Rampage's roster for 2009 season taking shape
MLive.com
A year ago, the Grand Rapids Rampage roster was a shambles.

MacPherson, Magner re-sign with Rampage
MLive.com
The Grand Rapids Rampage re-signed quarterback James MacPherson and wide receiver Cole Magner to contracts for the 2009 Arena Football League season, the team announced Sunday.

Rampage report card: Final game of season
MLive.com
Here is my report card on the Grand Rapids Rampage's 81-55 loss to the San Jose SaberCats in the AFL American Conference championship game Saturday.

Rampage dumped in Arena League semifinals
The Grand Rapids Press - MLive.com
An exasperated and embarrassed James MacPherson kneeled at the 5-yard line and slammed his helmet to the turf on the final play of the American Conference championship game Saturday at HP Pavilion.

Rampage notes: Lineman's pick leads to TD
MLive.com
On the San Jose SaberCats' first play from scrimmage Saturday, San Jose quarterback Mark Grieb was intercepted by Grand Rapids Rampage defensive back Ahmad Hawkins.

SaberCats get chance to defend title
San Francisco Chronicle
Mark Grieb and the defending champion SaberCats are back in the Arena Bowl, and the Rampage's playoff run is over.

Naples' Saintil catches five TDs to lead San Jose back to Arena Bowl
Naples Daily News
Naples High graduate Cleannord Saintil and the San Jose Sabercats are going back to the Arena Bowl.

Postseason run revitalizes Rampage franchise
MLive.com
Even as their season draws nearer to sappy storybook stuff, the Grand Rapids Rampage, two victories shy of a championship, already have completed their overarching task.

Rampage coach, team gave fans a good ride
Kalamazoo Gazette - MLive.com
Upon being introduced as coach of the Grand Rapids Rampage last summer, Steve Thonn made two proclamations that left some followers of the local Arena Football League franchise full of optimism.

Rampage QB looks to line for support
The Grand Rapids Press - MLive.com
Offensive linemen Sewell, Steitz and Tu'ua and fullback Watkins have protected MacPherson and have given him the ability to have record-setting performances like the one he had Sunday when he completed 33-of-39 passes for 326 yards and six touchdowns in a 58-41 upset win against the Chicago Rush in their Arena Football League divisional playoff game.

Rampage attempting to pull another upset in playoffs
HollandSentinel.com
They have reeled off five consecutive victories, including four in a row on the road. They entered the American Conference playoffs as the lowest of sixth seeds, but defeated the third-seeded Arizona Rattlers and the top-seeded Chicago Rush.

Rampage coach Steve Thonn getting results in playoffs
HollandSentinel.com
The 46-year-old Thonn quickly has earned the trust and confidence of his players in his first season as head coach. He’s a big reason why the Rampage swiftly turned around their season, quarterback James MacPherson said.

MacPherson earns third Offensive Player of the Week award
Grand Rapids Rampage Press Release
After helping lead the sixth-seeded Grand Rapids Rampage to a 58-41 Divisional Round road victory over the top-seeded Chicago Rush, quarterback James MacPherson (Tucson, Ariz.) was named the Arena Football League’s Offensive Player of the Week for the third time this season.

Grand Rapids' MacPherson, San Jose's Floyd and Cleveland's Rue earn divisional round honors
AFL Press Release
Grand Rapids Rampage QB JAMES MACPHERSON, San Jose SaberCats DB MARQUIS FLOYD and Cleveland Gladiators FB/LB JAMES RUE have been named Offensive Player, ADT Defensive Player, and Ironman of the Week, respectively, for the Divisional Round of the 2008 playoffs.

A rapid retreat from playoffs
Chicago Sun-Times
The Rush had allowed a league-low 47.8 points per game going into its playoff game Sunday at Allstate Arena. It took the Grand Rapids Rampage three games against the Rush to finally figure out how to break through that defense.

One and done for Rush
Chicago Daily Herald
The Rush came in bearing the slogan, "One's Not Enough," referencing its 2006 ArenaBowl title.The Grand Rapids Rampage, winners of the 2001 Bowl, arrived sans slogan. They'll have time to conjure something catchy following Sunday's 58-41 win.

Over and out, Rush
Chicago Tribune
Grand Rapids quarterback James MacPherson tripped over one of his offensive linemen and, while still sitting on the turf, heaved a pass from near midfield toward the end zone.

Mistakes lead to quick exit from AFL playoffs
Chicago Tribune
Arena Football League's top secondaries resulted in two first-quarter touchdowns for the league's No. 2 scoring offense.Grand Rapids quarterback James MacPherson tripped over one of his offensive linemen

Rampage upset top seed Rush in AFL Playoffs
Daily Herald
Russ Michna went 19-for-32 for 252 yards and five touchdowns with one interception for top-seeded Chicago, the Central Division champions.

