Gladiators, Rattlers Squard Off In Arizona

KISS, Sharks Look to Build Momentum Heading Into Postseason

July 20, 2016
LAS VEGAS (July 20, 2016) -- The Road to ArenaBowl continues in Week 17 as the Cleveland Gladiators (7-8) square off against the Arizona Rattlers (12-3) at Talking Stick Resort Arena this Sunday, July 24 at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN2. Cleveland head coach Steve Thonn and MVP and Offensive Player of the Year candidate QB Arvell Nelson (61.2 comp. %, 68 passing TDs and 11 rushing TDs) look to bounce back after falling to Los Angeles last week and want to head into the postseason on a winning note. All-Arena candidate WR Collin Taylor (104 receptions for 1,349 yards and 30 TDs) and WR Quentin Sims (92 catches for 1,112 yards and 27 TDs) are the Gladiators’ dynamic duo. Arizona head coach Kevin Guy and MVP and Offensive Player of the Year candidate QB Nick Davila (67.6 comp. %, 104 TDs and 10 INTs) look to stay sharp before a Bye Week. All-Arena candidates WR Rod Windsor (138 receptions for 1,592 yards and 43 TDs) and WR Maurice Purify (79 receptions for 960 yards and 28 TDs) helped the Rattlers capture the National Conference regular-season crown and now look for home field advantage throughout the postseason.
Elsewhere, QB Shane Austin (2,132 yards and 41 TDs in nine games) and the Portland Steel (2-12) travel to Amalie Arena to take on All-Arena candidate WR T.T. Toliver and the Tampa Bay Storm on Saturday, July 23 at 5 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network. The Steel are coming off a big home victory over Jacksonville and will look to All-Arena candidate WR Tom Gilson (120 receptions, 1,161 yards and 14 TDs) to keep the momentum going. Toliver sparked the Storm (1-13) offense in last week’s loss to Philadelphia and continues to put up impressive numbers (105 catches for 1,456 yards and 21 TDs). Tampa Bay QB Adam Kennedy stepped in last week (17-of-26 passing for 241 yards and five TDs) and outscored the Soul 32-28 in the second half.


Also, All-Arena candidate WR Donovan Morgan (88 catches for 1,215 yards and 38 TDs) and the Los Angeles KISS look to stay hot when they travel to Veterans Memorial Arena to take on former AFL MVP QB Tommy Grady (67.6 comp. % and 82 TDs) and the Jacksonville Sharks (5-9) on Saturday, July 23 at 7 p.m. ET on WatchESPN. Jacksonville interim head coach Bob Landsee will look to rally the troops to get ready for the postseason with Defensive Player of the Year and All-Arena candidate DB Greg Reid (81.5 total tackles and 8 INTs) and Offensive Player of the Year and All-Arena candidate WR Joe Hills (146 receptions for 1,859 yards and 51 TDs) leading the way. Los Angeles QB Nathan Stanley earned Under Armour Offensive Player of the Game honors with his clutch performance (25-of-37 passing for 317 yards, eight TD passes and 1 rushing TD) against Cleveland. Now, the KISS set their sights on clinching the last first-round home game for the postseason.
The Orlando Predators (12-3) and Philadelphia Soul (12-3) have a Bye Week in Week 17, but will face for the American Conference regular-season title on Saturday, July 30 at 7:30 p.m. ET on WatchESPN.
For complete official statistics, game notes and media guides, go to: www.afldigital.com.

WEEK 17 MATCHUPS PORTLAND STEEL (2-12) AT Tampa Bay Storm (1-13)
Saturday, July 23 at 5 p.m. ET (CBS Sports Network)
Play-by-play: Brent Stover, Color: Randy Gatewood, Sideline: Cassie McKinney

	PORTLAND	TAMPA BAY
REG. SEASON SERIES LEADER	Portland leads 2-1
STREAKS	W1	L6
LAST WEEK	W 55-53 vs. Sharks	L 56-51 vs. Soul
LAST REG SEASON MEETING	6/3/16 Stell 68 vs. Storm 35
TOTAL OFFENSE (RANK)	256.1 (T-7)	256.1 (T-7)
TOTAL DEFENSE (RANK)	269.6 (4)	247.3 (1)
POINTS SCORED (RANK)	41.6 (7)	35.1 (8)
POINTS ALLOWED (RANK)	60.4 (8)	55.3 (6)
TURNOVER MARGIN (RANK)	-19 (8)	-17 (8)

