
Mar. 17 GEORGIA 7:30 p.m. FSN
Mar. 25 @ Nashville 5:00 p.m. NBC11
Apr. 2 ARIZONA 3:00 p.m. NBC
Apr. 7 @ Tampa Bay 4:30 p.m. WB
Apr. 14 LAS VEGAS 7:30 p.m. FSN
Apr. 22 AUSTIN 7:30 p.m.
Apr. 29 @ Los Angeles 7:30 p.m. WB20
May 6 COLORADO 7:30 p.m.
May 13 COLUMBUS 7:30 p.m.
NOTABLES: 2005 AFLWA Offensive player of the Year OS SIAHA BURLEY will look to establish some new expansion records in 2006. Burley, who had 117 receptions for 1,542 yards and a league-leading 45 touchdowns, figures to be a threat to re-write the books... The expansion records Burley will be chasing are held by former Detroit Fury OS ROBERT GORDON who tallied 125 receptions for 1,630 yards and 42 touchdowns in 2001... Burley is currently on pace to record 173 receptions, 2,467 yards and 54 touchdowns (all would be AFL records)... Burley currently leads the league in all three categories with 54 catches, 771 yards, 17 TDs, 1,003 all-purpose yards and 44 first downs... Burley set the single-game expansion record for receiving yards (259) and tied the single-game touchdown mark (6) in week two against New York... QB JOE GERMAINE set the single-game expansion mark for completions (35) and tied the single-game expansion mark for touchdowns (10)... Germaine is currently on pace to record 712 attempts, 487 completions, 6,199 yards and 113 touchdowns which would all be AFL records.

LAST WEEK:

BLAZE DEFEAT L.A. ON LAST SECOND TD
Germaine connects with Bryant as time expires for win.

LOS ANGELES - Utah Blaze QB JOE GERMAINE found WR/DB ORSHAWANTE BRYANT for a 12-yard touchdown as time expired to give the Blaze a 68-66 Western Division victory over the Los Angeles Avengers (1-4) at STAPLES Center in front of 12,314 fans on Saturday night.

The victory improved Utah head coach/general manager Danny White's all-time record in Los Angeles to 10-0 and gives the Blaze (2-3) the lead in the Western Division.

Germaine, who earned Beckett.com AFL Offensive Player of the Week, finished the night completing 31-of-40 passes for 387 yards, eight touchdowns and one interception, as well as adding a rushing touchdown. OS Siaha Burley led the Blaze receivers with 13 receptions for 173 yards and three touchdowns.

Bryant, who put in an Ironman performance, finished with seven receptions for 67 yards and two touchdowns on offense and 4.5 total tackles and a pass breakup on defense.

Los Angeles QB SONNY CUMBIE completed 29-of-43 passes for 266 yards and seven touchdowns. WR/LB Greg Hopkins had seven catches for 93 yards and three touchdowns and also recovered a fumble for a score. TONY LOCKE and KEVIN INGRAM had two scores each.

"We took it to another level tonight," White said. "We were able to execute in the final minute and got over the hump in a close game. We'll need to carry this over for next week."

Reigning Lineman of the Year SILAS DEMARY got the scoring started by sacking and forcing Germaine to fumble and allowing former Ironman of the Year, WR/LB GREG HOPKINS to scoop up the loose ball for a 6-yard touchdown return and an Avengers' 7-0 lead.

Germaine then got the Blaze on the board with a 1-yard touchdown run to knot the score at 7-7. The Blaze ended the first quarter with a 21-14 lead after WR/LB Justin Skaggs scored on a 5-yard run.

The Blaze and Avengers each posted 14 points in the second quarter, but Los Angeles outscored Utah 14-7 in the third quarter. But, the Avengers were unable to capitalize as they twice let 10-point leads slip away in the fourth quarter.

After Hopkins scored with 15 seconds remaining to give the Avengers a 66-62 lead, Germaine completed three passes - two to Bryant and one to Burley - for 35 yards and the game-winning touchdown pass as the clock hit zeros.

THE LAST MEETING ON JAN. 29:

BLAZE TORCH SABERCATS, 48-35

SAN JOSE - Utah QB JOE GERMAINE connected on 17-of-28 passes for 199 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions as the Utah Blaze upset the heavily-favored San Jose SaberCats in their franchise opener at HP Pavilion on January 29.

