Rivalry and Chivalry: SaberCats vs. Avengers
Tim Ball
Tuesday May 14, 2002
Sports hold our dreams of achieving perfection, however elusive. San Jose’s OL/DL Sam Hernandez, WR/DB Shalon Baker and Los Angeles’ FB/LB Chad Dukes had the sport of Arena Football come one-step closer to perfection. This “two-way sport” is developing heroes like a comic book.
In this week’s episode: As “The Avengers” responded to the forces of the silicon SaberCats, Chad Dukes scored as easy as the Hulk might smash an evil-doer. Undaunted, the claw and fang clan kept up wave after wave of attack in response. “The Avengers” were gaining on the armies of the Compaq kingdom thanks to the Duke, who advanced a kickoff return for a TD and bashed his way through the line for another score, stunning the marauding opponents and narrowed their advantage…a roar was heard rising through the land. Sam and Shalon, smelled blood and routed the valiant Avengers.
In our next issue: Predators seek the SaberCats man for man.
Reality bites (hard)
The SaberCats don’t have a “second string” and expect every player to produce. Each one has answered that call time and time again. You could make a few successful Arena teams out of this bunch. Hernandez and Baker took over the fourth quarter last week against Georgia and were obviously still pumped from the hits they were laying out.
Hernandez had three and a half tackles and two sacks on the night and is the All-Time AFL leader in sacks with 51.5, arguably the toughest statistic to achieve in this sport (besides maybe rushing yards.) With 3.5 tackles, his name could be heard all night long, as he chased the Avenger quarterbacks.
 Shalon Baker Image courtesy of San Jose Sabercats |
Team means productivity
The SaberCats know the areas where improvement is needed and are fixing them weekly. The league has to be paying attention. Quarterback John Dutton (the other QB) proved beyond the shadow of a doubt that he came to play. Just look at his rushing touchdown. As the holder for extra points and field goals, Dutton’s stability has meant victory. This attitude shows why San Jose is undefeated. While most teams have starters and backups, the SaberCats simply have a team. When one set of players are on the field, the others are not just waiting, they are waiting their turn.
DS Clevan Thomas and OS James Hundon balanced both sides of the game with consistency and big plays. Los Angeles was simply overwhelmed from too many different angles as SaberCats’ quarterback Mark Grieb followed up most incomplete passes with a touchdown… The silver lining in this loss for Los Angeles is that they get San Jose at home in just a few weeks. A rematch is always better sooner than later.
Special Teams, Defense and Quarterbacks
San Jose came into this game knowing full well the improvements needed in special teams. Los Angeles capitalized on this and Dukes’ 56 yard touchdown return in the first half was a painful reminder. The second half was a different story. Whatever was said in the locker room at halftime, the Avengers faced a new and improved SaberCats on kickoffs. L.A. tried two onside kicks in the second half and both failed.
In all four SaberCats victories, the defense has taken over in the fourth quarter. Avengers quarterback Matthew Sauk learned the hard way. Replacing the frustrated Tony Graziani, Sauk found out quickly myth from reality, Sauk’s first pass attempt was intercepted by SaberCats DS Wendall Davis.
John Dutton (the other SaberCats quarterback) iced San Jose’s scoring onslaught with a finely tuned drive that included a 20 yard pass completion to Omar Smith, a running play with Baker rushing for 12 yards and then going in on a quarterback keeper for the touchdown from three yards out. Dutton’s spirited play and willingness to go for it is a prime example of the SaberCats’ team play.
Los Angeles, showing pure class, had Sauk return and make a statement, completing four straight passes to the same receiver (Greg Hopkins), unfortunately with time expiring before L.A. could score…Who can wait until these teams meet again?
Uphill road
Undefeated teams are targets. They have to face a more motivated opponent each and every game, with their sights set on knocking them off that pedestal. The best aspect of the SaberCats is that they have not depended on one or two “superstars” to carry the team. The team carries the team. All four victories have hung on the shoulders of many different players with the defense as productive as the offense.
The season is far from decided. San Jose has to maintain unity and winning, while other teams can still dig deep and find themselves. Being the hunted is a very difficult position. With only two divisional games in the books and a road trip to Orlando, San Jose has little time to enjoy the fruits of victory. Things are just starting to heat up and the SaberCats are the catalyst.
Game Time is 7:30 est 5-17-02 at the TD Waterhouse Center, Orlando FL.
Tim Ball is a writer in the Chicagoland area. Married and father of three, his opinions on Arena Football reflects the positive aspect of the game as a family event second to none in pro sports.
