(Glendale, AZ) The Snakes opened up their new home in the Desert Diamond Arena, formerly the home ice of the Arizona Coyotes.
Arzona won their first game last week in Prescott over the Northern Arizona Wranglers 51-40.
The Knight Hawks coming in had lost three out of four to Arizona and had never won in the Rattler’s former home, the Footprint Center.
Today’s game started out quickly as the Rattlers ran the opening kickoff for an apparent touchdown, but was called back on a holding call. Just a few plays later, Garrett Kettle connected with Isaiah Huston from twenty yards out giving Arizona a quick 7-0 lead before the seats got warm at the Arena.
Most of the remaining quarter was back and forth until with just under two minutes left, Las Vegas got on the board with by way of a seventeen yard field goal by Kevin Macias at the 1:54 mark.
A little over five minutes later and into the second quarter, the Rattler’s Evitts Dawson kicked a twenty yard field goal to put the lead back to seven 10-3.
With quick strike offenses throughout the League, the Knight Hawks drove quickly back down the field after the Arizona score and got their first touchdown when Ja’Rom Johnson busted through a huge hole from the nineteen yard line and tied the score at 10-10 with 10:23 to go till half time
Five plays later, Jamal Miles scooted in from four yard out and the Snakes regained the lead 17-10.
A minute and a half later, the quick strike Vegas offense scored on the first play from scrimmage on a Johnson thirty one yard pass to a streaking CJ Windham. Vegas tried to seize momentum going for the two point conversion, but the pass fell incomplete and the Rattlers maintained a slim 17-16 lead with 4:40 still left till halftime.
Arizona added a couple of field goals before the half and went into the locker room up 23-16.
With the halftime score close, Arizona had the statistical advantage in almost every category. First downs 10-4, Rushing 77-68, Passing 64-58 and total yards 141-126.
With both teams making their halftime adjustments, Las Vegas received the second half kickoff and once again showed their lightning offense with Caleb Holley tying the score 23-23 off a laser pass from Johnson.
The Snakes would counter using a Miles ten yard run to regain the lead off a three play drive 30-23.
Johnson took matters into his own hands when he saw an opening in the Arizona defense and scored from the eleven yard line, but the conversion kick sailed wide for a 30-29 Rattlers lead.
The third quarter had five scoring drives collectively, highlighted by a Johnson to Randolph Quent thirty six yard touchdown reception. With two missed conversion attempts by Vegas they were still down 37-35.
Arizona allowed the Knight Hawks to stick around as a result of two turnovers. A fumble that lead to the Las Vegas touchdown at the end of the third quarter and later to start the final period, an interception that wasn’t turned into points from a missed field goal.
The Knight Hawks finally got on top just into the fourth quarter, with Johnson again running the ball into score and a 42-17 lead.
Arizona’s only scoring drive came with just fifty two seconds left in regulation when Glen Gibbons caught an eleven yard pass from Lorenzo Brown to recapture the lead 43-42. Coach Kevin Guy called a two point attempt but on a double reverse, Miles was tackled at the one yard line.
Still fifty two seconds to play, still plenty of time for Vegas to operate, Johnson was whistled for an intentional grounding and loss of down. The next play was the killer as Johnson regrouped and hit Quent for twenty two yards to the Snakes twenty three yard line. The next play to Holley netted six more yards and now the Knight Hawkes were well within easy field goal range at the Arizona seventeen yard line.
After a pair of incomplete passes, Las Vegas lined up for a field goal with the game on the line. Coach Guy called a timeout just as the ball was snapped and the kick was offline. After the timeout, Macias calmly made his next attempt from thirty two yards and Vegas escaped with a 45-43 win.
Arizona will have to regroup now at 1-1. With the season just underway, the team has many new faces from last year as the front office decided to shake up the roster and trade away MVP quarterback Drew Powell wanting to reestablish a new identity.
Next week, it’s back on the road when they meet the defending IFL Champion Bay Area Panthers.
Season opening attendance was 9.017 which was significantly down from last year at the Footprint Center when they drew 12,107. Will the new digs prove to be a definitive home field advantage, or will the extended distance to the new arena turn off some of the fan base? Time will tell but the product on the field will ultimately be the deciding factor.
