All in all, it was a reasonable start for a fledgling league. Gimme’ more!
There’s football to be played, America! Football history was made last weekend with the debut of The Alliance of American Football (AAF).
The league has top-notch coaches, like Mike Martz, who took the Rams to the 2000 Super Bowl, and Mike Singletary, the legendary linebacker who played for the Bears and coached the 49ers.
Two other legends–former NFL GM Bill Polian and former TV exec, Charlie Ebersol–founded the AAF.
Here’s how the first weekend shook out.
San Diego Fleet Vs. San Antonio Commanders
Coach Mike Martz had a rough time getting his team in position to put points on the board. QB Mike Bercovici had a tough outing, passing for just 176 yards and completing 15 of 25 passes. On the other hand, the home-standing Commanders limited the Fleet to six first-half points, pitched a second-half shut out, and won the game, 15-6.
On the plus side, the Commanders’ Logan Woodside threw for 255 yards on 18-36 passing. [beautifulquote The Commanders have to work on the running game. The Commanders rushed for only 125 yards on 34 attempts.
Orlando Apollos Vs. Atlanta Legends
At the Apollos’ helm is another legendary coach, none other than Steve Spurrier, “The Old Ball Coach.” Spurrier’s guys pounced on the Atlanta, 40-6. QB Garrett Gilbert, who played and started for the Carolina Panthers in Week 17, threw for 227 yards, completed 15 of 25 passes, and threw two TD passes. Akeem Hunt was standout, too, rushing for a 7.3 average on ten attempts.
It was a different story for the Legends. QB Matt Sims threw for only 126 yards, and back-up Aaron Murray had 38 yards. Another big name–Mike Vick–coordinates the Legend’s offense, but he couldn’t get his guys going.
Memphis Express Vs. Birmingham Iron
The Iron’s home opener brought smiles to Birmingham as the Iron stymied the Express, 26-0. Former NFL 1st Round pick, Trent Richardson, had some flashbacks to his NFL past-life–fumbling the ball in the second quarter. But he redeemed himself by scoring two touchdowns to put the game out of reach.
Still, though, Richardson, a former Tide star, has work to do. He ran the ball 23 times but gained only 58 yards. The passing attack was better as Luis Perez threw for 252 yards on 19 out of 33 passes.
The opposition Express couldn’t get anything going, which Mike Singletary will have to address. QB Christian Hackenberg threw for (get this) 87 yards! And that was the result of passing the ball 23 times! The rushing attack was just as futile. Leading rusher, Zac Stacy, ended up with 58 yards.
The Express is not.
Salt Lake Stallions Vs. Arizona Hotshots
The prime-time game was a good one with the Hotshots came out on top, 38-22. QB John Wolford, a 4-year starter at Wake Forest, threw for 275 yards, the highest of the weekend. He also threw a league-high four touchdown passes.
Even though the Stallions scored 22 points, they didn’t look sharp on offense. QB Josh Woodrum threw for only 107 yards, and leading rusher, Brandon Oliver, rushed eight times for just 40 yards.
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All in all, it was a reasonable start for a fledgling league. Gimme’ more!
