Spokane Shock Take Utah Blaze Outside to Get Back in Playoff Hunt

Spokane set another milestone today with the first Arena Football League game that actually needed a weather report.  It was a perfect summer day to take the indoor game outside, as temperatures for the Joe Albi Stadium Summer Classic were in the upper 70s at kickoff. 

The Spokane Shock (8-8) also set a new record home crowd with 16,233 fans.

The Shock have already found themselves in an unfamiliar setting this season, so why not take their game outside?  The franchise has made the postseason every year, and has made the championship game more often than not.  Yet a sluggish start and up and down performances this season had them down in the standings, but not yet out.

The importance of winning this game lit a fire under the Shock that all but extinguished the Utah Blaze's (7-9) postseason aspirations.  Spokane needs to win one of their remaining two games to lock up the final playoff spot.

The first half started out normal other than the setting, with the two teams exchanging TDs in the first quarter.  After the Shock took a 21-14 lead to start the second quarter, Alex Teems tipped a Blaze lateral pass that bounced off the boards and into his hands.  The fumble recovery set up a 24-yard TD pass from Erik Meyer to Chad Gessner the next play.

The Blaze came back with another slow, methodical drive capped off with a one-yard TD run. 

The Shock weren’t quite so boring.  They took over at their own five-yard line after the kickoff slipped out of the end zone.  One long Meyer pass to Brandon Tompkins and 45 yards later the lead was back to 14 points.

The end of the half featured a few short drives and the Shock scoring on the final drive to take a 49-35 lead into the locker room.

The second half gave the Shock more opportunities to showcase their defense.  Alex Teems collected his second turnover, this time intercepting a Todd Hammel pass, returning it 31 yards to the Blaze three-yard line.  Meyer connected to Adron Tennell, giving them a 55-35 lead.

The theme of the night continued.  The Blaze had a slow, steady drive and then the Shock responded with a big play.  

Terrance Sanders used a few nice cuts and broke a tackle at the Blaze 10-yard line to get inside the five.  A three-yard run, two defensive penalties and a Meyer scramble from a few inches out pushed the Shock lead back to 20 points.

The Blaze started off on what looked like yet another methodical drive featuring some short passes, a few QB sacks, and a change to the fourth quarter.  After driving from one 10 to the other, Ruschard Dodd-Masters slipped in front of a Hammel pass for the Shock’s third turnover of the night.

Kyle Rowley took over at QB as Meyer again struggled with leg cramps.  His second play was a 25-yard TD pass to Tennell for a commanding 69-42 lead. 

Then there was finally a change of pace in the game.  This time It was the Blaze that hit a quick deep TD pass, although Michael Preston did have the luxury of pushing off on the Shock defender not once, but twice on the play.

Then Rowley took a play from the Blaze playbook, leading the Shock on a penalty-filled, clock-eating, yawn-inducing drive.  There were 14 snaps but just six recordable plays thanks to an abundance of penalties.  

The end result was just as good as all the quick possessions, if not better.  Rowley took 6:28 off the clock before throwing his second TD pass of the night.  He connected with Tennell for his fifth TD reception and Spokane had a comfortable 76-49 lead with under three minutes remaining.

Spokane sacked Hammel on the next possession, recovering a resulting fumble and taking over inside the Blaze 10.  They ran out the clock, setting a season-high point total in the process.

The Shock scored on every possession except the last when they ran out the clock.  They also had four turnovers and played a near-perfect game.  However, after the game coach Rob Keefe commented that there are still things to work on and they have a big game next weekend.  

The Shock will host the San Jose SaberCats who were less than hospitable in week one, pinning a 76-48 loss on Spokane.  The Shock will look for a bit different outcome as San Jose visits next Saturday.  A win would propel them into the playoffs.

The following game awards were announced:

Russell Athletic Offensive Player of the Game: Shock QB Erik Meyer

Riddell Defensive Player of the Game: Shock DL Alex Teem

JLS Ironman of the Game: Shock DB/KR Terrance Sander

Cutters Catch of the Game: Shock WR Brandon Thompkins 45 yard TD reception

Nifty Player maker of the Game: Shock WR Adron Tennell

National Guard MVP of the Game: Shock QB Erik Meyer