"This was an unbelievable victory for us," Blaze head coach/general manager DANNY WHITE said. "This ranks up there with the first championship I was apart of back against Orlando (ArenaBowl VIII) in 1994."

On a night of many firsts, Germaine hit OS SIAHA BURLEY on a 4-yard touchdown pass to get the Blaze on the board and tie the game at 7-7 with 7:44 remaining in the first quarter.

San Jose QB MARK GRIEB led a six-play, 36 yard drive that was capped with a 17-yard touchdown pass to Charles Pauley and gave the SaberCats a 14-7 lead. Grieb finished 28-of-40 passing for 236 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.

Utah kicker STEVE VIDETICH became the AFL's all-time scoring leader when he connected on an extra point at the 1:48 mark in the second quarter. Videtich passed Mike Black (1,253) and now stands at 1,260.

The Blaze went on a 24-0 run and went into halftime with a 31-14 lead.

Germaine, who earned Offensive Player of the Game, tossed two touchdowns to the Ironman of the Game, WR/DB ORSHAWANTE BRYANT and added two second-half touchdowns to Burley. Defensive specialist KELVIN HUNTER earned Defensive Player of the Game by tallying 5.0 tackles, a fumble recovery and an interception in the end zone to stop a San Jose drive.

WHITE'S REGULAR-SEASON SCORES VS. SAN JOSE
Date Score
May 12, 1995 Arizona 43, @ San Jose 37
Aug. 6, 1995 @ Arizona 41, San Jose 40
May 4, 1996 @ Arizona 61, San Jose 59
Aug. 2, 1996 @ San Jose 30, Arizona 29
May 24, 1997 @ Arizona 59, San Jose 50
June 9, 1997 Arizona 59, @ San Jose 22
May 9, 1998 Arizona 62, @ San Jose 43
June 6, 1998 @ Arizona 48, San Jose 26
May 15, 1999 @ San Jose 55, Arizona 50
June 12, 1999 @ Arizona 73, San Jose 37
April 29, 2000 Arizona 51, @ San Jose 42
June 1, 2000 San Jose 55, @ Arizona 34
April 21, 2001 @ San Jose 48, Arizona 37
July 6, 2001 San Jose 73, @ Arizona 63
April 20, 2002 @ San Jose 52, Arizona 51
July 12, 2002 @ Arizona 59, San Jose 52
Feb. 2, 2003 San Jose 49, @ Arizona 28
March 23, 2003 @ San Jose 59, Arizona 58
May 9, 2004 @ Arizona 58, San Jose 41
May 30, 2004 Arizona 50, @ San Jose 43
Jan. 29, 2006 Utah 48, @ San Jose 35

THE IFS...:
If Utah defeats San Jose it would...
*Give Utah its first home win in the Delta Center (1-2)
*Be Utah's third divisional win and give them a winning percentage against divisional opponents (3-1).
*Be Utah's second straight victory in franchise history against the SaberCats (2-0).
*Give Utah a 3-1 all-time record against Western Division teams.
*Give Utah a 1-0 all-time home record against Western Division teams.
*Give Utah a 3-3 all-time regular-season record.
* Maintain Utah's lead of the Western Division.

THE COACHES:
Utah - Danny White, 14th season
123-58 (.680) reg. season; 143-68 (.678) overall
14-11 career vs. San Jose
White is currently in his 14th season as an AFL head coach and first with the Blaze. White has compiled a record of 142-68 and advanced to the AFL Playoffs in 12 of the previous 13 years (hasn't missed the postseason since 1992). Prior to joining the Blaze, White was the head coach of the Arizona Rattlers for 13 seasons (1992-2004). The AFL Hall of Fame coach has two titles (1994 and 1997) to his credit and has made five ArenaBowl appearances (1994, 97, 2002-04). During his last season in Arizona in 2004, White compiled a 13-6 record and made his third straight ArenaBowl appearance. White, won AFL "Coach of the Year" award in 1993. White officially became the head coach of the Blaze on April 21, 2005. He played quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys (1976-88) and helped lead the Cowboys to the postseason five times and won three NFC East titles during his tenure as starting QB. In his first year as a starter (1980), White set the club single-season record for touchdown passes (28) and then broke the record (29) in 1983. Those records still stand as the top two single-season marks in franchise history. He still owns eight Cowboy records and is the member of FOUR Halls of Fame (Arizona Sports, Arizona State, College Football and Arena Football).