Season Over
The National Sports Review
The Chicago Rush had their season ended at home Sunday by the Grand Rapids Rampage, 58-41. No matter how hard the Rush worked or how many injuries they had, the Rush lost because the Grand Rapids Rampage wanted this game on this day more.

Rampage enjoy underdog role against Rush
The Grand Rapids Press - MLive.com
their adrenaline pumping like a rematch against the Central Division champion Chicago Rush in the second round of the Arena Football League playoffs. ...

Rampage enjoy underdog role against Rush
MLive.com
The Grand Rapids Rampage insist there's nothing that gets their adrenaline pumping like a rematch against the Central Division champion Chicago Rush in the second round of the Arena Football League playoffs.

Rush want to extend success against Grand Rapids in playoffs
Chicago Tribune
The Rush has defeated the Grand Rapids Rampage twice this season and will try to make it three in a row in its divisional-round game Sunday in the Arena Football League playoffs.

Dangerous foe lies in wait for Rush
Chicago Tribune
The Rush has defeated the Grand Rapids Rampage twice this season and will try to make it three in a row in its divisional-round game Sunday in the Arena Football League playoffs.

Hard work really just beginning for Rush
Chicago Sun-Times
Wide receiver Donovan Morgan became the first Rush player to win the Arena Football League's Rookie of the Year award Thursday, but he's not celebrating yet.

Goal-line stand ends Rattlers' season
AZ Central.com
Jeff Smoker's last-gasp attempt to sneak in from the 1 was stopped by William Haith, and Grand Rapids ran out the remaining seconds for a 48-41 wild-card playoff victory in front of 10,862 Monday night at US Airways Center.

Ex-Mountain Lion helps end Rattlers' season
Tucson Citizen
the final minute to preserve a 48-41 victory against the Arizona Rattlers on Monday night in the wild-card round of the Arena Football League playoffs. ...

Rampage pull off upset as MacPherson throws 5 TDs
The Grand Rapids Press - MLive.com
On the biggest stage of his life, James MacPherson didn't let the bright lights keep him from experiencing an unforgettable homecoming Monday night while leading the Grand Rapids Rampage to a thrilling playoff win.

Rampage notes: ESPN analyst impressed by team
The Grand Rapids Press - MLive.com
ESPN analyst Ray Bentley has seen a lot of improvement from the Grand Rapids Rampage since the season kicked off. Enough to predict a bright future.

What home-field advantage?
AZ Central.com
The Rattlers didn't need to see the first two Arena Football League wild-card playoff games to realize that having the home-field advantage can be tenuous.

Rampage QB MacPherson, Kicker Gowins named AFL Players of the Month
Grand Rapids Rampage Press Release
After helping their team post a perfect 3-0 record en route to a playoff berth, a pair of Grand Rapids Rampage players earned monthly honors from the Arena Football League today.

MacPherson, Thomas, Samuels, Morgan and Gowins earn player of the month honors
AFL Press Release
Grand Rapids Rampage QB JAMES MACPHERSON, San Jose SaberCats DB CLEVAN THOMAS, Tampa Bay Storm WR/LB LAWRENCE SAMUELS, Chicago Rush WR DONOVAN MORGAN and Grand Rapids Rampage K BRIAN GOWINS have been named Offensive Player, ADT Defensive Player, Ironman, Rookie, and Kicker of the Month, respectively, for the month of June.

Rampage QB MacPherson, Kicker Gowins named AFL Players of the Month
Grand Rapids Rampage Press Release
After helping their team post a perfect 3-0 record en route to a playoff berth, a pair of Grand Rapids Rampage players earned monthly honors from the Arena Football League today.

MacPherson could help Rampage salvage season
The Grand Rapids Press - MLive.com
In his first two career starts, MacPherson looked like a natural, throwing 14 touchdowns passes to lead the Rampage (4-10) to back-to-back wins over the Kansas City Brigade and Los Angeles Avengers in Weeks 4 and 5.

MacPherson named AFL Offensive Player of the Week
Grand Rapids Rampage Press Release
After helping lead Grand Rapids back into the American Conference playoff picture with an 84-65 win over the Colorado Crush last Saturday, Rampage quarterback James MacPherson (Tucson, Ariz.) was named the Arena Football League’s Offensive Player of the Week.

