2017 Week 3 Preview: Tampa Bay Storm vs Cleveland Gladiators

Saturday night the Cleveland Gladiators (0-2) will be looking for their first win of the season, they are the only team in the league without a victory. Another slow start last week to the Baltimore Brigade doomed Cleveland last week and after starting the season 0-2 on their home field, they travel to Tampa.

Cleveland has scored zero points in the opening ten minutes of both games this season. In Week 3, they will see the same team they hosted in week one the Tampa Bay Storm.

Last time they faced each other, neither team scored in the first eleven minutes of the game. In fact, the first touchdown was an interception by Caesar Rayford with 3:25 remaining in the opening quarter.

Cleveland did not score in the first quarter in their week one match up and have scored 14 in the first half of both games during their 0-2 start.

The most interesting story line in this game is how much of Arvell Nelson we will see and where. After not being with the team vs the Storm in Cleveland, Nelson was back on the team last week and we saw him return on defense at jack linebacker. He also came in at quarterback late in the fourth quarter after rookie quarterback Tanner Marsh fumbled the ball (Marsh is not on the active roster this week). Marsh, 26, got the start over newly acquired quarterback Shane Boyd who started in the opening week.

In Week 1, Storm wide receiver Joe Hills was unstoppable, he out-maned the Gladiators defensive backs anytime the ball went his way, he totaled up seven catchers for 53 yards and three touchdowns. The scary thing is Hills is due for a monster game as it took him until the final seconds of the last week’s game vs the Philadelphia Soul to score a touchdown. Hills kept the longest active receiving streak for games with at least one touchdown in all of the Arena Football League going at 70 games.

A game that many fans would argue should had gone down as a win for the Storm after the officials appeared to miss a pass that looked to go backwards, the play was reviewed and they stayed with the original call. Had it gone the other way, it would had been the Storm’s ball and likely lead to at least a six point swing.

The game can be seen on tonight on CBS Sports Network and it will be the Glads first appearance on the network this season. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. ET from Amalie Arena.

Storm to Hold Open Tryouts Nov. 6

The Tampa Bay Storm will hold an open tryout for the 2017 season on at the Amalie Arena in Tampa on Nov. 6. This will be the only day that the tryout will take place.

The purpose of the tryout is for people who are interested in playing for the Storm during the 30th season of the Arena Football League. Players that have attended tryouts and have made the team include wide receiver/kick returner Kendrick Ings and hall of famers Stevie Thomas and George LaFrance.

The Storm are the only team to have open tryouts in on their home turf. This will give those trying out a feel of what it feels like to play for the team during a home game.

The tryout will be hosted by the Storm coaching staff. Drills include 40-yard dash, 20-yard short shuttle, 20 yard L-drill, and having their height and weight recorded.

Anyone interested can pre-register on tampabaystorm.com. Pre-registration costs $55 and sends Friday, Nov. 4. There will be no walk-up registration. All participants must be 19 years old, must have an ID and must have a high school degree.

The Storm finished 2-14 last season, their 25th season in the Arena Football League. The league will be celebrating its 30th season in 2017.

Storm Stop Steel’s Comeback, Hang On to Win 41-40

The Tampa Bay Storm hosted the Portland Steel at the Amalie Arena in Tampa on Saturday evening. The Storm were looking for their second win of the season while the Steel were looking for their second consecutive win for just the second time in franchise history.

The Storm got on the board first when Adam Kennedy, who started for the injured Jason Boltus, found V’Keon Lacey from nine yards out. The Storm needed two plays to score a touchdown when fullback Bryson Kelly ran it in from four yards out. The extra point was blocked and the Storm held a 7-6 lead. That would be the score after the first quarter.

After a penalty after a Kennedy interception gave the Storm the ball back, the Storm scored to start the second quarter when he found Prechae Rodriguez in the end zone. After the Steel fumbled the ensuing kickoff away, the Storm expanded their lead when Kennedy handed the ball off to Ings and he ran it into the end zone.

The Steel failed on a 4th and 13 inside their own five and the Storm took over with great field position. They would capitalize when Kennedy found a wide open Toliver in the end zone on the second play of the drive.

After a Shane Austin pass was intercepted in the end zone by Cameron McGlenn, the Storm failed to convert a fourth down. The Steel would score to close out the half, but the Storm still led 28-13.

The Steel would score with a Rashaad Carter touchdown to bring the score to 28-19. Each team would swap touchdowns, and the Storm led 35-26 at the end of the third quarter.

The Steel would make it a two point game when Austin found Nick Truesdell for a touchdown. Down by just one, the Steel forced an interception to get the ball with 3:52 left. On a 4th and 5, the Steel converted, but the catch was fumbled and Cortez Stubbs picked it up and returned it for a touchdown. After review, the call was overturned and the Steel kept the ball.

They would chew the clock and set themselves up for the game-winning field goal. The kick was blocked and the Storm won by a final score of 41-40. The Storm will travel to take on  the Jacksonville Sharks to close out their regular season next week. The Steel will close out their regular season in Portland against the Los Angeles KISS.

2016 Week 17 Preview: Storm vs Steel

The Portland Steel travel to Florida this week to take on the Tampa Bay Storm for the second meeting between the two moribund franchises. Kickoff is set for Saturday evening at 5 p.m. ET at Tampa Bay’s Amalie Arena.

Portland (2-12) was the last team in the AFL to earn a victory this season, when they defeated the Storm in their first meeting of the season on June 3. The Steel won that game handily, 68-35. It was one of their three 50-point games on the season, and the only time they’ve breached the 60-point mark. Portland’s second mark in the win column came against the Jacksonville Sharks last week, a 55-53 nail-biter that ended when Jacksonville failed to convert a two-point conversion at the end of the game.

Fun Fact: A win this week would be the Steel’s first winning-streak of the season, and would be the second time the franchise had ever won back-to-back games. The first time occurred in 2014, as the Portland Thunder. Their opponents for those two games, in order? Jacksonville and Tampa Bay.

Tampa Bay (1-13) will be looking to earn its second win of the season and put an end to a six-game losing streak. Their sole triumphant moment this season came on May 29 in a stunning upset over the Arizona Rattlers (12-3), arguable the best team in the league. Tampa Bay won the fourth quarter of that game 28-8, including two touchdowns in the final minute, including a touchdown as time expired, to pull off the upset. While a victory over Portland would not be considered a shock, it would boost morale to avenge the meeting earlier in the season and provide a little momentum as playoffs loom.

The game will be broadcast live on the CBS Sports Network.