Talons fall to Tampa Bay in AFL playoffs
Tulsa World

Gladiators set numerous franchise records in first season in Cleveland
The Plain Dealer - cleveland.com
The Gladiators' playoff run ended with a thud, with the Philadelphia Soul administering a 70-35 beat-down in the AFL National Conference title game Saturday in Philadelphia.

Former rivals help Cleveland advance in Arena Football League playoffs
Pittsburgh Post Gazette
It's a small world -- one that seems even smaller when a football field is shrunk to 50 yards, as it is in the Arena Football League.

Cleveland Gladiators nip Georgia Force
GwinnettHerald.com
For perhaps the first time in the history of the Gwinnett Center, a team with "Gladiators" written on their uniforms was booed when they won.

Gladiators, Force to get acquainted
Akron Beacon Journal
The fourth-seeded Gladiators can expect to play a rock-'em-sock-'em team. The Force's coach, Doug Plank, a former Ohio State Buckeye, played for Buddy Ryan in the Chicago Bears' legendary 46 Defense and acquired a rep as a tough, ferocious tackler. The Gladiators will have to match that in all phases of the game.

AFL: Gladiators looking for upset in Georgia
Chronicle-Telegram
The devil may have gone down to Georgia in search of a soul, but the Cleveland Gladiators are looking for an upset. The Gladiators (10-7) visit the Georgia Force (10-6) tonight in the quarterfinals of the Arena Football League playoffs.

Steelers fan leads defense in AFL
Akron Beacon Journal
He's been in Ohio for almost a decade now, but Gladiators defensive back Brandon Hefflin is a Pittsburgh boy and, yes, he's a Pittsburgh Steelers fan.

Gladiators to face Force Monday night
Akron Beacon Journal
The Gladiators don't know the Georgia Force very well. Mired in mediocrity for the first half of the Arena Football League season, the Force turned it around to win the National Conference's Southern Division.

Former Falcons, Rockets seek arena football title
Toledo Blade
"[Arena football] is a totally different game," said Hefflin, who plays for the AFL's Cleveland Gladiators. "It's a smaller field, and that makes the game a lot faster. You have less time to react, and the ball gets to you quicker.

Cleveland Gladiators defensive back Brandon Hefflin helps save AFL playoff victory
The Plain Dealer - cleveland.com
Hefflin intercepted two passes, recovered a fumble and otherwise did his job in coverage as the Gladiators defeated the Predators, 69-66, in front of 13,896 at The Q.

Gladiators' wild ride continues
The Plain Dealer - cleveland.com
The upstart Gladiators, one season removed from misery in Las Vegas, defeated the Orlando Predators, 69-66, Monday night in a National Conference wild-card game.

UPDATE: Cleveland ousts Orlando from AFL playoffs
The Morning Journal
including four to Robert Redd, and the Cleveland Gladiators defeated the Orlando Predators 69-66 in the Arena Football League playoffs Monday night. ...

Preds' season ends
Orlando Sentinel
The Predators fell to the Cleveland Gladiators 69-66 in the wild-card round of the Arena Football League playoffs at Quicken Loans Arena.

Brandon Hefflin earns ADT Defensive Player of the Week honors
Cleveland Gladiators Press Release
The Arena Football League announced today, that Cleveland Gladiators defensive back BRANDON HEFFLIN has earned ADT Defensive Player of the Week honors for his performance in the Wild Card round of the 2008 AFL Playoffs. Hefflin becomes the third Gladiators player this season to earn AFL Weekly honors.

New York's Garcia, Cleveland's Hefflin and New York's Price earn wild card week honors
AFL Press Release
New York Dragons QB AARON GARCIA, Cleveland Gladiators DB BRANDON HEFFLIN and New York Dragons FB/LB IDRIS PRICE have been named Offensive Player, ADT Defensive Player, and Ironman of the Week, respectively, for the Wild Card Round of the 2008 playoffs.

TT Tolliver's fumble stops late drive in Orlando Predators' loss
Orlando Sentinel
Wide receiver T.T. Toliver fumbled the potential go-ahead touchdown with just more than two minutes left, as the Orlando Predators fell to the Cleveland Gladiators 69-66 on Monday night in the wild-card round of the Arena Football League playoffs at Quicken Loans Arena.

Rush fall to Cleveland
Chicago Tribune
Former Rush quarterback Raymond Philyaw passed for five touchdowns Saturday night as the Cleveland Gladiators beat the Rush 65-44 at Quicken Loans Arena.

No joke: Defense has Gladiators 2-0
News-Herald.com
Two games into the 2008 Arena Football League season, the undefeated Gladiators have already won as many games as they did in all of 2007, when they were playing home games in Las Vegas.