San Jose - Darren Arbet, 8th season
74-35 (.702) reg. season; 83-39 (.701) overall
0-1 career vs. Utah
Now in his eighth season at the helm of the SaberCats, two-time Coach of the Year Darren Arbet enters the 2006 season ranked 6th in the AFL with 82 career victories and needs just four more wins to tie Perry Moss for 5th place. Last season Arbet led the SaberCats to their 6th consecutive winning season and playoff appearance. Since the start of the 2000 season his teams have compiled a 67-23 (.744) regular season record and have set league records for most regular season wins (13 - 2002), most wins in a season (16- 2002), most consecutive wins in a regular season (12 - 2002), most wins to end a season (11 - 2000) and the longest regular season win streak (15 - 2000-01). Last season Arbet became the second fastest head coach to reach 80 career wins, doing it in 111 games. Only Tampa Bay's Tim Marcum, who reached the 80-win mark in 96 games, got to that milestone quicker.

RECENT ROSTER MOVES
Date Action
Jan. 23 Placed WR/LB Ryan Dennard, OS Troy Mason and OL/DL Pat Hughes on the IR. Activated K Steve Videtich from the Refused to Report List. Waived OL/DL Maurice Anderson. Acquired OL/DL Bernard Holsey from Dallas for future considerations.
Feb. 7 Awarded OL/DL Ernest Grant (Georgia) and OL/DL Sean Guthrie (Orlando) from waivers. Placed WR/LB Sale Key on the IR. Waived WR/DB Erin Damond.
Feb. 9 Signed WR/DB Justin Taplin. Activated WR/LB Ryan Dennard from the IR. Placed OL/DL Ernest Grant and OL/DL Sean Guthrie on the Refused to Report List.
Feb. 10 Placed OL/DL Jason Andersen on the IR.
Feb. 16 Signed DS Sullivan Beard. Awarded FB/LB Josh White (Austin) from waivers. Activated OL/DL Ernest Grant from the Refused to Report List. Activated and waived OL/DL Patrick Hughes. Placed DS Kevin Moffett on the IR.
Feb. 17 Traded FB/LB Josh White to Dallas for past considerations.
Feb. 20 Awarded OL/DL John Culp (Columbus) from waivers. Activated OL/DL Jason Andersen and placed him on recallable waivers.
Feb. 21 Released FB/LB Jermaine Younger.

INJURY REPORT - League rules stipulate that players on IR must be inactive for at least two weeks. WR/LB SALE KEY and OS TROY MASON are eligible to be activated to the active roster in time for Utah's March 4 game vs. San Jose.

Player Injury Status
Troy Mason Left ankle sprain OUT (IR)
Sale Key Right ankle OUT (IR)
Kevin Moffett Hamstring OUT (IR)

SIAHA RELIEF: OS SIAHA BURLEY, who leads the AFL in scoring (102), touchdowns (17), all-purpose yards (1,003), receptions (54) and receiving yards (771), has scored at least two touchdowns in each of his team's last six games against Western Division teams. Burley's streak includes three games this season for the Utah Blaze, as well as three games last season where Burley was a member of the Arizona Rattlers.

HELLO! GOODBYE! - Back when the San Jose SaberCats entered the AFL, the SaberCats played their first game on May 12, 1995. The SaberCats lost 43-37 to the Arizona Rattlers, who were led by head coach, DANNY WHITE. Ironically, the last team White faced during his 13-year tenure as Arizona head coach was the SaberCats in ArenaBowl XVIII.

EXPANSION TEAMS IN ARENABOWL - The Blaze will be in elite company if they make it to the ArenaBowl XX in Las Vegas on June 11. In the 20-year history, only the expansion Detroit Drive won an ArenaBowl title in their inaugural season in 1988.

