SaberCats Drop Season Opener

“Our guys played hard and they never quit and I think we’ve got a good football team,”---Coach Darren Arbet

By Barbara Mason
BASD/Raiderdrive.com

Last Saturday night the San Jose SaberCats dropped their season opener to expansion team, the Utah Blaze, 48-35.

In a game that shortly after kickoff showed every sign that San Jose had begun to dominate, the tables dramatically turned. After recovering the ball when the Blaze lost it deep in SaberCat territory, San Jose closed in on their first score, and the lead in this game. #16 quarterback Mark Grieb threw to one of his favorite targets, the ever-dependable #9 James Roe in the corner of the Utah end zone. Roe made a circus catch for a touchdown, however at a great price. He crashed into the wall with a tremendous force and fell to the field. It was immediately apparent that he was hurt as he lay motionless, and emergency technicians, coaches and concerned teammates rushed to his aid. The game came to a halt as Roe was stabilized before being transported to the hospital. A wave of relief came over the pavilion as Roe was able to move his hands and feet. It was later learned that he suffered a mild concussion and was released from the hospital later that evening. Roe had maintained possession of the ball through this entire ordeal, and had given his team the lead 7-0 when kicker #18 Brian Schmitz scored the extra point.

Both teams battled evenly through the first quarter and were tied at it’s conclusion 14-14. It was the second quarter that crushed the SaberCats as Utah scored 17 points blanking San Jose and the Blaze took a 31-14 lead into the locker room at the half.

San Jose outscored the Blaze in the third quarter scoring one touchdown and they went into the final quarter of the game 34-21 down needing a couple of touchdowns to go ahead. Utah played the SaberCats tough in the fourth quarter, both teams scoring 14 points and San Jose’s bid at a comeback was not to be.

Besides losing Roe, San Jose also lost another one of their key receivers Rodney Wright who went out with turf toe. San Jose had 10 penalties, a number of them putting an end to successful drives. The SaberCats also had problems with converting third downs, successful on only 1 of 8. Despite so much going wrong for the team, they continued to fight to the very end.

Coach Darren Arbet expressed how much the loss of James Roe in this game affected the team. “He’s our best receiver. Anytime you lose a guy like him it definitely hurts your football team, “ said Arbet. “When James Roe went down, and then Rodney Wright went down, the receivers we had had to play the whole game, so as the game went on they just wore down,” said Arbet explaining the team’s struggle with converting third downs.

Arbet was pleased with his team’s efforts in the face of so much adversity especially at the start of this young season. “I thought the guys played good. Your missing two receivers, and the ball bounced off the net a couple times and they got it but take nothing away from Utah. They played well tonight, but I wouldn’t say we fell apart. Our guys played hard and they never quit, and I think we’ve got a good football team.”

Quarterback Mark Grieb was 28 for 40 throwing for 236 yards and 3 touchdowns. He limped out of the locker room, his foot encased in an ice pack. “I just got stepped on,” Grieb said. He felt that Utah did a great job in slowing down San Jose’s game. “At times they did get pressure. It was disappointing seeing James go out like that,” Grieb said in regards to the injury to Roe. “As close as I am to him, it was pretty emotional for me. On top of that we lose Rodney. We’re trying to play with three guys that are getting no rest. In fairness to Charles (Pauley), and Fred (Coleman) and Marquis (Floyd), they’re getting no rest and it’s tough.”

Saturday night was a breakout night for wide receiver Charles Pauley. With the injury to James Roe, Charles Pauley was called upon to play in unfamiliar territory. “It was a new twist for me, it was a different position. I just came out to try to do what I could do, and try to make some plays,” said Pauley. He felt that Utah had a good game and that the ball was bouncing their way much of the time. “There were times that we needed big plays and we didn’t get it,” he said. Pauley had three touchdowns for the evening.

One of the fans present at Saturday’s game was former SaberCat star Rashied Davis turned Chicago Bear. He came out to support his former teammates in this season opener. When asked about his rise to the NFL and what it had been like, he modestly stated, “it was really fun.” He remains the same down to earth, likeable guy that made him an absolute favorite with SaberCat fans everywhere.

The San Jose SaberCats now have fifteen games to go in the season which is plenty of time to correct a few things, get it right and head into the post-season. They now head out for a challenging stint of five road games, the first one being played in Sin City against the Las Vegas Gladiators. They return home to HP Pavilion on March 12^th in a game that will pit them against the Los Angeles Avengers.