San Jose Finally Gets ArenaBowl Trip
Tim Ball
Monday August 12, 2002
The first quarter looked like a typical arena game with both teams coming out pretty even and nothing to worry about, right? Not for San Jose. Rookie of the Year candidate Clevan Thomas, who has been a consistent performer for the SaberCats all season long, was constantly picked on by the Predators seasoned veteran and six-time Champion quarterback Jay Gruden and targeted by rookie kicker Nick Gatto.
The Orlando quarterback and his receivers went at the young San Jose defensive specialist right from the start. Not to be outdone by the mythical veteran QB, rookie kicker Nick Gatto, spun Thomas around in the second half with a bewildering array of super kickoffs that almost won the game for Orlando.
San Jose’s defense held Orlando on their first possession of the game and Thomas took the missed 55-yard field goal attempt deep to the Predators 13-yardline. One pass play later and the SaberCats had the first score and led 7-0. But Thomas’ number would be called on again. This time by Gruden, who, on the third play of Orlando’s next possession threw deep over Thomas for a 42-yard touchdown pass to a streaking Clif Dell. Gatto tied the score with the PAT.
“They work hard over there too,” Thomas said. “They came at me real hard all game but I’m on a team where there’s is a lot of good guys. I have confidence in my coaches and my teammates; they are always there for me. Omar Smith had a great day and made some of the big plays for us when we needed. Orlando didn’t get here by luck and they got a team that deserves their shot. Their kicker adjusted and hit the nets very accurately in the second half.”
Jay Gruden (17 of 36 for 267, 5 TD’s and 3 INT’s) knows this game like no other player. “You have to go deep every time the way San Jose plays. They crowd the line of scrimmage and cover all of the short stuff,” Gruden said. “We were able to get some deep ones and they let us have a few. But their defense got the three or four stops they were looking for. Good luck to them in the ArenaBowl.”
Back and forth
Trading defensive stops and missed field goals in the second quarter had both San Jose and Orlando up and down the field with nothing to show for it but time of possession. Forcing the SaberCats to use ten minutes to score had Orlando still in the game when the quiet WR/DB Omar Smith came up big with an interception at the end zone to halt Orlando’s progress. Smith was Ironman of the game recipient for his solid play and leadership.
“Gruden knows how to keep you from knowing where he throws until he let’s it go. I was in the right spot to get the ball,” Smith said. “It was big because it was right near the goal line and we took the rest of the time off the clock on offense and ended the half with a field goal and an 11-point lead.”
Going into halftime down 24-13 wasn’t the best position for Orlando to be in, knowing San Jose had deferred the kickoff to the second half.
Sam Hernandez and the SaberCats know that finishing strong has been pivotal all season. “We work hard in practice and know that as you play the best teams, it’s conditioning that plays a factor in the second half,” Hernandez said. “Jay Gruden knows how to keep it close and win and we knew we were going to have to turn it up.”
Rookie vs. Rookie
Orlando’s rookie kicker Gatto obviously did his homework. From his very first kick in the second half it seemed this young player knew how important the nets could be. With the precision of a sniper, Gatto hit places on the nets that had rookie Clevan Thomas eliminated from runbacks and had the SaberCats fans silenced and sweating.
Gatto’s first kick of the second half struck the net hard, shooting forward on the turf and was knocked out of bounds on the SaberCats one-yard line… You could almost hear hearts skip a beat.
San Jose and Orlando traded scoring drives and up stepped the young Orlando kicker again.
With one touch of a foot the SaberCats fans were shown a glimpse of the nightmare they have lived with for two years and thought for sure they had purged from memory.
Reality came crashing down on the San Jose faithful as Gatto’s kick struck the tight area of the net right next to the iron, cruelly took a weird bounce away from Thomas and was recovered by Orlando’s OL/DL Angel Rubio for a gut-wrenching touchdown that pulled the Predators to within four points with Gatto nailing the extra point.
Those San Jose hearts weren’t skipping a beat… they were at full arrest.
And, Gatto did it again, the very next kickoff!
Making up for every mistake he’s made this season, this time Gatto’s kickoff arced down into a lower part of the net and shot between Thomas’ legs and into the field 15 yards from where it hit to the San Jose 7-yardline, where unfortunately for Orlando, James Hundon made his best catch of the season and fell right where he caught it.
Big Shoes to Fill
“It’s hard to lose when you’ve come as far as we have this year,” Gatto said. “I was trying to give us a shot to recover the ball on kickoffs. I try to do this each time. It’ll take some time to get over this loss. I hope to be back in Orlando next year.”
“Every point counts in this league. Every kick is important. You try to get the special teams the time to get down the field as well as being depended on to be consistent,” continued Gatto. “I didn’t get the opportunity to make a tackle, that’s something else I like about this game, the kicker is right there on special teams. I’ve watched Daron Alcorn and he spreads it around off the nets and mixes it up. I’m excited about playing Arena Football because we’re more than just points kickers.”
“He did a good job today keeping his team in the game and almost turning it around,” Daron Alcorn said about Gatto. “He did the right things at the right time. The nets are a big aspect to this game.”
If anyone doubts the importance of kickers in Arena Football, they just learned there’s a lot more than just kicking for points. The way the ball can bounce off different parts of the net has become an art form and weapon for the better kickers in the league. For those who watched the start of the second half, there is no need for further lessons.
