Avengers` Turnovers Result in Playoff Defeat
Steven Herbert
Sunday July 28, 2002
“We didn`t get one break our way,” Hodgkiss said. “When that happens in the playoffs, they send you home.”
Throughout the season, Hodgkiss has preached the importance of avoiding turnovers, and the team’s results bore a large correlation to the number of turnovers. The Avengers were 6-2 in 2002 in games where they made one turnover or less, but 2-5, including Saturday, when they made two or more.
Los Angeles committed a season-high four turnovers Saturday. Quarterback Tony Graziani threw three interceptions and defensive specialist Mark Ricks lost a fumble after making an interception. The Storm converted the turnovers into two touchdowns and a field goal.
“We threw way too many interceptions,” Hodgkiss said. “It’s just unfortunate. When you have a game like that in the regular season, you fix it and come back next week. That’s something we need to grow from. We learned another lesson today.”
Never before in 2002 had Graziani thrown three interceptions. (His previous high was two, twice.)
“We just had bad luck,” said Graziani, who completed 16 of 29 passes for 245 yards and six touchdowns. “We had two balls that were tipped and put us in a hole. It’s tough to come back from.”
Graziani’s second pass of the game was intercepted, but it proved not to hurt the Avengers, as La`Zerius White sacked Tampa Bay quarterback Shane Stafford on the next play, forcing a fumble that was recovered by Los Angeles nose guard Chad Butterfield at the Storm eight-yard line. Graziani threw an eight-yard touchdown pass to Greg Hopkins on the following play, tying the score, 7-7.
The next three drives ended with touchdowns, as Tampa Bay led, 21-14, after one quarter.
Graziani threw his second interception on Los Angeles’ first possession of the second quarter. The Avengers had a first-and-goal at the Tampa Bay six, when Graziani threw two incomplete passes and Los Angeles advanced to three on a third-down encroachment penalty. Lawrence Samuels then picked off Graziani’s pass one yard deep in the end zone, returning it nine yards to the Storm eight.
“That was kind of the turning point,” Tampa Bay coach Tim Marcum said.
Stafford (22-of-28 for 298 yards and seven touchdowns, tying a franchise playoff game high, while being intercepted once) began a streak of 13-consecutive completions by going 2-for-2 for 30 yards on the next drive, as the Storm advanced to the Avengers six. After three rushing plays only moved the ball a yard, recently-signed Pete Elezovic came on to kick a 20-yard field goal putting Tampa Bay ahead, 24-14.
The first half ended with the Avengers trailing 38-27. Los Angeles received the second half’s opening kickoff, only to have Graziani throw his third interception. Four consecutive Stafford completions were culminated with a five-yard touchdown pass to Calvin Schexnayder.
The Avengers next drive ended when Remy Hamilton was forced to try a 64-yard field, which he purposely kicked short, giving the Storm the ball on its 20. Tampa Bay drove to Los Angeles’ eight, when Stafford’s pass was intercepted in the end zone by Ricks, whose fumble was recovered by Troy Wilson on the Avengers’ one. Stafford ran for a touchdown on the next play, putting Tampa Bay ahead 52-27 with 1:27 left in the third quarter.
“We won the line of scrimmage,” Marcum said. “We knocked Graziani down and we kept Shane standing. When you do that, you’ve got a chance to win. As Bear [the late Alabama coach Paul (Bear) Bryant] said, ‘Rush their’n, protect your’n, you’re going to win.’”
Steven Herbert began covering Arena Football in 1988, the league’s second season. He has covered the sport for The Associated Press, Arizona Republic, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Providence Journal-Bulletin, Palm Beach Post, Daily Oklahoman and other publications. Herbert has also written on college and NFL football for The Washington Post and spent five years as a Los Angeles Times staff writer.
