Post by alecs on Apr 30, 2023 18:31:10 GMT -8
Panthers 54, Strike Force 51
4/30/23 --
SAN DIEGO, CA -
Nate Davis made his Strike Force debut in a Western Conference Sunday showdown in Pechanga Arena. In a game deserving of "Game of the Year" consideration, the Bay Area Panthers executed a walk-off touchdown pass at the death to give them a thrilling 54-51 win over the Strike Force.
The Strike Force began the game with the football, but three straight incompletions from Davis forced Kevin Goessling into a long field goal attempt, which he missed short, and Imeek Watkins returned it 56 yards for the opening touchdown of the game. Nate Davis was not fazed, however. On the very next play from scrimmage, he found Kentrez Bell on a slant route, and Bell broke multiple tackles and dashed in for a 38-yard touchdown to tie the game up. San Diego would then force Dalton Sneed into an interception – just his second of the season – as Clayton Glasco came up with the pick for the Strike Force. Eddie Vander would help the Strike Force capitalize on a one-yard TD rush to take a 14-7 lead. Bay Area’s next drive would only progress as far as San Diego’s 11-yard line, and a 29-yard field goal by Miguel Mendez went wide left to end the quarter.
On San Diego’s next possession, a highlight-reel 16-yard touchdown catch by Marques “Hoodie” Rodgers was negated, after a successful challenge by the Panthers that determined that Rodgers committed a false start. San Diego would settle for a 36-yard field goal from Goessling, who interestingly started this season as a Panther. Two consecutive kickoff returns for touchdown would ensue, one from Bay Area’s Imeek Watkins (49 yards) and San Diego’s Carlos Thompson (56 yards), bringing the score to 24-14 Strike Force. Bay Area would convert on its next possession, with a bruising 15-yard touchdown run by Justin Rankin, with most of those yards coming after initial contact. Mendez would hook the extra point wide left to keep it 24-20. The Panthers nearly had their first stop of the game on a 4th-and-goal, but a defensive holding penalty gave the Strike Force a second chance, which they would convert with a Nate Davis to Kentrez Bell three-yard TD pass. Inside the one-minute warning, Justin Rankin would record his second rushing touchdown of the game from 16 yards out, bringing the score back to 31-27 San Diego. In the dying seconds of the half, Nate Davis would find Carlos Thompson for a five-yard TD pass, but Goessling’s extra point was blocked. Bay Area would have just enough time to try a field goal before the end of the half, but Mendez missed wide right to keep the score 37-27 in favor of San Diego at the halfway mark.
Bay Area received the second-half kickoff to open the 3rd quarter, and got the touchdown they needed thanks to Justin Rankin’s third rushing touchdown of the game, a two-yard plunge. The Panthers would also successfully force a turnover on downs on San Diego’s next possession. On Bay Area’s next drive, which would take up the remainder of the third quarter, Rankin would find the endzone for a fourth time on an eight-yard rushing score. That gave Bay Area its first lead since early in the first quarter, with 40-37 the advantage after 3 quarters of play.
On the first play of the 4th quarter, Nate Davis would regain the lead for the Strike Force on a 14-yard touchdown pass to Eddie Vander. Not to be outdone by his adversary, Dalton Sneed would immediately connect with J.T. Stokes for a 25-yard touchdown pass to respond. San Diego’s next drive would feature many wacky twists and turns, with a fumble recovery by the Strike Force and multiple drive-lengthening defensive penalties. San Diego would eventually find the go-ahead touchdown thanks to a Kentrez Bell eight-yard receiving touchdown. Bay Area’s next drive would feature two key 3rd-down conversions to bring the game to the one-minute warning. The Panthers worked their way into the redzone, forcing San Diego to use all three of its timeouts with about 40 seconds remaining with 3rd-and-goal upcoming. The Strike Force managed to hold Bay Area out of the endzone on that play, setting up the deciding play on 4th-and-goal from San Diego’s one-yard line with four seconds on the clock. The Panthers executed their winning play to perfection, with Sneed finding J.T. Stokes on a well-run underneath route. The one-yard TD pass would stand as the final play of the game, clinching the win for the Panthers. Bay Area’s first road win as a franchise goes down as a 54-51 final.
