New Tampa Kicker Beats Rampage on Final Play
Randy Snow
Monday February 24, 2003
On the other hand, Tampa Bay Storm kicker Pete Elezovic missed three extra points and two field goals in last weeks loss at Las Vegas. The following Wednesday, Elezovic was release by the team. Then, on Friday, the Storm signed Ian Howfield, a kicker who has been out of the league since 1997.
Howfield showed no signs of rust from his 5-year hiatus, missing only once during the game, going 5 of 6 on PATs. He also made three field goals, the final one from 23 yards as time expired to beat the Rampage 58-56. The missed PAT came with 2:08 left in the game, but the Storm were still in the lead by six points at the time.
The Rampage came back not once, but twice in the game from 14-point deficits, once in the second quarter and again in the third. They even took the lead 56-55 with 49 seconds remaining. But Tampa ran the clock down to one second and gave Howfield the final chance to score. Ironically, Howfield played for Rampage coach Michael Trigg back in 1994 when Trigg was a rookie head coach in the AFL with the Fort Worth Cavalry.
Howfield had been selling advertising for NBC in Las Vegas before signing with the Storm just two days before the Grand Rapids game. Howfield played in the Arena League for five years, including a stint with the Las Vegas Sting. While playing for the Sting, he kicked a 61-yarder against the Miami Hooters, the second-longest field goal in league history. Howfield is ranked 10th all-time among kickers with 483 career points.
Series History
The Rampage and the Storm have played each other five times since Grand Rapids came into the league in 1998. The games have always been in played in Grand Rapids and, as of this loss, the Storm have a 4-1 advantage in the series. The lone victory for the Rampage came back in 1999.
Championship Spotlight
During the game, the Rampage recognized the local football team from East Grand Rapids High School. The Pioneers won the 2002 State Class B High School football championship back in November at the Pontiac Silverdome. Members of the team were in attendance at the game and highlights from their season were shown on the video screen in the south end zone of the Van Andel Arena.
NBC coverage
Arena Football fans in southwest Michigan had their pick of games on TV to choose from this past Sunday. All three of NBC’s televised games were available on NBC stations in the area. The Grand Rapids/Tampa Bay game was shown on WOOD-TV, Channel 8 out of Grand Rapids; the Chicago/LA game was on WNDU, Channel 16 from South Bend, Indiana; and the Detroit/Dallas game was carried by WILX, Channel 10 in the Lansing/Jackson area. I guess it helps to have three Arena teams (Chicago, Detroit and Grand Rapids) so close together.
Three Undefeated Teams Lose
With losses on Sunday by Grand Rapids, Indiana and Los Angeles, the Orlando Predators (4-0) are now the only undefeated team in the Arena League.
Next Game
The next game for the Rampage (3-1) is this Friday night at home against the Carolina Cobras (0-4), the team that beat them in the first round of the playoffs last year. The game is already sold out.
Randy Snow covered the Grand Rapids Rampage of the Arena Football League for ArenaFan from 2003-2008. He also covered the Fort Wayne Fusion of arenafootball2 in 2007. From 2004-2008 and in 2010, he was a member of the Arena Football League Writer’s Association and, since 2011, has been a member of the Professional Football Researchers Association. Randy lives in Kalamazoo, Michigan but will travel just about anywhere for a football game or a great football story. He runs the web site www.theworldoffootball.com and hosts a podcast with his son, Adam, called “This Week in The World of Football.”
