Soul-Gladiators Quick Look
Jason Moyer
Thursday March 2, 2006
Head Coach
Las Vegas – Ron James. James is in his second season with Vegas and has a career record of 9-12. Last season, Las Vegas led the league total offense and defense.
Philadelphia – Bret Munsey. Munsey and his staff showed some inexperience last week as they were unable to make second half adjustments against Colorado.
Advantage – Philadelphia. Munsey will use last week as a learning experience
Quarterback
Las Vegas – Jason Fife. Yes, Jason Fife from the University of Oregon. Fife got his first career start last week against the Dallas Desperados. He completed 24 of 36 passes for 299 yards with four touchdowns and suffered two interceptions.
Philadelphia – Tony Graziani. Graziani was very critical of his performance last week as he called his second interception, "The worse read of my entire arena football career."
Advantage – Philadelphia. In a match-up of former Duck quarterbacks, look for Graziani to bounce back.
Offensive Specialist & Wide Receivers
Las Vegas – Marcus Nash, CoCo Blaylock, Joe Douglass, & T.J. Hill. Nash is a superstar in the league. He currently ranks third in touchdowns (13), fourth in yards (54), and fifth in receptions (44).
Philadelphia – Marcus Knight, Mike Brown, Sean Scott, & J.J. McKelvey. Knight leads the team in receptions (34) and yards (346). Rookie McKelvey leads the team with seven touchdowns.
Advantage – Philadelphia. The Soul have five players with at least 10 receptions and 100 yards receiving in their first five games. Their main concern is the health of Brown (hip-pointer) and Scott (hamstring).
Fullback & Offensive/Defensive Line
Las Vegas – Rodney Filer, Wilky Bazile, Tupe Peko, & Chukie Nwokorie. The Gladiators are banged up at this position. Fullbacks Marlion Jackson and Matt Kinsinger are reported out, while OL/DL Steve Konopka is questionable.
Philadelphia – Chad Dukes, Ernest Allen, Mike Mabry, & EJ Burt. The Soul surrendered their first sack of the season against Colorado and failed to record one for the first time.
Advantage – Philadelphia. Watch out Jason Fife!!! This should be an angry group after last week’s performance.
Defensive Specialist
Las Vegas – Nick Davis and Alonzo Spellman. Vegas is the only team to use a lineman as a specialist. Spellman has three total tackles and one forced fumble. Is it really worth it?
Philadelphia – Kevin Gaines and Eddie Moten. Gaines recorded his third interception of the season last week and moved into fifth all-time (38) in the AFL.
Advantage – Philadelphia. Because of the juggling Las Vegas does with their substitutions, the Soul will have better match-ups.
Kicker
Las Vegas – Eric Houle. Houle has made one of five field goal attempts and converts 78 percent of his extra points.
Philadelphia – Todd France. France is five for 11 kicking field goals and is an excellent 93 percent on his extra points.
Advantage – Philadelphia. Along with his accuracy, France continues to nail the iron on his kickoffs.
X-Factor
Las Vegas – Marcus Nash. A superstar in this league can take over a game. Last week, Colorado’s Damian Harrell burned Philadelphia for 11 catches, 122 yards, and four touchdowns. A similar performance by Nash is crucial for the Gladiators.
Philadelphia – Tony Graziani. Graziani took the loss last week very hard. As the leader of the team, he will not allow that to happen again. Look for a solid performance this week.
Prediction
Philadelphia’s strength this season has been the play of their offensive and defensive lines. Las Vegas has injury issues at this position. Look for Graziani to have time in the pocket to pick out his receivers. Jason Fife will have to make quick reads to avoid the Soul’s pass rush. Philadelphia is 3-14 all-time on the road as they begin a very important road trip for their franchise. Unless Marcus Nash has a monster game, look for Philadelphia to be victorious 55-40.
Jason Moyer is an elementary school teacher in the western New Jersey area. He is an avid follower of the Arena Football League and has been covering the Philadelphia Soul with ArenaFan.com since 2005. Jason resides in Whitehall, PA with his wife and daughter.