Grand Rapids' MacPherson, Tampa Bay's Rachal and Philadelphia's Smith earn week 15 honors
AFL Press Release
Grand Rapids Rampage QB JAMES MACPHERSON, Tampa Bay Storm DB TRACO RACHAL and Philadelphia Soul FB/LB CLIFTON SMITH have been named Offensive Player, ADT Defensive Player, and Ironman of the Week, respectively, for Week 15 of the 2008 season.

Rampage don't crumble against Crush
MLive.com
Quarterback James MacPherson tossed a franchise-record 10 touchdown passes and the Rampage erupted for 37 points in the second quarter to pulverize the Colorado Crush 84-65 in front of a crowd of 7,766.

Rampage coach: Record doesn't tell whole story
MLive.com
The first-year coach of the Grand Rapids Rampage acknowledges that is not reflected in the team's 3-10 record, but the rebuilding effort of a once-proud Arena Football League franchise remains on schedule.

Rampage's mistakes pile up in loss to Blaze
MLive.com
In their most important matchup of the season, the Grand Rapids Rampage crashed and burned in a 63-56 loss to the Utah Blaze in an American Conference showdown Sunday afternoon at Van Andel Arena.

Utah Blaze: Team faces Rampage with playoffs in mind
Deseret News
The Utah Blaze, after a miserable start to the season, have won three of their last four games to move into playoff contention.

Three keys to Rampage-Blaze matchup
MLive.com
The Utah Blaze enter Sunday's game 3-10 on the season, but they've won three of their last seven games.

Rampage need all their wins now
MLive.com
Because of a 52-48 loss to the Arizona Rattlers on Saturday night in Phoenix, Ariz., Grand Rapids now finds itself in a must-win situation the last quarter of the season if it wants to make the Arena Football League playoffs.

Rattlers win with late QB sneak, defensive stops vs. Rampage
East Valley Tribune
It took two years, but the Rattlers finally have a winning streak. To get it they relied on two things the Arena Football League isn’t known for, rushing and defense.

Rampage looking for consistency at quarterback
MLive.com
Keeping MacPherson on his feet has been problem all season. His injuries have led to inconsistent play and contributed to the Rampage (3-8) losing six of their past seven games.

Fitzgerald out, Arth in as Rampage's backup QB
MLive.com
Fitzgerald, picked up by the Rampage midway through this season after he was let go by the Kansas City Brigade, decided to retire from the Arena Football League to prepare for the MCAT entrance exam before enrolling in medical school in the fall. His father and brother are both doctors.

Colorado's 'D' stops Rampage
Rocky Mountain News
Grand Rapids came into the game as the second-highest scoring team in the Arena Football League, averaging 60.4 points per game, but the Crush stopped the Rampage four times on downs, totaled five sacks and recovered two fumbles for touchdowns.

Dutton, defense put on a display
Denver Post
The offense wasn't the only story. As Dutton said, the Crush's defensive line got after the Rampage, and specifically quarterback James MacPherson.

Rush come from behind to beat Grand Rapids
Chicago Tribune
The Rush may have had more artful performances this season, but no one's about to complain after Sunday's 55-52 Arena Football League victory over Grand Rapids left it with six wins at the season's halfway mark. That equals the franchise's second-best start.

Injuries taking their toll on slumping Rampage
MLive.com
The Grand Rapids Rampage's injured list is becoming awfully crowded just six games into the Arena Football League season.

Rampage offense stalls in loss to Predators
The Grand Rapids Press - MLive.com
Since shattering Arena Football League and team scoring records in Weeks 4 and 5, the high-powered Grand Rapids Rampage offense has all but disappeared in the first half of a pair of stunning defeats. It happened again Sunday.

Predators Iron Man Marlon Moye-Moore makes his mark in Orlando
Orlando Sentinel
Moye-Moore's latest heroics include salvaging a broken play and rushing for a game-winning two-point conversation against Chicago on March 6 to extend Orlando's four-game winning streak.

Three keys to Rampage-Predators matchup
The Grand Rapids Press - MLive.com
The Rampage quarterback had come off back-to-back starts against Kansas City and Los Angeles where he was nearly perfect.

Mechanics can throw wrench into an af2 QB
Green Bay Press Gazette
Nothing is more difficult in arena football than finding a capable and coachable quarterback.

All Bohl Day, All Bohl Night
Hofstra University Hofstra Chronicle
John Walker needed to delve into his memory bank to recall the last time he intercepted three passes in a single game.

Rampage report card: No bite in Big Apple
MLive.com

Rampage pounded in New York
MLive.com
The Rampage entered the contest as the Arena Football League's highest-scoring team at 67.3 points per game, but tied a team record with a scoreless first half while suffering a 63-34 defeat to the Dragons at Nassau Coliseum.

