In week 18 of the Silver Anniversary season of the AFL, the South Division, home of the Tampa Bay Storm, features four games including the Milwaukee at Jacksonville NET10 Arena Football Friday on NFL Network matchup and the first of two final road games for the Storm. The Georgia Force (8-8, 4-3) has its final bye week of the season with two games remaining.
The Orlando Predators (2-13, 2-5) hosts the Cleveland Gladiators (7-8, 4-2) Friday July 6 at 7:30 PM. The Predators have been playing better recently and look to put a dent in the Gladiators chances of making the playoffs. Meanwhile the Gladiators are fresh off of a victory over the Milwaukee Mustangs ending a five-game slide.
In Jacksonville, the Sharks (7-8, 3-4) hosts the Milwaukee Mustangs (5-10, 4-5) on NET10 Arena Football Friday on NFL Network July 6. This battle pits two teams fighting to remain in the playoff hunt with Milwaukee facing elimination with a loss. On the other hand, the Sharks hope to keep its grasp on the #4 seed position with a victory as both the VooDoo and Force hold a tie-breaker advantage over the Sharks.
The Tampa Bay Storm (6-9, 3-4) heads to the Keystone State to take on the Pittsburgh Power (4-11, 1-5) at Consol Energy Center on Saturday, July 7. The Storm hopes to keep it playoff chances alive with a victory while the Power will look to keep some positive momentum going to energize the Power fan base.
Finally the New Orleans VooDoo (8-7, 5-1) heads West to take face off against the San Jose SaberCats (10-6, 4-2) in yet another game featuring teams battling to secure a playoff position. The VooDoo currently hold the South Division lead and the #2 seed in the American Conference and hope to bring a playoff game to New Orleans Arena as a primer the arena hosting ArenaBowl XXV. However, the SaberCats desperately need a victory to maintain its position as the #4 seed in the National Conference and possible move into the #3 slot with an Arizona loss.
CLEVELAND GLADIATORS (7-8) AT ORLANDO PREDATORS (2-13) 7:30 PM ET
Series Leader: Gladiators lead 5-4
Streaks: W 1 | L 2
Coaches vs. Opp: Thonn: 2-3 Munsey: 2-2
Las Week: W 69-32 vs. Milwaukee Mustangs | L 53-56 at Georgia Force
Last Game: 4/8/12 Cleveland defeated Orlando, 41-24. Cleveland QB Dutton completed 22-of-32 passes with 6 TDs. Orlando QB Drafts completed 24-of-39 passes with 3 TDs.
Last Game at Orlando: 5/14/11 Orlando defeated Cleveland 56-26.
Broadcast: www.ustream.tv/AFL
STATS LEADERS (CLE | ORL)
Passing: Dutton: 332-526-3675-72-18-103.75 | Leak: 180-289-2087-41-11-103.68
Rushing: Steiner: 24-50-2.1-5 | Roper: 20-118-5.9-3
Receiving: Goodman: 141-1473-10.4-30 | Toliver: 81-1063-12.8-22
Offense: 253.8 yds/g | 270.5 yds/g
Turnover Margin: +9 | -12
Defense: 251.0 yds/g | 286.3 yds/g
Sacks: Berube: 5 | Carter: 5.5
Ints: Brown: 8 | Coleman: 6
Kicking: Pettrey: 73 (67/82 PAT; 2/6 FG) Lewis: 100 (70/77 PAT; 10/19 FG)
NOTES
GLADIATORS: Last week, the Gladiators defeated the Milwaukee Mustangs, 69-32. Cleveland (7-8) last played the Orlando Predators (2-13) on 4/8/12 at home and won 41-24…The Gladiators are second in the East Division behind the Philadelphia Soul (13-3)…Cleveland ranks first in the League in scoring defense allowing 45.4 points per game…The team ranks second in the League in total defense allowing 251.0 yards per game and in pass defense, holding opponents to 232.4 yards per game…QB JOHN DUTTON is 332-of-526 passing with 3,675 yards and 72 touchdowns…He did not throw an interception for the first time in three games…The last time the Gladiators played the Predators, Dutton recorded 209 yards passing and 6 TDs…WR DOMINICK GOODMAN leads the team in receptions with 141 catches for 1,473 yards and in scoring with a total of 186 points on the season…He is 10 receptions shy of Ben Nelson’s single-season franchise record of 151, set in 2010…Goodman leads the AFL in receptions per game with an average of 10.07 catches per contest…He ranks fifth in the League in yards per catch with 10.4…Goodman has recorded a touchdown catch in 13 straight games…The last time Cleveland faced Orlando, Goodman recorded 10 receptions and 4 TDs…WR ROBERT REDD did not record a touchdown catch for the first time in 16 games…He is tied for eighth in the League in all-purpose yards with 152.5 per game…In the last matchup between the Gladiators and Predators, Redd recorded 10 receptions for 105 yards and 2 TDs…K NICK WALLACE has 15 points kicking and is 15-for-16 on PATs and is 0-for-2 on FGs.
