Force Shock Columbus into Submission
K.E. Schlosser
Tuesday May 11, 2004
What seemed like a good game in the early going, turned quickly into another Destroyer disaster as time ran out in the first half. After a Georgia touchdown with less then one minute on the clock, Sedrick Robinson fumbled the ensuing kickoff on his own two-yard line. The Force then scored a touchdown on the next play to increase their lead. With time winding down in the half, Destroyer quarterback Ryan Vena threw an ill-advised pass that was intercepted at midfield by Force defensive lineman Oscar Sturgis. The Force were able put another three points on the board as time expired.
While the Destroyers were able to score on their first possession of the second half, the Force came right back with a 48-yard touchdown pass to maintain their lead of 21 points. Throughout the rest of the second half, the Destroyers were able to get no closer as both teams found the end zone three more times. While the Destroyer defense deserves some of the blame in defeat for not stopping the Georgia offense throughout the second half, as a team they were not able to overcome the turnovers or inopportune penalties of the first half.
To call a victory between two 4-8 teams a “shocker” may seem like an exaggeration, but head coach Earle Bruce hit the nail on the head in his post-game interview. The Force entered town riding a six game losing streak with a sputtering offense scoring 67 combined points in their last three games. While they may have had an off week to prepare for the Destroyers, the last thing Bruce expected to do was look up at the scoreboard and see that the Force were able to score 71 points.
“This is a classic example where a team that just lost six in a row comes back and wants it more than the average team,” said Bruce.
Gracious in defeat, Coach Bruce gave them credit for doing it on the road.
“They have good athletes and delivered when they had to,” said Bruce. “They ran the ball effectively to keep us off balance and their quarterback got good protection that he had not been having and had time to throw the ball.”
When questioned about his team underestimating or overlooking the reeling Force heading into the game, Bruce defended his players and their preparation.
“We had shown signs of really good progress up until this game,” said Bruce. “I thought we were more prepared for this game than others, but it didn’t work out that way. Everything happened good for them and they got a jump by our mistakes and we couldn’t get back into the game.”
Looking for a bright side of a dark Sunday afternoon, Bruce praised Sedrick Robinson.
“He was outstanding and gave everything he could possibly give,” said Bruce of Robinson’s performance.
For the game, Robinson had a career high 358 total yards and 5 touchdowns. Bruce was also pleased with the continued performance and play of kicker Steve Videtech.
As the Destroyers sat licking their wounds and signing post game autographs, Bruce started looking forward to next week and the rest of the season.
“When you get beat like this, the best I have been taught is to forget it and start over the next week,” said Bruce. “Otherwise, you allow it to fester. There is not a game on our schedule that we cannot win, if we play up to our abilities and do not turn the ball over.”
The rest of the season starts Friday night as the Destroyers play host to the 1-12 Grand Rapids Rampage at Nationwide Arena before taking to the road for the final two games of the season. Since neither of the road games will be televised, the Rampage game may be the most important of them all to the fans since it will be the last time most people in Columbus see the Destroyers play until next year.
