Saturday May 7th, 2011
Consol Energy Center
TV: WPCW (Pittsburgh's CW), Niftytv.com
Radio: 93.7 FM (Pittsburgh), 700 AM (Spokane)
Both teams may enter this record with identical 3-4 records, however one is a team on the rise while the other is doing some soul searching on offense.
The Power are coming off a 58-39 drubbing at the hands of the Georgia Force in which starting quarterback Anthony Morelli had easily his worst start, throwing three interceptions. Xavier Lee was a bright spot catching two touchdowns, running for one, and even adding his first passing touchdown as part of the Power. Jason Willis had a solid game, but there weren't many gamebreaking plays.
Everywhere you looked for the Power there were breakdowns. Offensive line, wide receivers, quarterback, defense, and even the kicking game saw mistakes happen. It was an all around ugly game and things don't get any easier this week with the defending champs in town.
Let's look at some of the positives. Spokane is nowhere near the "Force" on defense that Georgia is. In fact they are ranked 17th out of the 18 AFL teams in scoring defense at 58.6 PPG. They rank 17th in rushing defense, so look for the Power to get Morelli, Lee and Rue going in the running game and perhaps get back to basics.
Spokane is 5th in the league in scoring at 58.3 PPG, and a big part of that is the strong offensive line they have. Through 7 games, they have only allowed 6 sacks. That is simply incredible. The Shock also ranks number one in the league in goal line offense, converting at an absurd 94.6% success rate.
Kyle Rowley leads a potent Shock passing attack, and he is in the top 5 in most passing categories this year. He will be the third big time quarterback the Power have faced in the last four weeks. Hopefully the defense can get going a bit more this week, but injuries/suspensions to Josh Lay, Terrence Carter, Neil Purvis, and Tyrell Herbert have really crippled the team so far.
The Shock have a very deep and talented receiving corps. Three Shock wideouts have caught 10 or more touchdowns this year, and that does not bode well for a Power secondary already stretched thin. Look for Rowley to spread the ball around to Greg Orton (700 yards/18 TD), Raul Vijil (385 yards/12 TD) and Shaun Kauleinamoku (353 yards/10 TD).
The Power should get a nice emotional boost with wide receiver and special teams ace Michael "Mick" Walsh who will suit up this week for the Power as part of the Make-A-Wish Foundation. They also need to recapture some of the magic the receiving corps had in previous games. I'm talking to you Lonnell DeWalt. Bring some of that highlight reel ability home with you!
One of the biggest keys to getting the upset will come down to the Power offensive line's ability to give Morelli time to throw. Also the Power Defense is really going to have to step up and force some turnovers if the Power are to have any chance in this one.
I'm a diehard Power fan, but in this case....
The Voice Says....Spokane wins 63-49
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