Three keys to Rampage-Dragons matchup
MLive.com
The league's hottest and highest-rated quarterback (140.3) no longer has anyone looking over his shoulder. The starting quarterback in the first two games of the season, Adrian McPherson, left the team Thursday and has been placed on the injured reserve list with a bruised left shoulder. He did not travel with the team to New York. His roster spot has been taken by six-year veteran quarterback John Fitzgerald, whom the Rampage claimed off waivers from the Kansas City Brigade.

Rampage profile: Defensive back Chris Martin
MLive.com
Martin set a pair of Rampage franchise records when he returned three kickoffs for touchdowns and totaled 249 yards on eight return chances in an 84-59 victory Sunday afternoon against the Los Angeles Avengers at Van Andel Arena.

Quarterback Adrian McPherson leaves Rampage
The Grand Rapids Press - MLive.com
The team's No. 2 quarterback, benched following an 0-2 start, was a no-show at practice and is expected to be waived, pending the results of a MRI exam on his bruised left shoulder.

Rampage report card: All A's against Avengers
The Grand Rapids Press - MLive.com
Here's my report card on the Grand Rapids Rampage following their 84-59 victory over the Los Angeles Avengers in a Week 5 matchup at Van Andel Arena.

Injuries force Ramapge to shuffle roster
The Grand Rapids Press - MLive.com
A couple of key injuries are forcing Grand Rapids Rampage coach Steve Thonn to juggle his roster in preparation for Saturday night's game at New York.

Defense, special teams key in Rampage's win
The Grand Rapids Press - MLive.com
It isn't just the Grand Rapids Rampage's high-scoring offense that's responsible for a two-game winning streak. Don't forget the defense or special teams. Both played important roles in the Rampage's 84-59 rout of the Los Angeles Avengers on Sunday afternoon at Van Andel Arena.

MacPherson's time arrives for Rampage
The Grand Rapids Press - MLive.com
James MacPherson spent all but a few inconsequential minutes of his first season in the Arena Football League as an enthusiastic spectator -- helmet off, clutching a clipboard -- while planted on the bench.

AFL QB has rooting interest in 'American Idol'
MLive.com
Colorado Crush quarterback John Dutton has a special rooting interest in the outcome of the seventh season of Fox's "American Idol" series.

Rampage profile: Quarterback James MacPherson
MLive.com
James MacPherson was honored as co-winner of the Arena Football League's Offensive Player of the Week after equaling a Rampage franchise record with nine touchdown passes in a 92-52 victory over the Kansas City Brigade on Monday night.

Rampage QB had a dream week
Chip Burch, ArenaFan.com
When Grand Rapids Rampage quarterback James MacPherson got his first-ever starting assignment in Week 4, he didn’t envision how things would go. MacPherson was almost flawless in torching the Kansas City Brigade 92-52 on Monday. He was named Arena Football League co-offensive player of the week and became the only player to be unanimously chosen for ArenaFan.com’s offensive player of the week since the award was first handed out in 2005.

Rampage get offensive in win: 92 points worth
MLive.com
In the aftermath of a disappointing 0-2 start, the Grand Rapids Rampage shattered the franchise record for points scored in a game in a staggering 92-52 victory Monday night against the Kansas City Brigade at the Sprint Center.

Breaking it down – 2008 Week Four
Andy Lopusnak, ArenaFan.com
Four weeks down, thirteen left until the playoffs. Here are some interesting notes, stats and breakdowns from this past weekend’s AFL games.

Rampage expected to switch QBs for next game
The Grand Rapids Press - MLive.com
Six teams already have made quarterback changes in the first three weeks of the 2008 Arena Football League season. Oops, it looks like it will be seven.

Michna leads Rush past Rampage, 64-35
WJZ
Russ Michna threw five touchdown passes two to Damian Harrell to help the Chicago Rush rout the Grand Rapids Rampage 64-35 on Friday night in the Arena Football League.

Rampage lose to Chicago Rush, fall to 0-2
The Grand Rapids Press - MLive.com
The visiting Chicago Rush raced out to a 22-0 lead just six-and-a-half minutes into game and cruised to 64-35 win over the Grand Rapids Rampage in front of 10,594 fans at Van Andel Arena on Friday night.

Kicker Brian Gowins suffers concussion
The Grand Rapids Press - MLive.com
The Rampage placekicker suffered a concussion while making a touchdown-saving tackle of San Jose SaberCats return man Trestin George at midfield in the fourth quarter.

Arena football: Blizzard notches successful season
Green Bay Press Gazette
When former Green Bay Packers linebacker Brian Noble led a group of investors in buying the af2's Green Bay Blizzard in 2005, that was his focus for running the organization.