Rattlers Hope To Sweep Away Soul, History in ArenaBowl XXVI
Adam Markowitz
Monday August 12, 2013
It's pretty good company when you can put yourself on an exclusive list that is currently only occupied by the 1995 Tampa Bay Storm. The 2013 Arizona Rattlers have a chance to join the list of squads that finished a three-game sweep against teams with a win in the ArenaBowl when they take on the Philadelphia Soul on Saturday afternoon in Orlando at ArenaBowl XXVI.
They say that one of the most difficult things to do in sports is to beat a team three times in the same season. The Rattlers have already accomplished a pair of wins against the Soul this year, beating them 66-52 at home on March 23rd and 64-57 on the road on June 1st.
There have been 38 instances in AFL history where a team swept a foe in the regular season and then faced that team again in the playoffs. It has already happened twice this season as well, and history has boded well for the team that got the 'W's in the regular season. The Soul beat the Orlando Predators twice in the regular season, and they followed that up with a 59-55 win in the first round of the playoffs. On the same night, the Jacksonville Sharks finished a three-game season sweep of the Tampa Bay Storm with a 69-62 triumph.
However, thanks to addition of a conference playoff system and a schedule that has been unbalanced for most of AFL history, it isn't all that often that two teams face off in the ArenaBowl that have met twice before in the regular season, and it is even more rare that one of those teams swept the other. In fact, it has only happened five times before in AFL history.
| Year | Team | Swept | Result |
| 1988 | Chicago | Detroit | L 24-13 |
| 1994 | Orlando | Arizona | L 36-31 |
| 1995 | Tampa Bay | Orlando | W 48-35 |
| 1998 | Tampa Bay | Orlando | L 62-31 |
| 2004 | Arizona | San Jose | L 69-62 |
As you can see, success is awfully limited for the team that won the first two meetings. Only the Storm were able to best the Preds three times in the same campaign with the crowning victory of the three coming with the Foster Trophy on the line. This Arizona team was able to stop Orlando from achieving a three-game sweep in the ArenaBowl in Orlando in 1994, but the tables were turned in 2004 when a very good Arizona team had its heart ripped out by the San Jose SaberCats in ArenaBowl XVIII.
However, it's not totally unprecedented that a team finishes off a three-game season series sweep with a win in the postseason. The occasion has come up 38 times in league history, and the team that swept the regular season series went 22-16 in the third matchup. However, doing a bit of digging shows that this is a heck of a lot harder to do when you take out the clear and decisive mismatches.
| Year | Team (Record) | Swept (Record) | Result |
| 1988 | Chicago (10-1-1) | Detroit (9-3) | L 24-13 |
| 1990 | Detroit (6-2) | Pittsburgh (3-5) | W 61-30 |
| 1990 | Dallas (6-2) | Denver (4-4) | W 26-25 |
| 1993 | Tampa Bay (9-3) | Albany (5-7) | W 48-34 |
| 1993 | Orlando (10-2) | Tampa Bay (9-3) | L 55-52 |
| 1993 | Detroit (11-1) | Dallas (3-9) | W 51-6 |
| 1993 | Detroit (11-1) | Arizona (7-5) | W 38-34 |
| 1994 | Orlando (11-1) | Arizona (8-4) | L 36-31 |
| 1995 | Tampa Bay (10-2) | Orlando (7-5) | W 48-35 |
| 1997 | Arizona (12-2) | Milwaukee (8-6) | W 46-29 |
| 1998 | Tampa Bay (12-2) | Orlando (9-5) | L 62-31 |
| 1999 | Tampa Bay (11-3) | Orlando (7-7) | L 41-19 |
| 2001 | Toronto (8-6) | New York (8-6) | W 64-57 |
| 2001 | Grand Rapids (11-3) | Chicago (7-7) | W 53-21 |
| 2001 | San Jose (10-4) | Arizona (8-6) | W 68-49 |
| 2001 | Grand Rapids (11-3) | Indiana (9-5) | W 83-70 |
| 2003 | San Jose (12-4) | Arizona (10-6) | L 66-49 |
| 2004 | Arizona (11-5) | San Jose (11-5) | L 69-62 |
| 2005 | Chicago (9-7) | Colorado (10-6) | L 49-43 |
| 2006 | Arizona (8-8) | Utah (7-9) | W 57-34 |
| 2006 | San Jose (10-6) | Arizona (8-8) | W 62-48 |
| 2006 | Colorado (11-5) | Chicago (7-9) | L 63-46 |
| 2007 | Dallas (15-1) | Columbus (7-9) | L 66-59 |
| 2007 | Colorado (8-8) | Kansas City (10-6) | W 49-42 |
| 2007 | Utah (8-8) | Los Angeles (9-7) | L 64-42 |
| 2008 | Dallas (12-4) | New York (8-8) | L 77-63 |
| 2008 | Philadelphia (13-3) | New York (8-8) | W 49-48 |
| 2008 | Chicago (11-5) | Grand Rapids (6-10) | L 58-41 |
| 2010 | Spokane (13-3) | Arizona (10-6) | W 57-49 |
| 2011 | Jacksonville (14-4) | Orlando (11-7) | W 63-48 |
| 2011 | Jacksonville (14-4) | Georgia (11-7) | W 64-55 |
| 2011 | Chicago (13-5) | Dallas (11-7) | W 54-51 |
| 2012 | Georgia (9-9) | Jacksonville (10-8) | L 58-56 |
| 2012 | Utah (12-6) | San Antonio (14-4) | L 35-34 |
| 2012 | Philadelphia (15-3) | Jacksonville (10-8) | W 89-34 |
| 2012 | San Jose (12-6) | Arizona (13-5) | L 51-48 |
| 2013 | Philadelphia (12-6) | Orlando (7-11) | W 59-54 |
| 2013 | Jacksonville (12-6) | Tampa Bay (7-11) | W 69-62 |
| 2013 | Arizona (15-3) | Jacksonville (12-6) | ??? |
There have been 15 examples in which the team that was swept finished the season at .500 or worse. In those 15 games, the team that swept in the regular season went 10-5. There were also another eight games in which the team that was swept finished the season just two-games above .500 (7-5, 8-6, etc.). The team that swept in the regular season went 6-2 in those examples.
So perhaps it is a little harder to sweep a three-game series from a team than it originally seemed. In situations where the team that got swept in the regular season finished at least four-games above .500, revenge was had quite a bit. Great teams that were swept in the regular season came back with vengeance, going 9-6.
Philadelphia is only the sixth team in league history to finish at least six-games above .500 to get a chance at revenge after losing two games to the same team in the regular season. The previous five went a perfect 5-0 in those playoff outings.
History is definitely stacked against the Rattlers, but that surely isn't going to keep them down by any stretch of the imagination. They are the first team to attend three consecutive ArenaBowls since this Arizona outfit did it in 2002, 2003, and 2004, and they are one of just three franchises which have played in at least three consecutive ArenaBowls. (The Detroit Drive are the only franchise to have played in more than three consecutive title games, doing so in 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, and 1993)
Head Coach Kevin Guy and his Rattlers have 15 players on their roster that were here last season, and this team knows exactly what it has to do in order to beat the Soul. But the question still remains: Can they beat Philadelphia for the third time in a single season?
We'll all find out on Saturday afternoon at the Amway Center.
