SaberCats strike gold in first home win of the season
Tony Mercado
Saturday March 18, 2006
I just didn't expect them to do it in such heart-stopping fashion.
They racked up 16 unanswered points at one juncture after being down 28-17, survived touchdowns nullified by penalties and forced overtime when quarterback Mark Grieb and receiver James Roe connected for a score and two-point conversion in the waning seconds of regulation. And oh yeah, Georgia missed wide right on a field goal that would have prevented sending the game to overtime.
"When we went to OT, I told them, 'Just fight. Fight 'till you can't fight anymore.' And they did," SaberCats Coach Darren Arbet said. "Good things came out of it."
It was the second time this season San Jose would face overtime, the last one on Feb. 26 turning out not as planned with a 54-48 loss to Chicago. But on this occassion, the Irish eyes smiled on the SaberCats as a two-point conversion attempt by the Force to win the game after tying the score failed.
"It finally all came together and I think we started something," Arbet said.
Make no mistake. This was a game the SaberCats needed to have. It kept them from posting their worst start in franchise history and from losing three consecutive home games in a season for the first time. With the win, San Jose is in the thick of things in the Western Division, though Arbet said he told the team three weeks ago as it was in the midst of a tough losing streak to not be concerned with statistics or standings.
"All we want to do is play hard every single play," he said. "The record doesn't count. The scores don't count. We're starting to play together and when you do that, you'll be all right."
The guys were more than that Friday.
Defensive rookie Van Brown recorded a safety in the third quarter to pull the 'Cats to within two of Georgia. Grieb passed for 337 yards and four tochdowns. Another rookie, Ben Nelson, continued to shine, hauling in 13 of Grieb's passes for 165 yards and two tochdowns.
Tell me how fun it was to see the legendary Barry Wagner play a full game after sustaining a hamstring injury that sidelined him for the first six contests? Especially that 24-yard catch in the overtime that set up Phil Glover's 2-yard run up the middle for the score.
And how about Glover? He was voted the game's Iron Man for his three-touchdown performance. Arbet calls him one of the team's leaders and emerging top stars and it's easy to see why.
It's such a good thing that everyone is a little Irish on St. Patrick's Day. On Friday, some of that magic was present, giving fans a little glimpse of a rainbow and and a chance to share in a little pot of gold at the end of the it.
Tony Mercado holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from San Jose State University and spent 10 years as a newspaper reporter in the Bay Area. He now works in the public relations field, but continues to enjoy writing about the local teams and the positive impact its players, coaches and dance squads have in their communities.
