San Jose hosts ArenaBowl XVI
Daniel Frias
Saturday August 17, 2002
The ’Cats are very excited to be in their first ever ArenaBowl after coming so close the last two years losing in the semifinals both times. “It feels good,” said WR/DB Omarr Smith about his first ever trip to the ArenaBowl. “It’s exciting. We’ve been waiting for this for a long time. Last two years we were one game away, but we finally got here and come Sunday we’re going to put it all on the line and see what happens.”
“We’re extremely excited, ” added Sugar Shane Mosley’s twin WR/DB Shalon Baker. “It’s been an awesome season. We’re finally here (Arenabowl) which was our goal and now we just have to finish it. We feel blessed and we’re determined to get a victory on Sunday.”
Nine-year Arena League veteran OL/DL Sam “El Toro” Hernandez understands the importance of hard work in getting to the championship after all these years in the league. “It’s been a long time coming,” said Hernandez. “We worked really hard to get here. It’s a big game for us, for me and my career, and for the team and this organization.”
What does the mastermind behind the ’Cats road to the Championship think of all this. “It feels great,” said coach Darren Arbet. “This is something we’ve been working out here for four years. We’re finally here. Hopefully we can finish it off and win Sunday.”
The number one seed ’Cats split the regular season with the number two seed Rattlers this year. Both games came down to the very last play and were nothing short of drama and excitement. In week one Rookie Clevan Thomas intercepted a Sherdick Bonner pass during the final minute of the game to preserve a one-point lead as the ’Cats won 52-51. When the two teams met again in week 13, OS James Hundon just barley missed a John Dutton TD pass of his fingertips on the last play of the game as time expired. The Rattlers won 59-52 ending the ’Cats 12 game winning streak.
If you think home field advantage is not an issue in the Arena League, think again. The 2002 Western Division Champion SaberCats, who will play in front of their home crowd, went 7-0 this season at home and have won 16 of their last 17 home games including playoffs the past two seasons. The ‘Cats all agree that having home field advantage is huge factor in a game of this magnitude. “It’s huge,” said QB John Dutton about playing at home. “We’re in our own environment. We’re real comfortable here at home. We have a good record here and with the crowd being loud hopefully it will pay off on Sunday.”
Arizona Rattler Head Coach Danny White also understands the key role home field plays in a playoff game. “It’s always an edge in the playoffs to play at home,” said White. “The fans can control the noise level and that’s definitely an advantage for the SaberCats.”
But don’t think just because San Jose has home field that Arizona is just going to lie down. The Rattlers are a dangerous team with lots of playoff experience. Arizona has played in two ArenaBowls and won them both. Beating Barry Wagner’s Predators in 1994 at Orlando and Kurt Warmer’s Barnstormers in 1997. WR/DB Hunkie Cooper has been a thorn in the SaberCats side throughout his career and is ready for battle on Sunday. “I’m excited to be here,” said Cooper. “We’re going to be in front of a hostile crowd here in San Jose and we just have to take care of our responsibility and play good solid football for four quarters. It’s going to be a war. They’re best 24 against our best 24 and we just have to line up and play the game.”
“This game is definitely going to be battle,” added teammate WR/DB Cecil Doggette. “It’s going to be banging, banging, banging all night long. We know each other and now the nation gets to see how we do things on the west coast.”
The two-time AFL Offensive Player of the Year and six time (in a row) Ironman of the Year makes his sixth Arenabowl appearance on Sunday. WR/DB Barry Wagner, who holds virtually every record imaginable in the AFL, has been to the ArenaBowl more times than Hall of Fame Quarterback Jim Kelly of the NFL Buffalo Bills has been to the Super Bowl! “It feel great,” said Wagner. “We worked hard for it and we deserve to be here. It’s a great feeling this right here being in the championship. It’s going to be a hard fought game, hard hitting game. I expect everybody to come out and the tempers on the team. We don’t like them. They don’t like us. On the field we enemies, but off the field we’re not and we all still going to be friends.” So what is Wagner doing after the Arenabowl is all said and done. “I’m going to Disney World,” said Wager. “I’ve never been to Disney World. I’m going to Disney World this year when we do this thing on Sunday.”
Sunday’s game is not for the squeamish. It promises to be an action packed, hard hitting, bone crushing, excitement filled thriller that will most likely be a trilogy to these two teams 2002 season and their intense, no love lost, ongoing fierce rivalry.
“It’s going to be close,” said Dutton. “It’s going to come down to the wire. Possibly to the last play of the game. I’m not expecting anybody to blow anybody out. It’s going to be a tough physical game.”
“I think it will be a close game,” said coach White. “I think it will be teams trading scores. I think it’ll be two heavyweight fighters standing in the ring in the 15th round just exchanging haymakers toe to toe. I think that’s what this will come down to. It will be a close game right down to the wire. I’m sure of that.”
Daniel Frias was a writer for ArenaFan Online from 2001 to 2002.
