Sunday, July 8, 2007

Wrapping It Up and Mailing It In...

Let's face it: Game Over, even with 8 minutes left to play. Either Georgia or Columbus will get jazzed in New Orleans.

For more about Columbus, check out last night's Columbus-Dallas live blog.

Family Guy Prick Up Your Ears

Season 6, Episode 6

Episode Description

Originally Aired: November 19, 2006

Lois volunteers to teach a sex-ed class at the high school when she learns that Chris has some incorrect information on the subject.

Oh, Georgia just went up 58-33 on a Chris Jackson touchdown, and Jarrick Hillery recovered the ensuing kickoff inside the 5. Safe to say the Columbus-Georgia matchup is on for next week.

Hillery just ran the ball twice and scored again. Georgia 65, Philadelphia 33.

Carlos Martinez Missed His Fourth Extra Point...

So if the Georgia Force holds on, who becomes the fifth kicker?

I guess Martinez is a tad better than Xavier Beitia, Keith Gispert, and Dan Burnett. But Doug Plank may put the Help Wanted sign out.

Zzzzzzzzzz...

Fourth quarter begins, Georgia is up 45-26 to start the 4th quarter. I really want to watch Family Guy, but I'll miss a Tony Graziani-Larry Brackens touchdown. Now it's Georgia 45, Philadelphia 33.

How's this for a compromise - a Family Guy clip:

Idris Price With the Touchdown

He's not Wes Ours, but Price's speed is as tough for the Force to stop as Ours' girth. Graziani's screen pass to Price makes it a 39-26 Force lead.

For more about Philadelphia All-Ironman FB-LB Price, click here.

Graziani Back Under Center, Bergeron Missing

But will Philadelphia offensive coordinator Connell Maynor change things up? Looks so far like the Soul won't be shooting for seven on each pass.

And as soon as they get inside the five, Graziani is picked off by Georgia's Reggie Doster.

Jarrick Hillary is in for Force OS Troy Bergeron, who may be done for the day.

Bergeron can stay in the trainer's room. Greisen to Chris Jackson makes it a 39-19 game.

And Now Troy Bergeron...

Down on the ground getting his right knee checked out. I can't tell if that happened making a cut on the kickoff return, or on the hit by Jerrian James. I guess we'll know more after halftime.

Georgia 33, Philadelphia 19

Another CLANG

This one from Todd France after Tony Graziani his Jerrian James for a 14-yard touchdown. Looks like They'll go into the locker room with Georgia up 33-19.

Tony Graziani has already gone to the locker room to get that left (throwing) shoulder checked out.

Chris Greisen With The Bootleg

And Georgia is up 33-13. That CLANG you just heard was Carlos Martinez's extra point attempt hitting the upright.

Greisen is another former NFL guy trying to hold on in pro football. Doug Plank and GM Jim Kubiak rolled the dice and traded away Matt Nagy and gave Greisen a shot, and it appears the gamble paid off.

So if Georgia holds on for the win, Nagy and his Columbus Destroyers have a shot of proving Plank and Kubiak wrong next week. Shouls make for some interesting story lines next week.

Ooh... Lights Out for Philly?

Tony Graziani is back on his feet, but he was just laying on the Phillips Arena turf with a re-injured shoulder.

How huge is this to the Soul? They were 9-3 with Graziani at QB, 0-5 without.

Never mind, maybe. Leon Murray took one snap, and Graziani is back in the game. Wait, it's Murray again because they hadn't run a play. And Wes Ours is hurt. Oh, my, that looks like a knee...

Troy Bergeron's latest TD grab, a one-handed tip drill, gave Georgia a 27-13 lead, BTW...

Philly Catches A Break

Eddie Moten just recovered a Chris Jackson fumble deep in Georgia territory. The Soul is down 20-10 and needed something to get it going.

But it looks like the Georgia defense may hold the Soul.

Yup, they did. The Soul settled for a 25-yard Todd France field goal.

Graziani to Ours

In a game with alot of little people, why not get the ball in the hands of Wes Ours?

When you can dump the ball off to a 6-foot 300-lb. fullback, that's a disadvantage. Hamin Milligan just had to pin Ours to the wall to stop him.

Expect that play a few more times tonight. The first set up a Tony Graziani touchdown pass to Jerrian James, but Georgia answered with a Chris Greisen TD pass to Troy Bergeron.

Georgia leads 20-7.

Oh, This Doesn't Look Good...

I don't think we're looking at a second-straight upset in the playoffs. Philadelphia can't do anything yet, and Georgia is up 14-0 on a Derek Lee touchdown.

And now Tony Garziani horribly overthrew Larry Brackens.

Oh well, we're only 4:30 into the game...

Talk About "Don't Blink"

Peter Bergeron returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown. So much for ESPN pre-empting a playoff game for self promotion, and so much for popping a pizza in the microwave!

Bergeron is an interesting story. He may be 16 years old. Actually he came to af2 in 2004 as a 19-year-old who had signed with Auburn, then left and went to Middle Tennessee State.

He made it to Georgia in 2005, then split for a shot at the NFL. It didn't work out for him, but he may have found his niche in Arena Football.

Coach of the Year vs. Future Coach of the Year

Doug Plank led the Georgia Force to a 14-2 record and was recently named the AFL's coach of the year. I think some day Philadelphia Soul FB-LB Idris Price will be in that position.

Price has been an assistant coach the past two seasons at Connecticut high schools. It was his alma mater, Brien McMahon, in 2005, and Darien High School since.

Here's what his former high school coach and current Darien coach Rob Trifone has to say about Price:

"He hasn't changed much," Trifone said. "He was a great young man as a player, and as a coach, he's still a great man with the same enthusiasm and love for the game, and that's what makes him a good coach."

The Bronx, And Arena Fans, Is Burning...

Come on!

Yeah, I want to watch The Bronx Is Burning tomorrow night. That Summer of 1977 was something to remember. I was only eight, and had no clue what The Son of Sam was all about. But I knew all about Reggie, Munson, Bucky, Guidry, Nettles... and their batting averages.

But if you're in Atlanta or Philadelphia, or a die-hard Arena Football League fan, you could care less. But ESPN it appears will pre-empt the playoff game to show On The Set: The Bronx Is Burning!

Darn you, ESPN. It's all about you, isn't it? I really didn't believe it until now.

So far I like what I see, but I WANT SOME FOOTBALL!!!

Live Blog: Philadelphia at Georgia

Okay, you ready for Sunday dinner? If you're in Philly or Atlanta, I'm sure you'll be watching it in front of the television. You can't wait for this Futures Game to end, and could care less about the Making of The Bronx is Burning. You want your Arena Football!

Let's start with some previews.

Here's what the papers in the suburbs are saying about the Philadelphia Soul-Georgia Force divisional clash:

Cherry Hill Courier Post (is it true the city of Cherry Hill, NJ, was named after the Mall? Something I thought I read recently)
Access North Georgia (an article that I think is from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution It's not? OK).
phillyBURBS (really, the Philly Burbs!)
ArenaFan (and this writer, Matt Eichenblatt, uses his high school football photo for his headshot! I think that lends a lot of credibility to his article.)
And Ray Bentley is a great guy, so let's throw in his ArenaFootball.com preview.