(Phoenix, AZ) The six-time world champion Arizona Rattlers (7-1) controlled every aspect of the football game in a dominant 62-19 win over the Northern Arizona Wranglers (1-7) at the Snake Pit on Saturday.
The win was the Rattlers highest scoring total of the season.
Balanced Production Equals Unbalance Scoreboard
The top-ranked Rattler scoring offense spread the ball to almost all of their offensive weapons. Seven different Rattlers scored a touchdown Saturday night (Powell, Edwards, Harris, LaSane, Miles, Harrington, Pelletier), marking the fourth-straight game the Rattlers offense has scored 50-plus points.
It was a short night for starting quarterback Drew Powell, who threw for 106 yards (1,169) and two TDs (19). The Rattlers backup QB, T.J. Edwards, also got in on the action last night. Edwards threw for a pair of TDs and rushed for another after taking the helm midway through the second half.
Wide receiver Jeremiah Harris put on his best performance of the season with three catches for 44 yards (165) and two receiving TDs (4) and another on the ground (2).
Dismantling Defense
The 19-points allowed is lowest total points allowed for the Rattlers this season, and is the forth lowest total points of any IFL defense this season.On the night, Arizona’s defense racked up 11 pass breakups, four sacks, two blocked kicks, two fumble recoveries and an interception against Northern Arizona.
Defensive lineman Craig Evans’ opening drive sack (2) set the tone for the football game. Then with 4:18 remaining in the 1st quarter, Linebacker Treyvon Williams scored his first TD of the season on a kickoff fumble recovery in the end zone. The special teams score pushed the Rattlers’ lead to 21-0, and they never looked back.
D-lineman Josh Gordon filled up the stat sheet with an incredible performance on Saturday night as well. Gordon amassed six total tackles (17), 3.5 tackles-for-loss (8), 1.5 sacks (4), a fumble recovery, and a blocked kick.
Nik D’Avanzo also continued his domination on the Rattlers defensive front Saturday. Even though D’Avanzo’s impact may look diminished on the stat sheet, make no mistake, it was his pressure that impacted Gordon’s production the most. The unquestioned leader of the Rattler defense, D’Avanzo, finished with a three tackles, a sack (6) and a blocked kick (3) in the win.
Sensational Secondary
Rattlers defensive back Tyrell Pearson rose to a new level last night, totaling a team-high four pass breakups (18) and an INT, while DB Devin Cockrell added three pass breakups (9) and a forced fumble (2).The unit was clicking on all cylinders Saturday, as DB Dillon Winfrey also continued his impressive season with a team-high six tackles (41) and two pass breakups (14).
Meeting Massachusetts
The Massachusetts Pirates (6-3) are coming off a 43-38 win over the Bismarck Bucks on Saturday. In the week prior, Massachusetts defeated the then unbeaten Frisco Fighters for their first loss of the season.Arizona and Massachusetts will kick off at 10:05 a.m. MST (11:05 MS) on Sunday, July 18.
Press Release courtesy of the Arizona Rattlers
