Little things lead Soul past Storm, setup conference title game in two weeks
Adam Markowitz
Saturday July 16, 2016
Dan Raudabaugh wasn't sharp. The secondary had too many plays with busted coverage. The special teams didn't do a particularly great job defending kickoffs. Yet in the end, the Philadelphia Soul found a way to win when they weren't at their best on Saturday night by a 56-51 count over the Tampa Bay Storm.
The stats really do tell the story of just how sloppy the Soul were in this game. They were -1 in the turnover department against a team which entered the game at -18 in turnover margin coming into the game. They let Adam Kennedy – a man who had led the Storm to TDs on just six out of 15 drives this season -- score TDs on six of his nine possessions tonight and forced just one turnover. Raudabaugh, who went 20-of-21 last week against the Cleveland Gladiators, was 21-of-34 on this night. His receivers essentially short-armed two balls in the third quarter on the same drive which should've been touchdowns; the Soul were stopped on that drive and let a chance to open up what probably would've been an insurmountable 35-19 lead.
However, there are plenty of stats which tell the story for the Storm as well. They were behind 35-31 with four missed extra points, 42-37 with five missed extra points, 49-44 with five missed extra points and ultimately 56-51 with five missed extra points. The entire game would've felt a lot different had Delbert Alvarado been able to knock in his point after attempts.
It's not like it's all Alvarado's fault, though. His regular holder, Jason Boltus was knocked out of the game in the first quarter with what is being presumed to be a lower body injury after a horse collar tackle. From that point forward, the next three extra point tries were either shanked or partially blocked.
But still, the Soul did all of the little things right that the Storm did wrong.
Twice on fourth downs in the first half, Tampa Bay completed a pass on fourth down which didn't get to the marker, first on a Prechae Rodriguez in route which was run at three yards on 4th and 6, then on a Rodriguez hammer route which only got the ball to the 1-yard line on 4th and goal.
Meanwhile in similar situations on 3rd and long spots, the Soul receivers constantly ran to the sticks or just beyond them.
Philadelphia also made all eight of its extra points. Alvarado did knock in his last two, but it was, for all intents and purposes, too little, too late.
Tampa Bay attempted five onside kicks and really didn't come close to recovering any of them. In fact, the second to last onsider was returned for a touchdown, and Darius Reynolds was hardly touched on the play. The Soul attempted one onside kick in the first half and recovered it.
Alas, that's the difference between a team which is 1-13 and one which is 13-2.
There's only one game left for the Soul in the regular season, and it's shaping up to be a massive one. Philly will be in Orlando to face the Predators in the last week of the regular season, and it could end up being for the No. 1 overall seed in the playoffs. Regardless of what happens between the Preds and the Arizona Rattlers on Monday night, that game at the Amway Center in two weeks is going to be for the American Conference regular season championship and a guarantee to play two home games in the postseason.
Soul Tie Scoring Mark
By scoring in all four quarters on Saturday night, the Soul have tied the record for the most consecutive quarters in a row with at least one score. Their record, one which they hold alongside the 2001-2003 San Jose SaberCats, sits at 135 straight quarters.
The last time the Soul were held without a score in the regular season was back in the final game of the 2014 regular season against the Pittsburgh Power when they were blanked in the first quarter of the game.
Since 1999, there have been 13 teams complete "perfect seasons" in which they scored in every single quarter of the year. The Soul will attempt to become the first to get the job done in consecutive years in two weeks in Orlando.