SKAGGS SCORES: WR/LB JUSTIN SKAGGS scored the second touchdown of his career against a western division team last week in the Blaze win over the Los Angeles Avengers. His first one came in 2005 against as a member of the Orlando Predators against this week's opponent, the San Jose SaberCats.

THE ‘O' SHOW: WR/DB ORSHAWANTE BRYANT has recorded at least 60 receiving yards for a string of seven games dating back to last season. His last game under the 60-yard mark was Week 15 as a member of the Arizona Rattlers in a 61-43 win over the Chicago Rush.

SACK MAN: OL/DL SCOTT POSPISIL recorded his first sack of the season last week against the Los Angeles Avengers. His only other sack came during the 2005 season.

DARREN TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE - Coach White is 14-11 against the SaberCats during his career. White was 7-1 during the regular season against San Jose prior to DARREN ARBET's tenure as head coach of the SaberCats in 1999. White is 6-7 against Arbet during the regular season.

HOW THE WEST IS WON - Up until last season, the Western Division was won by either the DANNY WHITE-led Arizona Rattlers or the San Jose SaberCats. Last season, the Los Angeles Avengers captured their first division title. White's all-time regular season record against the Western Division is 40-19.

WEST IS BEST - The Western Division will be a tough test for the Blaze in 2006. In 2005, the San Jose SaberCats (59.1 points per game, No. 1 in the AFL), Los Angeles Avengers (53.8 PPG, No. 5), Arizona Rattlers (51.0 PPG, No. 10) and Las Vegas Gladiators (49.4 PPG, No. 12) were the leading offensive division in the AFL by combining for an average of 53.3 points per game.

2006 LEAGUE TEAM RANKINGS
Category Blaze (Rank) SaberCats (Rank)
Scoring Offense 57.6 (1) 48.2 (11)
Scoring Defense 57.2 (t-16) 53.8 (13)
Total Offense 326.2 (2) 284.4 (9)
Total Defense 308.8 (15) 274.0 (7)
Pass Offense 317.2 (2) 272.8 (7)
Pass Defense 300.4 (16) 254.0 (8)
Rushing Offense 9.0 (16) 11.6 (12)
Rushing Defense 8.4 (1) 20.0 (11)
Interceptions 2 (t-16) 4 (t-14)
Kickoff Return Avg. 16.4 (9) 16.2 (10)
Def. KO Return Avg. 17.8 (13) 20.6 (18)
Turnover Margin +1 (t-6) -2 (t-13)
3rd Down Conversions 45.2% (10) 37.5% (15)
4th Down Conversions 57.1% (t-7) 40.0% (t-12)
Sacks By 3 (t-14) 7 (t-4)
Sacks Against 10 ((16) 8 (14)

BLAZE LEADERS IN 2006
Player Category No.
Germaine Total Offense 1651
Germaine Completion Pct. 68.4
Germaine Pass TDs 30
Germaine Passer Rating 128.25
Germaine Passing Yards 1653
Germaine Pass Completions 130
Germaine Pass Yards/Game 330.6
Burley Scoring 102
Burley Touchdowns 17
Burley Receptions 54
Burley Receiving Yards 771
Burley TD Receptions 17
Three-way tie Rush TDs 2
Burley KO Returns 14
Burley KOR Yards 232
Bryant Tackles 16

STORYLINES:

GERMAINE NAMED BECKETT.COM AFL COLLECTIBLE PLAYER OF THE WEEK - Utah Blaze quarterback Joe Germaine no doubt dreamed about a moment like he had Saturday. With just seconds to go in the game against the L.A. Avengers, Germaine hit receiver Orshawante Bryant for a 12-yard touchdown to give Utah the 68-66 win.

After fumbling the ball that led to an Avengers TD to open the game 7-0, Germaine atoned on his next possession with a one-yard touchdown run to knot the score at 7-7.

Germaine was up for AFL Offensive Player of the Week honors, going 31-of-40 for 387 yards, eight touchdowns and one interception in the game. He also added a rushing touchdown.

This is Germaine's third season in the AFL after starting six games for the Arizona Rattlers last season. The Blaze are now 2-3 overall, but hold the lead in the American Western Division at 2-1.

