The Soul Dominates Desperados

Philadelphia absolutely pounds Dallas in the the battle of two AFL undefeated teams 57-28 in a game that showed the Soul can play some defense to compliment the explosive offense.

This game wasn't even close at any point. The Soul scored the first 21 points of the game and held Dallas scoreless in the first quarter.

One of the best quarterbacks in the history of league, Clint Dolezel had one of his worst games in his career. The Soul got to him on the very first play from scrimmage. Soul defender Mike Brown intercepted Dolezel to set up Philadelphia's first touchdown.

It wouldn't get any better for Dolezel the rest of the game.

The next series, the Desperado offense stalled and resulted in a turnover on downs. Philadelphia would score on the following possession.

The Dallas QB met his nemesis on the next series. Soul DB Eddie Moten took over the game intercepting Dolezel for the first of his three times on Dallas's third series.

The Soul rolled through the rest of the game behind QB Matt D'Orazio and the wide receiving tandem of Chris Jackson and Larry Brackins.

D'Orazio finished the game 20-29 with six touchdowns while the two wide receivers combined for 14 receptions and 160 yards.

D'Orazio's play is setting up a QB debate between he and injured starter Tony Graziani. I haven't watched enough of each to really have an opinion on who should start.

The announcers did make a good point last night, D'Orzaio has this offense running the best it has all year, so it does seem logical to keep with the hot hand. If D'Orazio starts to struggle, get Graziani and his veteran leadership back in there.

The most entertaining part of last night's game was the jawing that took place between Eddie Moten and Clint Dolezel. The two have a history going back to 2007 and continued their rivalry last night. Moten continued to get into Dolezel's face at every chance he took. Moten got in Dolezel's head to the point that Dolezel was called for an un-sportsmen like conduct penalty for spiking the ball after scoring.

Moten did show restraint when most thought that was impossible. After Moten's last interception, he went to rub in Dolezel's face but realized he was down injured. Moten stopped 15 yards away and turned to celebrate with his teammates after realizing Dolezel was injured after the play.

Yes, I'm Covering the Philadelphia Soul

The Arena League Football team Philadelphia Soul is off to a GREAT start in the 2008 season. Bon Jovi's team is undefeated and has its biggest game of the season coming Monday night.

Who would be Philadelphia's biggest rival this year? Of course it has to be the Dallas Desperados.

The Desperados are also undefeated this year. The two will square off in Philadelphia on national television. Of course the Flyers also play Monday night in Philly. So if you aren't headed off to the Flyers game, head over to the stadium complex, enjoy some Flyers tailgating and catch the AFL game.

Or just watch both on TV.

If you aren't familiar with the AFL. The field is half the length of an NFL field, the goal posts are much narrower, a rushing offense isn't really necessary, and you can slam guys into the padded walls.

Wide Receivers can move vertically in motion before the play giving them a running start before the play as long as they don't cross the line of scrimmage before the ball is snapped.

Games are obviously much higher scoring. It has only taken Philadelphia wide receiver Chris Jackson to score a half dozen more touchdowns than Randy Moss did in an entire 16 game season.

Jackson's 29 touchdowns make him the most explosive wide receiver in the AFL right now. He's second in league in receiving yards with 915, but it's his ability to score is what makes him so special. He catches the ball anywhere in the end zone without problem.

He has SEVEN more touchdowns than anyone else in the league through eight games. That's almost a touchdown a game more than anyone else!

The Soul's second receiver is more of their threat. Larry Brackins averages over 14 yards per catch which is a pretty high number for the AFL. He's got 16 touchdowns in eight games this year. He's a big target down field at 6'4'' 225.

To catch that many touchdowns, the Soul receivers need a solid quarterback.

Well they have two.

Tony Graziani opened the season as the QB, but missed four games with a sprained knee. He injured the knee in week three, but returned against Columbus. He didn't last long; he re-injured the knee in the second quarter. He's listed as day-to-day for the Dallas game.

His replacement has exceeded Graziani's stud numbers. Graziani connected for 24 touchdowns and two interceptions, but Matt D'Orazio has gone above and beyond that. He's got 31 TDs and just two picks. His QB rating and completion percentage are both higher than Graziani's.

CuseAdelphia Prediction: Soul 62 Desperados 56.