PREDATORS: In Week 17, the Predators lost to the Georgia Force, 53-56. Orlando is in last place in the South Division behind Tampa Bay (6-9), Jacksonville (7-8), Georgia (8-8) and New Orleans (8-7)…Orlando ranks third in the League in rushing offense with 26.8 yards per game…The team ranks fifth in the League in scoring defense with 52.1 points per game, sixth in pass defense holding opponents to 264.0 yards per game and seventh in total defense with 286.3 yards per game…The Predators are averaging a League-high 25 yards per fumble return in 2012…QB CHRIS LEAK is 180-of-289 passing for 2,087 yards and 41 TDs…He has thrown an interception in four consecutive games…WR T.T. TOLIVER leads the team in receptions with 81 catches for 1,036 yards and 22 TDs…He has a touchdown reception in 10 consecutive games played…Toliver is 30 receiving yards shy of becoming the 12th player in AFL history to record 10,000 receiving yards in a career…He is four touchdown receptions shy of becoming just the 10th player in AFL history with 200 career touchdown receptions…WR JARVIS WILLIAMS has recorded 52 catches for 535 yards and 14 TDs…He has caught multiple touchdowns in five consecutive games…DL TERRANCE CARTER has recorded a sack in each of the last two games…He currently has 5.5 sacks on the season…K MARK LEWIS spent the 2005 season with the Las Vegas Gladiators…He has 100 points kicking and is 70-for-77 on PATs and is 10-for-19 on FGs…Lewis moved into ninth place all-time on the AFL’s list of career field goals leaders…He has made 92 field goals in his career and trails Steve McLaughlin for eighth place by two field goals.
MILWAUKEE MUSTANGS (5-10) AT JACKSONVILLE SHARKS (7-8) 8:00 PM ET
Series Leader: Sharks lead 1-0
Streaks: L 2 | L 1
Coaches vs. Opp: Landsee: 0-1 | Moss: 1-0
Last Week: L 32-69 at Cleveland Gladiators | L 55-65 at New Orleans Voodoo
Last Game: Jacksonville defeated Milwaukee, 62-47, June 1, 2011
Last Game at Jacksonville: See above
Broadcast: “NET10 Arena Football Friday” on NFL Network.
