Two very familiar rivals meet Saturday in the desert in the first round of the Arena Football League playoffs. The Spokane Shock invade the Snake Pit to attempt to dethrone the three-time defending ArenaBowl champs, the Arizona Rattlers.
You can't spot a great football team a 21-point lead seven minutes into any game. The Arizona Rattlers simply did not show up to play in ArenaBowl 29 on Friday afternoon at Gila River Arena about a half hour west of their usual home field the Snake Pit in downtown Phoenix.
By now, we all know that the mantra of the Cleveland Gladiators is the concept of going 1-0. It isn't just winning every individual game. It's about winning every individual play. It's about doing your job. It's about keeping your assignment. It's about making sure that you're not the guy who lets your brothers and teammates down on a play. Perhaps the least talked about members of the Gladiators are Kitt O'Brien, Shannon Breen, and CJ Cobb, the three big guys protecting QB Shane Austin.
Reggie Smith 1, Arizona Rattlers 0. In an all-time classic battle between the Arena Football League's two most bitter rivals Saturday night, officials tainted the game's ending by gifting the San Jose SaberCats a 70-67
When the Arizona Rattlers take the field this Friday night at Moda Center against the Portland Steel, the five-time AFL champs will have more questions coming out of training camp than they have faced over their past half-decade of dominance.