Fifth Straight Loss Equals Home Playoff Game?
Randy Snow
Wednesday May 21, 2003
Dallas (10-6) won its first division title by beating Grand Rapids 62-51 in front of a sellout crowd of 10,594.
In the second quarter, with Grand Rapids leading 21-14, Rampage DS Shea Showers made an amazing interception in the end zone to stop a Dallas drive. As he dove for the ball, it popped up in the air and bounced off his body a few times. Fortunately, he was able to pull the ball into his chest while lying on his back in the end zone before it hit the ground.
“We were in man cover,” said Showers. “I saw (DS and teammate) Lamar Grant’s guy come inside of my guy, so I just tried to make something happened. It bounced around, hit my chest, my hands, my feet, but I just brought it in any way I could. I was lucky to come up with it.”
Another huge turnover occurred in the final minute of the first half. The Rampage had a 28-21 lead and were driving when Desperado lineman Tom Briggs knocked the ball out of Rampage quarterback Clint Dolezel’s hand as he was setting up to pass. The loose ball rolled about 10 yards down the field and into the end zone where Briggs fell on it for a Dallas touchdown. Briggs was later named Ironman of the Game.
The score at the half was 28-28.
The two teams traded scores in the third quarter and ended with the score knotted at 42-42.
Dallas was leading 55-45 with under a minute to go in the game and looked to be running out the clock for the win. But then Dallas quarterback Jim Kubiak threw a 34-yard scoring pass to WR/DB Luke Leverson with just five seconds remaining in the game, making the score 62-45. Grand Rapids got a small measure of revenge, however, when Willis Marshall ran the ensuing kickoff back 57 yards for a Grand Rapids touchdown as time expired. No extra point was attempted and the game ended with final score at 62-51.
“We can play,” said Grand Rapids head coach Michael Trigg. “We can do some good things, but we’re not playing well mentally. That’s on my shoulders. I’ve got to find a way to improve it. Next week we should get our secondary back, Cecil (Doggette) and Mark (Ricks), and hopefully we’ll be more competitive.”
The Rampage head into the playoffs as the seventh seed among the twelve payoff teams and will play the number 10-seeded Detroit Fury. These two teams did not play each other during the regular season, but did work out together and scrimmaged during training camp. Prior to this season, both teams were in the Central Division and played each other twice in 2001 and 2002. Detroit was placed in the Eastern Conference this season. The Rampage have a 3-1 record against the Fury.
Championship Spotlight
Once again, the Rampage featured another local area high school football team on the Van Andel Arena’s video screen during the game. This time it was the Lowell High School Red Arrows who were honored with highlights from their 2002 state championship season.
Baby, What an Autograph!
Rampage kicker Brian Gowins has autographed many things during his three seasons with the team, but the strangest thing has to be something he signed just this season. A couple, who were longtime fans of the team, missed the first game of the season. A few weeks later, they came to a game and showed off the reason why they missed the season opener: a new baby. They asked Gowins to sign their child, so he did. “If you’re having your first born child, it’s completely excusable to miss a game,” said Gowins.
Randy Snow covered the Grand Rapids Rampage of the Arena Football League for ArenaFan from 2003-2008. He also covered the Fort Wayne Fusion of arenafootball2 in 2007. From 2004-2008 and in 2010, he was a member of the Arena Football League Writer’s Association and, since 2011, has been a member of the Professional Football Researchers Association. Randy lives in Kalamazoo, Michigan but will travel just about anywhere for a football game or a great football story. He runs the web site www.theworldoffootball.com and hosts a podcast with his son, Adam, called “This Week in The World of Football.”