STATS LEADERS (MIL | JAX)
Passing: Guidugli: 292-464-3918-74-19-112.23 | Morris: 164-279-1860-42-13-97.07
Rushing: Gudugli: 36-62-1.7-14 | Morris: 50-254-5.1-8
Receiving: Jenkins: 94-1284-13.7-30 | Smith: 98-1150-11.7-29
Offense: 282.9 yds/g | 260.8 yds/g
Turnover Margin: -6 | -9
Defense: 310.4 yds/g | 273.5 yds/g
Sacks: Lefall: 7.5 | Berry: 8.5
Ints: Everett: 7 | Robinson: 5
Kicking: Martinez: 51 (45/52 PAT; 2/5 FG)| Capozzoli: 103 (79/96 PAT; 8/9 FG)
NOTES
MUSTANGS: If the Mustangs lose in Week 18, they will be eliminated from playoff contention… This is the first meeting between Milwaukee and Jacksonville during the 2012 season… The Mustangs fell to Cleveland, 32-69, last week on “NET10 Arena Football Friday” on NFL Network… The team ranks eighth in the AFL in scoring offense (55.7 points per game)… The Mustangs have allowed 60.5 points per game. The mark is tied for the League’s worst… The Mustangs defense ranks last in the League for opponent fourth down conversions (68.0 percent)…. QB GINO GUIDUGLI posted 9 completions for 141 yards and a TD last week before being replaced by SHANE BOYD in the second half. He also threw two INTs… He has thrown an interception in six consecutive games and at least two picks in seven of the last nine… Guidugli has recorded a QB Rating of less than 100 in five consecutive games… He posted a season-low QB Rating of 50.69 in Week 17… His 88 total TDs rank seventh in the AFL… His 14 rushing TDs ranks second in the AFL… Guidugli is six rushing touchdowns shy of TYRE YOUNG’s single-season franchise record of 20, set in 2010… WR DWAYNE ELEY, JR. led the Mustangs with 9 receptions for 98 yards last week… He also recorded 145 kickoff return yards… As a member of the Orlando Predators, Eley led the team with 6 receptions for 114 yards against the Sharks on May 25, 2012. He also tallied six kickoff returns for 126 yards… WR JARED JENKINS snagged five balls for 88 yards and 2 TDs last week against Cleveland… His 13.7 yards per catch ranks seventh in the AFL… He has turned in 30 receiving TDs this season. The mark is tied for sixth in the AFL… Jenkins has hauled in a touchdown reception in all 15 of his AFL games and has collected multiple scores in nine of them…. DL DWAYNE LEFALL is tied for fifth in the AFL in sacks with 0.5 per game. He has tallied 7.5 on the season… LeFall is 1.5 sacks shy of the single-season franchise record of nine…Last week, he posted a sack and a forced fumble… DB RYAN MCFOY led the Mustangs with 4.0 total tackles last week… He ranks fourth in the AFL with 93.5 total tackles… DB JAMAR LOVE tallied 2.5 tackles last week… He ranks 10th in the AFL in total tackles with 82.5.
SHARKS: The Sharks hold the #4 seed in the American Conference based on possessing a head-to-head tiebreaker over Cleveland… The Sharks have lost three of their last four games… The Sharks have held opponents to 52.2 points per game. The mark ranks sixth in the AFL… Jacksonville is holding opponents to 273.5 yards per game. The mark ranks third in the AFL… The Sharks rank second in the AFL in rushing (32.1 yards per game)… The team’s 3.5 yards per rush ranks second in the League… Jacksonville’s 138 rushing attempts rank second in the AFL… The Shark’s 225.7 yards per game of passing offense ranks 16th in the AFL… QB BERNARD MORRIS compiled 24-of-38 passes for 250 yards and 4 TDs last week against the VooDoo. He also added 2 TDs on the ground… Morris ranks second in the AFL in rushing with 23.1 yards per game… His 5.1 yards per rush ranks first in the League… Morris has recorded 50 rushing attempts. The mark ranks fifth in the League… Morris trails Connell Maynor by seven yards for 28th place on the AFL’s list of career rushing yardage leaders. Morris has 639 career rushing yards… WR JERON HARVEY led the Sharks with nine receptions for 120 yards and 2 TDs… WR JAMARKO SIMMONS recorded 9 receptions for 77 yards and a TD last week… He has recorded a receiving touchdown in each of the last five games… WR/KR TERRANCE SMITH notched six receptions for 53 yards and a TD last week. He also tallied four kickoff returns for 121 yards… Smith broke Jeff Hughley’s single-season franchise record of 1,429 set in 2011. Smith now has 1,550 kickoff return yards in 2012… Smith ranks fifth in the AFL in kick return average (20.4)… He ranks second in the AFL in all-purpose yards (183.9 yards per game)… His 13.7 points per game is tied for ninth in the AFL… DB MICHEAUX ROBINSON tallied 5.0 total tackles, a fumble recovery and INT last week… DB LAROCHE JACKSON leads the Sharks defense with 75.5 total tackles. He has recorded 4 INTs for 104 yards this season… His 104-interception return yards rank 10th in the AFL… He ranks 14th in the AFL in tackles… K MARCO CAPOZZOLI has posted 8 field goals this season. The mark is the third most amongst AFL kickers.
