Playmakers Come Up Big in Force Victory

Matt Eichenblatt
Sunday May 27, 2007

The most overlooked aspect of being a star player is being a star player when it matters most—crunch time. On Saturday night in Phillips Arena, the Georgia Force stars were shining brighter than ever.   

For most of the opening three quarters of play during round two of this heated southern rivalry, the Force seemed to be wandering around in a fog; the team leading up to the 4th quarter had already committed two costly turnovers deep in the red zone, and continued to do their part helping the Storm cause by giving up a disgusting 54 yards in penalties. Yes, it seemed almost inevitable that the Force were going to drop their second game in a row to a team that should not have been hanging around, and thoughts about a championship season would soon turn to doubts about this team’s discipline and heart. But like a good Hollywood movie, the ‘A-list’ stars would save the day.

Cue Reggie Doster, would you kind sir?

With the score tied at 38-38 and time running down in the 4th quarter, Tampa Bay led by rookie quarterback Brett Dietz, was driving for the go ahead score. While the Georgia defense had been stout all day, penalties and heartbreaking third down conversions by the Storm offense looked like it was going to rear its ugly head again on this crucial possession in the contest. But like Superman with his might ‘S’ on his chest, Reggie Doster turned the momentum back to the Force for good as he snagged his second interception of the day, setting the Force up with a golden opportunity to take the lead late in the game.

Enter Chris Jackson stage left, please and thank you.

The Force offense, normally a powerful juggernaut, had struggled all day against the Storm defense. With a recovered fumble and an interception already under their belts, the Storm defense had the confidence no team had against the Force pretty much all year. But like he has done his entire career, Chris Jackson would save the day on an immaculate leaping touchdown catch over Tampa defensive back Jeroid Johnson on the third play of the drive to put the Force up 45-38. At the end of the contest, Jackson ended up with thirteen receptions for a whopping 183 yards and three touchdown catches. Well done Mr. Jackson.

But what would a good movie without a grand finale? Don’t worry, Jermaine Smith has it covered.

Following the go-ahead touchdown connection from Chris Greisen to Chris Jackson, the Force needed a big stop to ice the game. With the Phillips Arena crowd of 10,789 on their feat beating on their buckets and slamming their thunder sticks together, Jermaine Smith delivered a photo finish by leaping up and intercepting a Brett Dietz pass attempt near the line and returning it 14 yards for the score that cemented the Georgia Force’s fifth straight division win and clinched the team’s third straight playoff birth in a row.

After the game, Force head coach Doug Plank talked about what it meant to be in the playoffs for third consecutive year under his leadership.

“To be quite honest, it is not something we were all too focused about,” remarked Plank. “In our minds, winning the southern division, going on to win the National Conference and put ourselves in position to win the ultimate goal is what it is all about.”

While the Force can rejoice in another crucial division win and a playoff birth, there are still a few glaring weaknesses the team needs to address before next week’s game against the Columbus Destroyers, namely undisciplined penalties and poor starting field position. 

For the second week in a row, the Force committed over 50 yards in penalties, with an appalling 76 yards, most coming in crucial 3rd and 4th down situations. When asked about what a coaching staff can do to cut down on the number of penalties in the game, Coach Plank simply stated, “Fines. I think everyone in this country understands money, and when you start taking it away from them, they start to listen.”

Whether or not the team responds to the staff’s latest attempt to cut down on penalties is yet to be seen, but it seems to be the most logical idea yet. 

But as far as the game itself goes, there isn’t much the Force have to complain about until you look at the league standings on starting field position, where the Force were second to last coming into Week 13. Of course, this problem was also noted by Plank and his staff, “Trust me, we see that and we are going to fix that,” said Plank.

“It would be nice to start at midfield rather than deep in our own zone because the plays you can call are drastically different, and you don’t have to worry about certain things like safeties occurring with your quarterback near his own endzone. We will do whatever is needed whether it is strategy or personnel changes to improve this aspect of our game.”

With the Force 10-2 and poised to retake the Southern Division crown, it is time to take care of the little things, because it always comes back to haunt a team in games, especially in the playoffs. With all this talent, the Force just need someone to step in and make sure this team continues to improve and peak when it matters the most—playoff time. 

Cue Doug Plank.