Dalton Sneed completed 11-of-17 passes for 118 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception in the victory, while adding 21 scoreless yards on seven carries as a rusher. Justin Rankin led the Panthers in rushing, taking 11 carries for 56 yards and four touchdowns and hauling in one of his three targets for nine yards. J.T. Stokes was the Panthers leading receiver tonight, turning nine targets into six catches for 68 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Imeek Watkins had himself a day on special teams, with two returns for touchdowns (one missed field goal and one kickoff) and also caught his lone target for eight yards in the passing game.
In his first start for San Diego since the trade from Duke City, Nate Davis completed 19-of-33 passes for 233 yards, five touchdowns, and no interceptions. Eddie Vander rushed five times for four yards and a touchdown, adding three catches on five targets for 33 yards and an additional score. Kentrez Bell led all Strike Force receivers with 15 targets, hauling in 11 receptions for 151 yards and three touchdowns. Defensive lineman Javian Williams recorded San Diego’s lone sack of the evening.
The teams will meet one more time this season, with a Week 17 date at SAP Center. That matchup is scheduled for Monday, July 10th.
With the win, Bay Area goes above .500 with a 3-2 record, tying them for 2nd in the West with Northern Arizona. San Diego tumbles to 2-4 and last place in the West.
The Panthers will host the Vegas Knight Hawks on Saturday May 6 with kickoff set for 6:05 p.m. After a bye in week 8, the Strike Force will be back in action on Saturday May 13 with a visit to the Green Bay Blizzard for a 1:05 p.m. kickoff. All times listed are pacific daylight time. Click for our complete 2023 IFL Schedule.
4/30/23 --
SAN DIEGO, CA -
Nate Davis made his Strike Force debut in a Western Conference Sunday showdown in Pechanga Arena. In a game deserving of "Game of the Year" consideration, the Bay Area Panthers executed a walk-off touchdown pass at the death to give them a thrilling 54-51 win over the Strike Force.
The Strike Force began the game with the football, but three straight incompletions from Davis forced Kevin Goessling into a long field goal attempt, which he missed short, and Imeek Watkins returned it 56 yards for the opening touchdown of the game. Nate Davis was not fazed, however. On the very next play from scrimmage, he found Kentrez Bell on a slant route, and Bell broke multiple tackles and dashed in for a 38-yard touchdown to tie the game up. San Diego would then force Dalton Sneed into an interception – just his second of the season – as Clayton Glasco came up with the pick for the Strike Force. Eddie Vander would help the Strike Force capitalize on a one-yard TD rush to take a 14-7 lead. Bay Area’s next drive would only progress as far as San Diego’s 11-yard line, and a 29-yard field goal by Miguel Mendez went wide left to end the quarter.
On San Diego’s next possession, a highlight-reel 16-yard touchdown catch by Marques “Hoodie” Rodgers was negated, after a successful challenge by the Panthers that determined that Rodgers committed a false start. San Diego would settle for a 36-yard field goal from Goessling, who interestingly started this season as a Panther. Two consecutive kickoff returns for touchdown would ensue, one from Bay Area’s Imeek Watkins (49 yards) and San Diego’s Carlos Thompson (56 yards), bringing the score to 24-14 Strike Force. Bay Area would convert on its next possession, with a bruising 15-yard touchdown run by Justin Rankin, with most of those yards coming after initial contact. Mendez would hook the extra point wide left to keep it 24-20. The Panthers nearly had their first stop of the game on a 4th-and-goal, but a defensive holding penalty gave the Strike Force a second chance, which they would convert with a Nate Davis to Kentrez Bell three-yard TD pass. Inside the one-minute warning, Justin Rankin would record his second rushing touchdown of the game from 16 yards out, bringing the score back to 31-27 San Diego. In the dying seconds of the half, Nate Davis would find Carlos Thompson for a five-yard TD pass, but Goessling’s extra point was blocked. Bay Area would have just enough time to try a field goal before the end of the half, but Mendez missed wide right to keep the score 37-27 in favor of San Diego at the halfway mark.