TAMPA BAY STORM (6-9) AT PITTSBURGH POWER (4-11) 7:30 PM ET
Series Leader: Storm leads 1-0
Streaks: L 4 | W 1
Coaches vs Opp: Ewart: 1-0 Stingley: 0-1
Last Week: L 79-83 vs. Philadelphia Soul | W 56-49 at Iowa Barnstormers
Last Game: 04/16/11 Tampa Bay defeated Pittsburgh, 62-55.
Last Game at Pittsburgh: First meeting at site
Broadcast: www.ustream.tv/tampabaystorm
STATS LEADERS (TAM | PIT)
Passing: Wasil: 231-389-2753-55-16-99.27 | Randall: 163-256-1938-35-8-107.85
Rushing: Hill: 22-100-4.5-8 | Young: 38-92-2.4-6
Receiving: Rodriguez: 98-1316-13.4-29 | Berry: 89-1008-11.3-11
Offense: 294.0 yds/g | 274.3 yds/g
Turnover Margin: -9 | -17
Defense: 283.9 yds/g | 246.3 yds/g
Sacks: Phillips: 6 | Pittman: 5
Ints: Swanson: 5 | Leflore: 8
Kicking: Bongarra: 107 (98/114 PAT; 3/15 FG) | Boyer: 35 (21/31 PAT; 4/6 FG)
NOTES
STORM: Tampa Bay began in the AFL as the Pittsburgh Gladiators, spending their first four seasons of existence in the Steel City before relocating to Tampa Bay in 1991… Tampa Bay has dropped four straight games… This is the Storm’s first meeting against the Power during their 2012 campaign… Last week, the Storm fell to Philadelphia, 79-83… The two teams combined to score 162 points, the most combined points scored in any Storm game. The previous high during a Storm game was at San Jose as the teams combined to score 143 on June 14, 2012. The point total was the highest total scored in a single game this season and was the fifth highest scoring game in AFL history… The 83 points by Philadelphia tied the single most points allowed in Storm history… The 79 total points scored by Tampa Bay was the highest total this season… Tampa is 14-2 when scoring 70 or more points in a game. The team is 0-13 when allowing 70 or more points in a game… QB NICK HILL posted his fourth consecutive game with more than 300 yards passing last week. He now has 1,362 yards in his first four games… Hill also rushed for a TD in his fourth consecutive game. He now has eight rushing scores in four games… Hill rushed for a season-high 42 yards in Week 18, the 12th-highest single-game total in franchise history… Hill trails Chris Avery by two rushing yards for 17th place all-time on the AFL’s list of career rushing yardage leaders. Hill has 747 career rushing yards… FB/DL TERRENCE ROYAL also added a TD on the ground, his first of the season… WR MICHAEL LINDSEY returned from IR last week. He returned his fourth career kickoff return for a TD. The Storm has now returned six kickoffs for a TD this season… Lindsey finished the game with a team-high nine catches and 105 receiving yards. He also added 169 yards on eight kickoff returns… Lindsey totaled 274 all-purpose yards, the third highest single-game total this season and the 14th highest single-game total in team history… WR AMARRI JACKSON has recorded a catch in 27 consecutive games… Jackson’s streak of consecutive games with a receiving TD was snapped at seven… DL PERNELL PHILLIPS returned a fumble recovery 10 yards for a TD in the second quarter last week. It was the seventh fumble recovery returned for a TD this season for Tampa Bay, the most in the AFL… DB MARTEL MOODY made his Storm debut last week. He tallied his first interception in the third quarter.
