The Columbus Destroyers took the field Saturday night for the first time in the Arena Football League since 2008. The Times Union Center did not disappoint as 11,682 fans showed up to the league opener in Albany.  Pregame was rough for Destroyers fans, as we learned that Donovan “Captain” Morgan would be out for the game due to injuries.  Destroyer nation also learned that Danny Southwick would start the season as quarterback. The first half was very shaky, to say the least, for this Columbus Destroyer team. 

Having the youngest team in the league, we all knew there would be a bunch of growing pains in the beginning. A lot of our guys were still trying to adapt to the speed of arena football. Albany took the early lead 7-0, with a score from Mykel Benson, until Jenson Stoshak caught his first ever league touchdown and made the score 7-6 (blocked extra point). The Destroyers then had a huge defensive stop to gain the ball back along with the momentum of the game. However, Danny Southwick threw his first interception of the year and Albany scored a few plays later with a touchdown to Quentin Sims. One more late first-half touchdown for Albany by Malachi Jones and the Destroyers were down 21-6 at halftime.

               
The second half did not start any better than the first half ended. Albany took their opening possession down the field, scoring a touchdown, and making the score 28-6. The Destroyers next possession was not any better, as Southwick got picked off for the second time. The defensive line of Albany was getting after Southwick all night and forced him to throw the ball under pressure many times, including this interception. This interception led to another Albany touchdown to make the score 35-6. Coach Matt Sauk decided to make a quarterback change and bring in Grant Russell, the QB from Ohio Dominican University. After a great return by Anthony Amos, Russell’s first throw was a bullet for a touchdown to Jenson Stoshak, his second receiving touchdown of the night. The third quarter ended with the score being 35-13, in favor of Albany. 

The fourth quarter started off great for the Destroyers as Varmah Sonie intercepted Tommy Grady to give the Destroyers the ball at their five-yard line. Russell, looking calm and collective, led the Destroyers down the field, but failed to score as the offense stalled on fourth and goal. The snaps all night were a little shaky under center. The Destroyers defense flexed their muscles on the next drive and forced a turnover-on-downs for the Albany offense. Russell, poised throughout the whole drive, led the Destroyers to a touchdown, as he ran the football in for the six points. The Destroyers went for two and did not convert, as this made the score 35-19 with 1:41 remaining.  The kickoff was pooched down the field, with Albany recovering the ball. Albany was then able to run out the clock and secure a 35-19 win tonight. The 19 total points were a franchise low, as their previous low total was 24 points back in 2006 against Kansas City.

Final stats of the game for the Columbus Destroyers football team were as follows. Danny Southwick goes 10 for 17, for 123 yards passing, 1 touchdown, and 2 interceptions. Grant Russell goes 6 for 8, 88 passing yards, 1 passing touchdown, and 1 rushing touchdown. The leading receiver for the Destroyers was Anthony Amos, who had 7 receptions for 98 yards. Paul Revis added 53 receiving yards, while Jenson Stoshak added 50 yards and 2 touchdowns. Varmah Sonie tied for the most tackles on the team with 5.5 and added 1 interception. Brandon Stephens also had 5.5 tackles. LaRico Stevenson added 4.5 tackles, while Aaron Ivory added 4 tackles himself.   

All in all, this game was a learning process for our team. As the game went on, the team started to make less mistakes and play the game of arena football better. A bright spot heading into next week is Grant Russell. He had a great game for a player to check into the QB role during the second half of play. It will be interesting to see who starts at quarterback next week for the Destroyers. The next game is next Saturday, at 3:30 P.M. ET, against Atlantic City. See you next week, Destroyer Nation! Go Destroyers!

Joe Couch has been an avid sports fan, especially Arena Football, since he was a little kid. He has always been a die-hard Columbus Destroyers fan. Joe received a full ride scholarship to play golf at the University of Northwestern Ohio. He graduated in 2018 with a Bachelor`s Degree in Business Management, while also enjoying a successful collegiate golf career. Joe is now an insurance agent, but also enjoys writing about the Columbus AFL team in his spare time. You can follow Joe and his Columbus fan page on twitter @AFLCOLUMBUS2019