HEY COACH! Blaze head coach DANNY WHITE is currently in four Halls of Fame (Arizona Sports, Arizona State University, College Football and Arena Football). He has 13 years of experience in the AFL and owns two ArenaBowl titles (1994 and 1997), while not having a losing season since 1992. But, did you know that the assistant coaching staff has a combined total of 33 years of Arena Football experience?

Offensive/Defensive Line coach, FLINT FLEMING, played in six ArenaBowls and has three titles (1990, 1992 and 1997) during his 16 years in Arena Football. He was also named to the AFL's 15th Anniversary Team. Offensive coordinator and future AFL Hall of Famer, HUNKIE COOPER, is the AFL's all-time all-purpose yards leader (20,587), two-time Ironman of the Year (1999-2000) and AFL MVP (1993) during his 13 years in the AFL. Assistant Offensive/Defensive Line coach, LINDSAY HASSELL, played four years with the Oklahoma Wranglers (2000-01) and Arizona Rattlers (2002-03).

Despite being in his first season of coaching Arena Football, assistant head coach/defensive coordinator, LEE LESLIE, brings 21 years of coaching experience, including 14 championship titles and a year of coaching in the NIFL (Utah Warriors).

CLIMBING THE CHARTS - Head coach DANNY WHITE picks up where he left off after a year absence from the AFL coaching ranks. The AFL Hall of Fame coach is currently No. 2 on the league's all-time coaches win list. Below is a list of the all-time winningest coaches in AFL history.

ALL-TIME COACHING VICTORIES
Coach, Team Victories This Week
Tim Marcum, Tampa Bay 177 @ Kansas City
Danny White, Utah 143 SAN JOSE
Mike Hohensee, Chicago 98 DALLAS
Mike Dailey, Colorado 92 GRAND RAPIDS
Perry Moss 86 --
Darren Arbet, San Jose 83 @ Utah

IT'S A NUMBERS GAME - What's the big deal about a number? If you ask Utah Blaze head coach/general manager DANNY WHITE, it means a lot. One of the interesting stories early in the Blaze's inaugural season involves rookie OL/DL GARRETT SMITH. Smith is not only trying to make and immediate impact, but also trying to "earn" his number. Smith wants to wear Coach White's old number (11), but will be wearing No. 12 against Los Angeles. "Coach (White) made it clear that choosing a uniform number is not a right, it's a privilege," Smith said. "It will be something that I have to earn and I don't plan on letting him down. I intended on earning it at some point this season."

EXPANSION PACE - The Blaze started off on the right foot with their 48-35 victory over the San Jose SaberCats in Week 1. The New Orleans VooDoo had the best record for an expansion team in 2004 when they finished at 10-6 won a Southern Division title. Below is a look at the most recent expansion teams and how they finished their respective seasons:

EXPANSION TEAMS REGULAR-SEASON RECORDS
TEAM YEAR RECORD
UTAH BLAZE 2006 2-3
Kansas City Brigade 2006 1-4
New Orleans VooDoo 2004 10-6
Austin Wranglers 2004 8-8
Philadelphia Soul 2004 5-11
Colorado Crush 2003 2-14
Dallas Desperados 2002 7-7
Detroit Fury 2001 7-7
Chicago Rush 2001 7-7
Los Angeles Avengers 2000 3-11

CHASING HUNKIE - Entering his 15th season, San Jose's BARRY WAGNER is the AFL's career leader in scoring (2,466), touchdowns scored (406), rushing TDs (125), receptions (962) and receiving yards (13,090). Wagner now sets his sights on becoming the AFL's all-time leader in all-purpose yards. Wagner became just the third player in league history to eclipse the 20,000 all-purpose yard mark and needs just 165 yards to catch Utah assistant coach HUNKIE COOPER for the all-time lead.

CAREER ALL-PURPOSE YARDAGE LEADERS
Rk Player A-P Yards
1. HUNKIE COOPER 20,587
2. George LaFrance 20,480
3. Barry Wagner 20,423

SAN JOSE PLAYERS TO WATCH:

QB MARK GRIEB - A former Offensive Player of the Year and All-Arena performer, Grieb is one of the AFL's all-time greatest quarterbacks. Known for his accuracy and ability to protect the ball, Grieb comes in 2006 after setting posting outstanding numbers a year ago - 374-for-546 (68.5%) for 4,796 yards, 84 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. Grieb has completed 95-of-145 passes (65.5%) with just 2 INTs and has a pass efficiency rating of 126.4.