POWER: The Power have lost eight of their last 10 games… Last week, the Power defeated Iowa, 56-49… The Power rank first in the AFL in pass defense (220.7 yards per game)… The team ranks first in the AFL in total defense (246.3 yards per game)… The team is holding opponents to 259 total first downs, a mark that is a League’s best… The Power has posted only 33.7 penalty yards per game. The mark is the League’s least… QB ANDRICO HINES completed 23-of-39 passes for 284 yards and 4 TDs last week. He also added 17 rushing yards and two scores on the ground… Hine tied a single-game franchise record with two rushing touchdowns in Week 17… WR MIKE WASHINGTON tallied seven receptions for 51 yards and 2 TDs last week… His 13.5 yards per catch is tied for ninth in the AFL… Washington is four TD receptions shy of his own single-season record of 30, set in 2011… WR/KR PJ BERRY notched six receptions for 95 yards last week… His 96 kick returns are a League-high… His 1,727 kick return yards rank first in the AFL. He has returned two for TDs… Berry has recorded at least 200 all-purpose yards in three consecutive games… Berry is five kickoff returns shy of his own single-season AFL record of 101, set in 2011… DL BRYAN WILLIAMS led the Power in total tackles last week (7.0)… Williams became the franchise’s single-season and career tackles leader… His 63.5 total tackles rank 30th in the AFL… His 9.0 sacks rank third in the AFL… He has posed 0.8 tackles for a loss per game. The mark is tied for second in the AFL… Robinson is tied for second in the AFL in forced fumbles (5)… DL DOMINICK PITTMAN tied the single-season franchise record for sacks in Week 17. He has five on the year… Pittman tied the single-game franchise record for the second time this year with two sacks in Week 17.
NEW ORLEANS VOODOO (8-7) AT SAN JOSE SABERCATS (10-6) 10:30 PM ET
Series Leader: SaberCats lead 3-1
Streaks: W 3 | W 1
Coaches vs. Opp: O’Hara: 0-1 | Arbet: 1-3
Last Week: W 65-55 vs. Jacksonville Sharks | W 75-61 at Chicago Rush
Last Game: 4/05/2008: New Orleans defeated San Jose, 72-43.
Last Game at San Jose: 5/01/2004: San Jose defeated New Orleans, 68-34.
Broadcast: www.ustream.tv/AFL
STATS LEADERS (NOV | SAT)
Passing: Rocco: 338-554-4558-89-14-116.26 | Grieb: 424-632-5217-99-18-119.68
Rushing: Bush: 21-73-3.5-3 | Taggart: 37-91-2.5-11
Receiving: Castile: 95-1104-11.6-23 | Goodson: 94-1279-13.6-25
Offense: 307.5 yds/g | 343.3 yds/g
Turnover Margin: +21 | -2
Defense: 289.0 yds/g | 302.6 yds/g
Sacks: Janac: 3.5 | Sykes: 15.5
Ints: Jackson: 12 | 2 tied with 4
Kicing: Cismesia: 11 (8/9 PAT; 1/1FG) | Pertuit: 90 (87/95 PAT; 1/2 FG)
NOTES
VOODOO: The VooDoo now hold the #2 seed in the American Conference and lead the South Division based on having the fewest number of losses (7)... The VooDoo have won three games in a row for the first time since 2008 after defeating the Jacksonville Sharks, 65-55, in Week 17… New Orleans is 3-1 all-time against the SaberCats, but have never won a game at the HP Pavilion… With one more win, the VooDoo will have tripled its win total from 2011… The VooDoo rank 10th in the AFL in scoring (54.9 points per game)… New Orleans defense is holding teams to 53.8 points per game. The mark ranks 10th in the AFL… The VooDoo’s 293.1 passing yards per game ranks fifth in the AFL… New Orleans has posted 307.1 total yards per game. The mark ranks sixth in the AFL… The VooDoo are tied for last in the League in sacks with 14… QB KURT ROCCO has thrown an INT in four consecutive games… Last week, he posted 18-of-33 completions for 262 yards and 7 TDs. He also threw a pick… Rocco is 99 passing yards shy of Andy Kelly’s single-season franchise record of 4,657, set in 2005… Rocco is seven passing