68-71-75-65-66-70-69 …
No, this is not a winning lottery ticket and no it’s not an access code to the Holy Grail or anything of that nature. They are scores from some arena football games so far this season. Americans tend to like high scores, fast-paced action, and physicality, and arena-style football provides us with all of these aspects of games we have come to love since we were little.
Arena football is completely new to me, but anything where players get slammed into a wall (and sometimes over it), where the ball can be returned off of a net, and the average score is a ridiculous 50 or 60 points can’t help but be fun to watch!
So, the Austin Wranglers have not started off so well this season, losing their first two games to Corpus Christi (61-48) and to the Lubbock Renegades (75-41) at home, no less. But hey, that’s an average of almost 45 points a game. The Wranglers still have plenty of time to improve over the 16-game season.
Linebacker Mel Long already has three interception returns for touchdowns on the year with two in the first game and another in the second. Long has been a bright spot for the Wranglers and could be the key to keeping the defense playing well over the course of the season.
What about the offense? Well, the Wranglers have solid receivers in Jovon Russell and John Roberson. Roberson already has five touchdowns, while Russell has two. The quarterback situation is being ironed out with three contenders playing in the first two games. Jeffrey Terrell seems to be the front-runner with four touchdowns and 213 yards passing per game.
The Wranglers play at the Amarillo Dusters on Saturday, April 12, 7pm in search of their first win of the season.
Maybe Long can keep his touchdown return streak in tact for another game. We’ll find out on Saturday. Either way, the score is sure to be high and the tempo even higher. Who knows, maybe someone will go flying over the wall and land in the front row!
Excited yet?
This article appears in April 4 • 2008.