Back to Basics
San Jose made sure Nick Gatto was not going to get another shot at the nets. After Hundon got up from his kickoff reception, the SaberCats went to work.
Quarterback John Dutton (25 of 36 for 326, 4 TD’s) was as calm as the eye in the middle of a hurricane the whole game. No matter what happened Dutton- who received the games MVP award-came in and did his job. Whether sacked or successful Dutton stayed focused, poised and effective.
“I feel I have the best players in the league to throw to,” Dutton said. “This is what we’ve done all year. I knew I just had to put the ball where it was needed. Look, I’m throwing to Hundon, Roe, Baker, Smith and Barry Wagner. I just needed to do my part.”
“Hey Barry! Barry!” Not many quarterbacks are confident enough to tell the opposing team who he’s going to throw to but with the score 45-40 and 13:20 on the clock, Dutton shouted to Wagner as he was leaving the huddle that the ball was coming his way. The resulting completion to Wagner pretty much says it all about Dutton’s performance…
“We worked hard to be here,” Wagner said. “John deserves the MVP. He came up big all game long. I’m happy to be going to the ArenaBowl but my heart goes out to Orlando. They turned in a good season but I don’t think people realize how much our team works at being where we are. We should have made it the last two years too but now it’s time to focus on the ArenaBowl.”
Six Hundred Seconds to ArenaBowl XVI
Daron Alcorn’s extra point set the score at 52-40 with exactly 10 minutes left on the clock in the fourth quarter.
With all of the drama and heroics spinning on national television, the SaberCats defense remembered their call to duty. Orlando was denied the comeback they were seeking by a defense that would not be denied their place in the championship game that they had worked all season long to be in.
Smith continued his game of excellence and led San Jose’s defense in the dominating close to the game. He came within inches of intercepting Gruden’s pass to WR/DB Junior Lord in the end zone, which set in motion the beginning of the end…
The very next play rookie Thomas paid back Gruden for tormenting him all game long. By intercepting Grudens next pass, the wayward rookie reclaimed his status and effectively slammed the door shut on the Predators season.
With all of the compassion of a myopic dentist, Dutton and the offense grinded down the clock with short plays and drove the ball down to the Predators 1-yard line. Wagner thought about next week a moment too soon and fumbled the ball when Orlando’s OL/DL Curtis Eason knocked it out of his arms as he was going in for another SaberCats’ touchdown.
On the ensuing Predators drive, once again Clevan Thomas had payback on his mind and he cashed it in with another interception when Gruden went for it all. For a player who had the fans worried at one point in the game, Thomas had them pointing, cheering, and dancing at the end of it as their team was number one and will be here next week in the ArenaBowl.
San Jose took over with just two seconds left in the game. “I had confidence in Clevan all season long and this game was no exception,” head coach Daron Arbet said. “The ball bounces funny in this game. You’re going to get some and lose some. Orlando went at him so hard for a reason. He never gave up and look what happened, he came up big when it counted. And what about Omar Smith? What a great day he put in. This is a team game after all.”
The best player of the day had the last thing to say as Dutton offered his next pass to the fans and tossed it high into the stands to end the game and begin the celebration!
Some players and coaches:
“Isn’t this what it’s all about?” said Dutton to his teammates in the crush of hugs and handshakes after the game. “Now you know what all the sweat and hard work is for. Our coaches give time in practice to every player. I think that came up big when I got my chance. There was less adjustment and we kept on clicking. This team is together and that’s a big part of where we’re going.”
“We finally got that monkey off our back,” said two-time ArenaBowl champion Darrin Kenney. “It came down to the last quarter. We knew Orlando was going to be tough. Finally this organization is going to the championship game, where we belong.”
“The offense played very well today,” said offensive coordinator and general manager Terry Malley. “There was a lot of drama and they kept their focus no matter what happened. That was a key to this win.”
“This team is willing to work very hard in practice and that paid off for us in this game. We push them hard and they keep responding like winners. They deserved this victory today,” head coach Daron Arbet said.
Matt Kinsinger knows what pride is. As a member of the no-quit 3-11 Thunderbears last season, he knows the ups and downs. “No matter what we’ve faced this year, we never let each other down. San Jose has a good organization that gives us the opportunities to win.”
“We need to stay focused and win one more game,” said Barry Wagner. “Hard work paid off and now we’re going to the championship. That’s what it’s all about!”
Opposing head coach Fran Papasedero knew the key to the loss lay in turnovers and penalties. “Our guys physically could have won against San Jose, but we made too many mistakes and penalties to be in a position to win. San Jose played with more discipline that was the difference.”
All year long!
The adventure that 16 teams started out on will have two completing. While “next year” awaits everyone else, this year belongs to the ArenaBowl teams. One is going to be the San Jose SaberCats.
The San Jose SaberCats used continuity to mix together a team of very talented athletes, though the main focus remained working well together. Dependence on each other was stressed from the first day of mini-camp and was the theme throughout every game this year in a season that had that togetherness almost attaining a perfect record.
Now with a berth in ArenaBowl XVI, the 2002 SaberCats know that together they achieved this opportunity and together they will face the challenge of attaining a championship.
Tim Ball is a writer in the Chicagoland area. Married and father of three, his opinions on Arena Football reflects the positive aspect of the game as a family event second to none in pro sports.