WR/LB JAMES ROE - Roe continues the SaberCats' tradition of deadly receivers in a potent arsenal. Consistently amongst the candidates for Ironman of the Year, Roe posted impressive numbers in 2005. As a two-way performer, Roe recorded 116 receptions for 1,440 yards and 30 touchdowns, leading the SaberCats in all three categories.

WR/DB BARRY WAGNER - Arguably the greatest player in AFL history (actually voted No. 2 by the "20 Seasons Historical Committee"). Wagner is the AFL's career leader in scoring (2,466), touchdowns scored (406), rushing TDs (125), receptions (962) and receiving yards (13,090).

WEEKLY PLAYERS OF THE GAME:

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME:
Opponent Player
@ San Jose QB Joe Germaine, Utah
DALLAS OS Terrill Shaw, Dallas
NEW YORK QB Aaron Garcia, New York
@ Arizona OS Damien Groce, Arizona
@ Los Angeles QB Sonny Cumbie, Los Angeles
SAN JOSE
NASHVILLE
@ Grand Rapids
LAS VEGAS
@ Tampa Bay
ARIZONA
LOS ANGELES
@ Colorado
@ Las Vegas
@ Chicago
KANSAS CITY

ADT DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME:
Opponent Player
@ San Jose DS Kelvin Hunter, Utah
DALLAS DS Jermaine Jones, Dallas
NEW YORK DS DaShane Dennis, New York
@ Arizona DS Joe Todd, Arizona
@ Los Angeles DS Ricky Sharpe, Los Angeles
SAN JOSE
NASHVILLE
@ Grand Rapids
LAS VEGAS
@ Tampa Bay
ARIZONA
LOS ANGELES
@ Colorado
@ Las Vegas
@ Chicago
KANSAS CITY

IRONMAN OF THE GAME:
Opponent Player
@ San Jose WR/DB Orshawante Bryant, Utah
DALLAS WR/DB Will Pettis, Dallas
NEW YORK WR/LB Mike Horacek, New York
@ Arizona WR/DB Randy Gatewood, Arizona
@ Los Angeles WR/LB Greg Hopkins, LA
SAN JOSE
NASHVILLE
@ Grand Rapids
LAS VEGAS
@ Tampa Bay
ARIZONA
LOS ANGELES
@ Colorado
@ Las Vegas
@ Chicago
KANSAS CITY

THE BLAZE RECORD WHEN...:

Scoring Allowing
0 - 9 points 0-0 0-0
10-19 points 0-0 0-0
20-29 points 0-0 0-0
30-39 points 0-1 1-0
40-49 points 1-0 0-1
50-59 points 0-1 0-1
60-69 points 1-0 1-0
70-79 points 0-0 0-0
80+ points 0-1 0-1

GAMES DECIDED BLAZE COACH WHITE
by 7 or fewer points 2-3 44-25
by 3 or fewer points 2-2 20-12

Leading/Tied after the 1st 1-1 84-22
Trailing after the 1st 0-2 38-36

Leading/Tied at Half 1-1 97-21
Trailing at Half 0-2 25-37

Leading/Tied after the 3rd 1-0 107-16
Trailing after the 3rd 0-3 15-42

Lead/Tied Turnover Ratio 1-3 93-25
Trailed Turnover Ratio 1-0 30-33

Scoring More Than 10 2-3 123-58
Scoring More Than 20 2-3 123-57
Scoring More Than 30 2-3 121-50
Scoring More Than 40 2-2 115-30
Scoring More Than 50 1-2 87-16
Scoring More Than 60 1-1 35-4
Scoring More Than 70 0-1 11-1
Scoring More Than 80 0-1 3-1
Scoring More Than 90 0-0 0-0

Monday games 0-0 3-1
Wednesday games 0-0 1-0
Thursday games 0-0 6-2
Friday games 0-0 31-13
Saturday games 2-3 64-30
Sunday games 0-0 18-12

vs. West 2-1 42-20
vs. Central 0-0 26-9
vs. South 0-0 19-9
vs. East 0-2 21-10

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