Baltimore Brigade Come Back to Beat Cleveland Gladiators, 63-60

‪The Baltimore Brigade hosted the Cleveland Gladiators at the Royal Farms Arena in Baltimore on Saturday night. Both teams were riding long losing streaks and were looking for their second win of the season.‬

‪The Gladiators struck first when Arvell Nelson found Quentin Sims for a touchdown. Following a Shane Carden interception, Sims’ second touchdown of the game gave Cleveland a 12-0 lead (they missed both extra points.)‬

‪The Brigade would get on the board when Carden found Milton Williams for a touchdown to make the score 12-7. That would prove to be the score at the end of the first quarter.‬

‪Sims third touchdown of the first half would give Cleveland and 18-7 lead (they once again missed the extra point.) The Brigade wouldn’t go down that easy, however. After a back and forth second quarter, the Gladiators led 32-28.‬

‪Baltimore took their first lead when Williams scored his third touchdown of the night. Cleveland would respond with Sims fourth touchdown reception of the game. The Glads took the 39-34 lead into the fourth quarter.‬

‪Down 53-49 with just one minute left, Carden threw a touchdown to Williams, his fourth, to give them a 56-53 lead. After running back Jeramie Richardson scored to give the Gladiators a 60-56 lead, new Brigade Brandon Thompkins returned the ensuing kick all the way for a touchdown to give Baltimore a 63-60 lead. ‬

‪Cleveland would fail to score on the final 30 seconds, giving the Brigade the win. The win for Baltimore snaps a three-game losing streak. They will travel to take on the Tampa Bay Storm next weekend.

The loss for Cleveland has them at a four-game losing streak. They’re also tied for the worst record in the league with the Washington Valor at 1-5. The two teams will meet at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. next Saturday night. The game will be broadcasted on CBS Sports Network.

Cleveland Gladiators Sign Running Back Jeramie Richardson, More

Today it was announced that the Cleveland Gladiators added three players to their team. Headlining the the trio is running back Jeramie Richardson former member of the 2016 World Champions Philadelphia Soul.

Richardson, 33, returns to Cleveland for the third time. In 2012, he broke onto the scene as a rookie, then returned to play during the 2015 season. Richardson has played on both sides of the ball during his career. In all, he has totaled 486 yards and 45 touchdowns from the fullback position, he’s also came up with five blocked kicks as well.

Just last season, Richardson played in 15 games for the Soul, running the ball 103 times while earning 321 yards and putting up a total of 22 touchdowns during their title run. In all, Richardson has added a total of 105 tackles, 7.5 sacks and three forced fumbles on the defensive side of the ball over a four year career. 

Also joining the Glads is AFL rookie and Tri-Valley (Dresden, OH) graduate offensive lineman Adam Brice. Brice, 27, spent some time in 2013 with the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent. Brice played at the University of Akron, where he played in 36 games for the Zips. Brice, played in the first week of preseason football as a member of the Cardinals in a game at Green Bay in 2013.

Adding their fourth kicker on the season, the Gladiators also added 26 year old Jed Solomon. Solomon played his college ball at the University of Troy. In 2015, his senior season Solomon went 12-15 (78.9%)  while making the third most field goals (15) in all of the Sun Belt Conference.

Solomon also went 42-43 on extra point kicks during his final season and 2-2 on kicks 40-50 yards. He will be playing in the AFL for the first time this weekend.

The Gladiators also announced, wide receiver Mike Preston was activated from inactive reserve. Defensive back Arness Ikner was activated from inactive reserve as well. Defensive lineman Shubert Bastien was placed on reassignment. 

Soul Re-Sign Wide Receiver Ryan McDaniel, Sign Running Back Mykel Benson

The Philadelphia Soul re-signed wide receiver Ryan McDaniel Friday. They also signed running back Mykel Benson. McDaniel will be joining the Soul for his fifth season. This will be Benson’s first season with the team.

McDaniels has caught 345 passes from quarterback Dan Raudabaugh for 4,159 yards and 88 touchdowns over his four-year tenure in Philadelphia. He’s also been to two ArenaBowls, winning one in 2016.

Benson joins the Soul after losing to them in his last game with the Arizona Rattlers. He’s rushed for 507 yards and 37 touchdowns over the last two seasons. He’s also spent time with the San Antonio Talons, Orlando Predators, Georgia Force and Milwaukee Mustangs. He was also named to the All-Arena Second Team in 2014.

The Soul now have two of the top four leading rushers from the 2016 season. Running back Jeramie Richardson finished second while Benson finished fourth.

The Soul are one of five teams competing in the 30th Arena Football League season in 2017. They will be looking to cap it off with their second consecutive ArenaBowl title.

The Philadelphia Soul Will Win ArenaBowl XXIX Because…

The Philadelphia Soul are one win away from showing the sports world why they have been the winningest sports team in the city of brotherly love since 2004. If they win ArenaBowl XXIX on Friday against the Arizona Rattlers, the Soul would have won their second ArenaBowl title. Here are a few reasons why the Soul will win ArenaBowl XXIX on Friday night.

1. Defense Wins Championships

Some call it a myth, some call it a fact. Nonetheless, the Soul’s defense could definitely lead them to a win Friday. The Soul are first and second in the league interceptions (Tracy Belton has nine and Dwayne Hollis has eight) and first in sacks (Jake Metz has seven). The league-leading defense looks like they could shut down Arizona and win the championship.

2. Soul Superteam

The Soul’s defense may arguably be the best in the Arena Football League in 2016. The same could be said for the offense. The Soul have such a great offense led by quarterback Dan Raudabaugh. He has two big targets in Darius Reynolds and Shaun Kauleinamoku. Behind Raudabaugh is also the second-leading rusher in the league in Jeramie Richardson. The Soul will have a great offense and great defense, adding up to possibly the perfect formula for success.

3. Revenge on the Brain

The Soul lost to the Rattlers in ArenaBowl XXV and ArenaBowl XXVI. They have yet to defeat the Rattlers in the ArenaBowl. They will have revenge on their minds after what happened two consecutive seasons in 2012 and 2013. They will be looking to turn the tables in 2016.