WHAT TO LOOK FOR: STEEL: The Steel look to keep their momentum going after beating the Jacksonville Sharks 55-53 last week at Moda Center…In nine games this season QB Shane Austin has completed 215-of-355 passes for 2,132 yards and 41 TDs, while adding 30 rushing attempts for 133 yards and seven TDS…In Portland’s Week 10 matchup with Tampa Bay, Austin threw for 139 yards on 19-of-26 passes for five TDs and added on two rushing TDs… WR Tom Gilson has brought in 120 catches for 1,161 yards and 14 TDs… WR Jared Perry is another receiving target hauling in 63 receptions for 799 yards and 11 TDs on the season… WR Nick Truesdell has become a target for Austin since being reactivated in Week 13… In the last three games, Truesdell has made 10 catches for 84 yards and four TDs… The Steel are led on defense by DB Mike McMillan and DB Sergio Gilliam… McMillan leads the team with 50.5 total tackles, one INT, six pass break-ups, seven passes defended, and one forced fumble… Gilliam has tacked on 47.0 total tackles, a team-leading three INTs, 7 pass break-ups, 10 passes defended, and one forced fumble… STORM: QB Adam Kennedy took over center for the Storm after QB Jason Boltus went down with an injury in last week’s 56-51 loss to the Soul… In four appearances this season, Kennedy has thrown for 524 yards on 17-of-26 passing and nine TDs while rushing for an additional 47 yards on eight carries and three TDs… All-Arena Candidate WR T.T. Toliver continues to add to his impressive AFL career… The 13-year veteran is the AFL all-time career leader in receptions (1,194), receiving yards (15,647) and all-purpose yards (21,298)… Since being activated in Week 13, Ings has found the end zone three times in three different ways… The second-year veteran has three receptions for 10 yards and one TD, 15 kick-returns for 331 yards and 1 TD, and one rushing attempt for four yards and a TD… The Storm have the trio of DB Cortez Stubbs, DB James Harrell, and DB Cameron McGlenn leading their defense… Stubbs has tallied 67.5 total tackles, three INTs, 12 pass break-ups, 15 passes defended, one forced fumble, and three fumble recoveries… Harrell has added on 57.0 total tackles, three INTs, nine pass break-ups and 12 passes defended on the season… Through 12 games, McGlenn has tacked on 42.0 total tackles, one INT, six pass break-ups, seven passes defended, and one forced fumble.

LOS ANGELES KISS (7-7) AT Jacksonville Sharks (5-9)
Saturday, July 23 at 7 p.m. ET (WatchESPN)

	LOS ANGELES	JACKSONVILLE
REG. SEASON SERIES LEADER	Jacksonville leads 2-1
STREAKS	W2	L4
LAST WEEK	W 63-61 vs. Gladiators	L 55-53 at Steel
LAST REG SEASON MEETING	4/2/16 KISS 64 vs. Sharks 39
TOTAL OFFENSE (RANK)	259.6 (6)	312.1 (1)
TOTAL DEFENSE (RANK)	268.0 (3)	287.3 (6)
POINTS SCORED (RANK)	47.0 (6)	52.5 (5)
POINTS ALLOWED (RANK)	46.7 (1)	50.5 (5)
TURNOVER MARGIN (RANK)	+4 (5)	+8 (3)