TDs shy of Andy Kelly’s single-season franchise record of 96, set in 2005… With 303.9 passing yards per game, Rocco ranks third in the AFL… He is averaging 307.6 total yards per game. The mark ranks third in the League… WR L.J. CASTILE has caught a TD pass in every game played this year… Castile posted five receptions for 45 yards a TD in last week’s win against Jacksonville… WR JOSH BUSH has caught a TD pass in eight straight games… He posted five receptions for 104 yards and 2 TDs last week… Bush ranks fourth in the AFL in yards per catch (15.1)… His 90.3 receiving yards per game rank tenth in the AFL… WR/DB COURTNEY SMITH spent time in 20011 with the SaberCats… He hauled in two balls for 14 yards and a TD last week… OL PATRICK AFIF began his AFL career with the SaberCats in 2007… Since trading for DL XAVIER BROWN, the VooDoo are 4-1. Brown has eight sacks on the year… Last week against Jacksonville, he posted 2.0 total tackles and 1.0 TFL… His 0.67 sacks per game ranks fifth in the AFL… LB ALVIN RAY JACKSON’s streak of consecutive games with an interception was snapped at four… With seven tackles in Week 17, he became the franchise’s career tackles leader with 146.5 to his name… He is tied for first in the AFL with INTs (12)… With two INTs in Week 17, DB JEREMY KELLEM set a new single-season rookie franchise record with 9 INTs on the year.
SABERCATS: The SaberCats moved into the #4 seed in the National Conference, edging the Chicago Rush based on total number of wins (10 compared to 9). They also hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Rush.. If San Jose defeats the VooDoo and the Rattlers defeat the Blaze in Week 18, the SaberCats would move into the #3 seed, while the Blaze would drop to #4, based on San Jose holding a tiebreaker over Utah due to point differential in head-to-head competition... The SaberCats rank second in the AFL in scoring with 64.4 points per game… The team ranks 15th in scoring defense allowing 59.2 points per game… San Jose’s 325.2 passing yards per game ranks second in the League… QB MARK GRIEB’s streak of consecutive games with multiple interceptions was snapped at three… He is one touchdown pass shy of reaching 100 in a season for the third time in his career. He has never passed for more than 100 scores in a single season… Grieb is 95 passing yards shy of his own single-season AFL record of 5,312, set in 2011… Last week against Chicago, he posted 28-of-36 completions for 360 yards and 6 TDs… He also recorded a rushing score… He ranks second in the AFL in passing average per game (326.1)… He has taken 639 snaps, a mark that ranks second in the AFL… Grieb ranks atop the League in total offensive yards (327.9)… FB TOMMY TAGGART served as the starting fullback for the VooDoo in 2011… He returned from Injured Reserve in Week 17 to record two rushing touchdowns, marking his third consecutive game played with a rushing score… WR SAMORA GOODSON has caught a touchdown pass in six straight games… Last week against Chicago, he posted six receptions for 89 yards and a TD… His 13.6 yards per catch ranks eighth in the AFL… WR FRED WILLIAMS has caught a touchdown pass in three straight games… He led the team with 11 receptions for 164 yards and 3 TDs last week against Chicago… DL JOE SYKES is tied for the single-season AFL record of 15.5 sacks, held by current teammate GABE NYENHUIS, who set the record in 2010 with the Tulsa Talons… Sykes recorded a tackle and fumble recovery last week against the Rush… Sykes ranks first in the AFL in sacks (15.5) and sack average per game (1.03)… DB ANDRE JONES led the SaberCats defense last week against Chicago with 7.5 total tackles and two PBUs… He ranks 23rd in the AFL in total tackles with 69.0.