Force Embarrass Hapless Brigade
Matt Eichenblatt
Saturday February 25, 2006
The fans that attended Friday night’s game were treated to a buffet of scoring on both sides of the ball. For the third time this season, the Force has scored a touchdown on offense, defense, and special teams all in one game. It was also the second time under Georgia head coach Doug Plank has seen his squad hold a team under 20 points, the last being a 38-13 victory at Las Vegas early in the 2005 season, something Plank took note of.
"Last year we held Las Vegas to 13 points and that was really special," Coach Plank said. "But this definitely has to be our second best performance. I’ll just say this; we couldn’t have done it without their help."
Against Kansas City, the Force once again opened up the record books and tied the franchise mark for fewest points in a half, by allowing only three points in the third and fourth quarter of Friday night’s game. One of the biggest parts of course, was DS Willie Gary who was named the ADT player of the game.
Gary, who was actually released in earlier in the preseason before being brought back to the Force, has been a big part of the Force’s defensive efforts the past two weeks. Tonight Gary had five tackles and one forced-fumble to add to his growing list of stats. When asked about Gary’s recent performance, Plank was more than happy to give his opinion on his tenacious Defensive Specialist and his unusually aggressive style of play.
"Last year, he [Gary] was really proud of the fact that he led the league in penalties at the halfway point. But I am comfortable with that because I want aggressive players," said Plank.
"Even though he was tackling players before the play, that’s ok; it sets a tone. He’s an aggressive type of player that creates a contagious attitude. I would take Willy on my team any day of the week."
While Gary performed well, other members of the defense did their part to keep the Kansas City offense in neutral. For the second week in a row, DS Chris Brown took an interception back for a touchdown, while 2005 All-Arena selection OL/DL Jermaine Smith recorded two sacks. But the most stunning defensive play of the night has to go to FB/LB Robert Thomas for blocking a Tim Seder FG attempt which gave the ball to Georgia deep in Brigade territory.
Amidst all of the defensive glory, there still were some offensive standouts for Georgia, most notably rookie WR/DB Jamin Elliot who filled in for an injured Chris Jackson. Elliot caught a game-high 10 passes for 111 yards and 1 touchdown in his most prolific game as an AFL player. A little known fact about Elliot is that he was a former teammate and target for QB Matt Nagy when the two put played at the University of Delaware. While Jackson is expected to return to the lineup for next week’s contest against the Austin Wranglers, it seems like Coach Plank will make sure Elliot is in the game plan.
GAME BALL
The game ball this week has to go to the entire Force defense for recording two sacks, one blocked field goal, and three turnovers. An honorable mention has to go to K Nelson Garner, who after three rough performances was nearly perfect on extra points. His ability to knock in PAT’s and Field Goals will go a long way in defeating division leading Austin next week.
A LOOK AHEAD: THE AUSTIN WRANGLERS
There is no doubt this will be the biggest game the Force have to date. While Colorado, Tampa Bay and Orlando might be more formidable opponents, one can’t deny Austin’s sudden streak of success, and Coach Plank made it clear to his team that Austin is their immediate focus: "I tell my players that they need to forget about a game in 24 hours; well this time I only said 1 hour," Plank reaffirmed.
"They are a true challenge for us and I am going to continue to remind this team this week how good they are. You don’t even have to watch the film; you can see the changes they made in the off-season, all the veterans they added and the improvements they have made."
For Georgia to beat Austin, they will have to put their best effort forth, and get that total team-effort that helped them trounce Kansas City. If that effort is met, Georgia should have no problem taking down a familiar division rival.
Matt Eichenblatt is a free-lance writer from the Atlanta area. He has followed Arena Football since 1999 and has been attending Georgia Force games since they moved from Nashville five years ago. As well as being a football enthusiast, he is also looking forward to graduating from the University of Alabama with a degree in Finance and Communications.