WHAT TO LOOK FOR: KISS: FB Rory Nixon is No. 5 in the AFL with 10 rushing TDs. He also boasts the ninth highest rushing yards per game (5.3)… LA KISS Defense leads the National Conference in red zone defensive efficiency. Opponents have only scored on 75% of red zone possessions… The LA KISS also boast best scoring defense in the AFL, allowing just 46.7 points per game… WR Donovan Morgan currently has a TD reception in 23 straight games, including 17 straight multiple TD games. Last week he became No. 9 in the all-time receptions leaderboard, he is just 34 receptions away from the eighth position. So far this season, D-Mo has scored TDs on 43.2 percent of his receptions, which is eighth all-time… DL Derrick Summers in Week 4, became the 15th player in AFL history to record 40 sacks. In Week 11, Summers passed Arizona Rattlers defensive lineman Cliff Dukes for third place on the active career sacks list. He needs just one more sack to move into 11th place in the all-time leaderboard … QB Nate Stanley surpassed 5,000 career passing yards last week. Stanley is 373 passing yards away from setting his single-season career mark… SHARKS: WR Joe Hills has caught at least one TD pass in 66 consecutive regular-season games played… A five-time First Team All-Arena selection, FB Derrick Ross is the AFL’s all-time leader in both rushing yards and rushing TDs… DB Greg Reid earned First Team All-Arena and AFL Rookie of the Year honors a season ago despite not joining the team until the seventh game of the regular season. Reid has picked off 17 passes in 25 career regular-season appearances... The Sharks return the entirety of a starting pass-protection unit that yielded just eight sacks in 2015. The team has allowed 10 sacks through 14 games this season… WR Reggie Gray has accounted for seven total TDs in his first six games as a Shark… WR Joe Hills has scored three or more TDs in each of the last five games and six of the last nine… QB Tommy Grady has thrown 55 TDs against just three INTs in the last nine games… WR Tiger Jones has scored three TDs in the Sharks’ last two games… FB Derrick Ross and MLB Dexter Jackson each scored two rushing TDs in the Sharks’ last game…. Although the Sharks parted ways with their head coach Less Moss on Monday, they will look to rally behind interim head coach Bob Landsee this week… Landsee was an AFL head coach in Milwaukee (2010-12) and an assistant coach in Milwaukee (1999-2001), Toronto (2002) and Indiana (2003), as well as being an af2 head coach in Green Bay (2005-06 & 2008-09).
Cleveland Gladiators (7-8) AT Arizona Rattlers (11-3)
Saturday, July 24 at 9 p.m. ET (ESPN2)

	CLEVELAND	ARIZONA
REG. SEASON SERIES LEADER	Arizona leads 14-3 (including NJ and Las Vegas years)
STREAKS	L2	W6
LAST WEEK	L 63-61 at KISS	W 62-45 vs. Predators
LAST REG SEASON MEETING	6/3/16 Rattlers 77 at Gladiators 62
TOTAL OFFENSE (RANK)	283.2 (4)	291.9 (3)
TOTAL DEFENSE (RANK)	310.0 (8)	307.5 (7)
POINTS SCORED (RANK)	53.7 (4)	66.7 (1)
POINTS ALLOWED (RANK)	57.7 (7)	49.7 (4)
TURNOVER MARGIN (RANK)	+14 (1)	-6 (6)

WHAT TO LOOK FOR: GLADIATORS: In their last outing, the Gladiators fell to the KISS on the road Saturday, July 16th by a final score of 63-61. Cleveland QB Arvell Nelson totaled eight TDs, throwing six and rushing for two, while throwing for 333 yards in the loss… WR Quentin Sims blew up for 12 receptions, 198 yards, and a career-high five TDs... WR Collin Taylor extended his consecutive regular-season games with a TD streak to 30, hauling in four catches for 81 yards and a TD in the defeat… In the previous match-up with the Rattlers on June 3rd, Taylor caught six passes for 96 yards and two TDs in a losing effort... DB Marvin Ross also ranks tied for No. 4 in the AFL with six INTs so far this season… WR/KR Larry Beavers has made 45 catches for 630 yards and four TDs. Beavers has pitched in with a passing TD, three rushing TDs, and a kick return for a TD as well this season… WR Devin Wilson was held to one catch for eight yards in the loss to the KISS. Wilson has now hauled in 17 passes for 229 yards and six TDs since debuting last month… DL Randy Colling continues to lead the team in sacks with 4.5, with rookie Collin Keoshian also picking up 2.5 so far in 2016… RATTLERS: QB Nick Davila has been impressive once again this season, completing 333 of his 482 passes for 3,975 yards, a league-leading 104 touchdowns, and 10 INTs... WR Rod Windsor leads the way on the receiving corps and is currently ranked No. 2 in the AFL in receptions (43), yards (1,592), and TDs (43)… DB Arkeith Brown leads the defense in tackles (49) and INTs (5)… Since 2012, the Rattlers are 46-4 at home (including playoffs). In that time, the Snake Pit has been the most difficult place to play for other teams, only able to win there just over 8 percent of the time. So far this season, Arizona is 7-0 this season at home… The Rattlers lead the AFL with a turnover mar­gin of +14 and Cleveland is sixth in the league with a -6 turnover margin… Arizona and Cleveland are No. 1 and 2 in the AFL in opponent fourth down conversion rates only allowing their opponents to convert on 35.8 percent and 37.5 percent of their opportunities respectively… Arizona has scored the most TDs in the red zone with 73… All-Arena candidate FB Mykel Benson this season, is tied for No. 1 in rushing TDs (20) and is No. 4 in rushing yards (195).