Portland Withstands Thunderstorm in Tampa Bay
Adam Markowitz
Sunday May 4, 2014
TAMPA BAY -- The Portland Thunder came to the Sunshine State two weeks ago without a win to their name. They scored their second upset in as many weeks as double-digit underdogs on Saturday night at the Tampa Bay Times Forum, as they beat the Tampa Bay Storm 61-42.
The much-maligned Portland offense was playing without Kyle Rowley, who was classified as having a "serious injury" according to the brass of the Thunder. Rather than using the young Darron Thomas, head coach Matt Sauk elected to start Danny Southwick, who actually started his AFL career in 2011 in Tampa Bay.
Things started off sharp for the visitors, as they scored TDs on each of their first five possessions to jump out to a 33-7 lead. Things really should have been much better than that at the intermission, and the chance was there to build upon the lead even further thanks to a horrid first half by the Tampa Bay offense.
Credit is due to be given to Portland's defense, which held Randy Hippeard down to 11-of-31 passing in the first half of play. However, as has been the case with this young team at times over the course of the season, sloppy play really put it behind the 8-ball. The Thunder went four straight drives from the end of the first half through the beginning of the second half turning the ball over in some way, shape, or form, and that allowed the Storm to claw back to within five points before the tide finally turned once and for all.
Eric Rogers had the best game of his young career, catching seven passes for 110 yards and five TDs, none of which was bigger than the nine-yard score in the third quarter which stopped a 21-0 Tampa Bay run. The Thunder defense recorded its first safety in franchise history on the next drive, and their defense didn't allow another touchdown until the game was well out of reach.
The numbers for Southwick will suggest that he played a strong game, throwing for 307 yards with eight TDs, but two picks and a fumble really didn't help his cause any. The Portland offense still turned the ball over five times, twice via Southwick interceptions and three times on fumbles. The unit also committed 11 penalties.
"We need to clean up. We're a young team," said Sauk after the win. "It could be better. That's the thing. We put up 61 points and without a doubt, we should have had over 70."
On this day though, Tampa Bay was the far sloppier team. Hippeard and his backup, BJ Hall combined to go just 18-of-49 passing for 231 yards with five TDs. Tampa Bay unofficially dropped seven passes on the day, and it committed 13 penalties. The Storm also fumbled four times on the day, losing three of the four fumbles.
That said, nothing should be taken away from the Thunder, who spent the whole week in the Sunshine State after beating the Jacksonville Sharks last week. The Portland defense held down Tampa Bay to just a total of 199 yards, the lowest total in franchise history. Up until the last defensive play of the game, that unit had held down the Storm to what would have been a team-record 34 points. The last touchdown took this Portland effort out of the record books, but this neutral observer would still say that it was the best game the Thunder have played in their history. The Thunder offensive line also came up with its best effort on the year, holding the Storm without a sack, marking the first time any of the Portland QBs have gotten out of a game unscathed.
Portland might have two straight wins under its belt, but Coach Sauk is still a long ways away from crowning his team as one of the elite clubs in the AFL. "I think we're still a while. I think we have a very good defense. I think offensively, we were really good. I think you saw that in the first half."
There's times where we can be really good. There's time where I think our youngness kind of hurts us a little bit," said the victorious coach.
It's been a long week thousands of miles away from home for the Thunder, but there is no rest for the weary for sure. The Thunder play against the undefeated Arizona Rattlers at home for the first of three meetings this year, and they follow that up with their third duel with the San Jose SaberCats in Week 10.