Bay Area received the second-half kickoff to open the 3rd quarter, and got the touchdown they needed thanks to Justin Rankin’s third rushing touchdown of the game, a two-yard plunge. The Panthers would also successfully force a turnover on downs on San Diego’s next possession. On Bay Area’s next drive, which would take up the remainder of the third quarter, Rankin would find the endzone for a fourth time on an eight-yard rushing score. That gave Bay Area its first lead since early in the first quarter, with 40-37 the advantage after 3 quarters of play.
On the first play of the 4th quarter, Nate Davis would regain the lead for the Strike Force on a 14-yard touchdown pass to Eddie Vander. Not to be outdone by his adversary, Dalton Sneed would immediately connect with J.T. Stokes for a 25-yard touchdown pass to respond. San Diego’s next drive would feature many wacky twists and turns, with a fumble recovery by the Strike Force and multiple drive-lengthening defensive penalties. San Diego would eventually find the go-ahead touchdown thanks to a Kentrez Bell eight-yard receiving touchdown. Bay Area’s next drive would feature two key 3rd-down conversions to bring the game to the one-minute warning. The Panthers worked their way into the redzone, forcing San Diego to use all three of its timeouts with about 40 seconds remaining with 3rd-and-goal upcoming. The Strike Force managed to hold Bay Area out of the endzone on that play, setting up the deciding play on 4th-and-goal from San Diego’s one-yard line with four seconds on the clock. The Panthers executed their winning play to perfection, with Sneed finding J.T. Stokes on a well-run underneath route. The one-yard TD pass would stand as the final play of the game, clinching the win for the Panthers. Bay Area’s first road win as a franchise goes down as a 54-51 final.
Dalton Sneed completed 11-of-17 passes for 118 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception in the victory, while adding 21 scoreless yards on seven carries as a rusher. Justin Rankin led the Panthers in rushing, taking 11 carries for 56 yards and four touchdowns and hauling in one of his three targets for nine yards. J.T. Stokes was the Panthers leading receiver tonight, turning nine targets into six catches for 68 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Imeek Watkins had himself a day on special teams, with two returns for touchdowns (one missed field goal and one kickoff) and also caught his lone target for eight yards in the passing game.
In his first start for San Diego since the trade from Duke City, Nate Davis completed 19-of-33 passes for 233 yards, five touchdowns, and no interceptions. Eddie Vander rushed five times for four yards and a touchdown, adding three catches on five targets for 33 yards and an additional score. Kentrez Bell led all Strike Force receivers with 15 targets, hauling in 11 receptions for 151 yards and three touchdowns. Defensive lineman Javian Williams recorded San Diego’s lone sack of the evening.
The teams will meet one more time this season, with a Week 17 date at SAP Center. That matchup is scheduled for Monday, July 10th.
With the win, Bay Area goes above .500 with a 3-2 record, tying them for 2nd in the West with Northern Arizona. San Diego tumbles to 2-4 and last place in the West.
The Panthers will host the Vegas Knight Hawks on Saturday May 6 with kickoff set for 6:05 p.m. After a bye in week 8, the Strike Force will be back in action on Saturday May 13 with a visit to the Green Bay Blizzard for a 1:05 p.m. kickoff. All times listed are pacific daylight time. Click for our complete 2023 IFL Schedule.
Both games, as well as all IFL games this season, will be streamed live on the IFL's Official YouTube Channel. SCtoC will present previews of those, and all, games this season. Those previews will be posted on the board of the home team in each game.
- AS
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