San Jose Squeeze The Venom Out of Rattlers

“I am  in my second year and I am still learning,”---Cleannord Saintil

By Barbara Mason & Larry Garcia 3/16/08
Bay Area Sports Raiderdrive

Saturday night was opening night for the San Jose SaberCats as their fans welcomed in the 2008 season with all the hoopla and fun that is typically Arena Football.  The SaberCats played host to the rival Arizona Rattlers, both teams coming into the game with identical 1-1 records.  San Jose had won their last meeting against the Rattlers on June 16 in a drubbing 66-26; in fact, the SaberCats had beaten the Rattlers in five consecutive meetings prior to this game.  Not only were the Rattlers coming in off a miserable loss against the Los Angeles Avengers, they also had to contend with the fact that HP Pavilion is a very tough arena to play in.  The cards were stacked against them from the get go.

San Jose got off to a fast start and was leading 10-7 as the first quarter came to an end.

The SaberCats had to settle for a 43-yard A.J. Haglund field goal but were able to find the end zone when Mark Grieb connected with Cleannord Saintil for a 22-yard strike.

San Jose came up with their second touchdown of the evening when Clevan Thomas picked up a Rattler fumble and raced into the end zone for a 16-yard romp.  The SaberCat defense was just getting warmed up as moments later Omarr Smith intercepted the ball ending up on the Arizona 10-yard line.  This resulted in a 23 yard TD from Grieb to Saintil and a commanding 24-7 lead.  Once again, Thomas came up with his second pick of the evening with 3:47 left in the half.  Again the Cats had to settle as Haglund kicked his second field goal of the evening, an 18 yarder and a 27-7 half- time lead.

Arizona was able to find the end zone in the third quarter and the score stood at 27-14, the Rattlers behind by two touchdowns.  The third quarter saw yet another Haglund field goal, this one for 24 yards giving San Jose a 30-14 lead.  A 58-yard field goal attempt by Arizona was blocked by San Jose’s Steve Watson allowing Ron Jones to pounce on the ball in the end zone giving San Jose a couple more, and a 32-14 lead.  As the third quarter began to wind down, Mark Grieb demonstrated the skill that has made him one of the most lethal quarterbacks in the league finding this time Julius Gant for a 12-yard score and a 39-14 count.

Arizona came into the fourth quarter giving San Jose all they could handle.  It was like a lightning strike as the Rattlers scored a touchdown followed by a fumble recovery on the next series and Arizona had narrowed the SaberCat lead to 39-28.  Unwilling to back down, Grieb handed off to Jason Geathers who ran in a 12 yard touchdown and gave the SaberCats a comfortable 46-28 lead with 11:09 left in the game.  Arizona answered and followed the TD with a two-point run and a 46-36 score.   San Jose would have none of it and Mark Grieb teamed up with favorite target Jason Geathers for a 21-yard pass giving the SaberCats a first and goal that culminated with a Geathers rush into the end zone several plays later.  Every time that San Jose threatened to bury the Rattlers, Arizona continued to bite back hitting yet another TD, this time a 49-yard strike from Smoker to Atnaf Harris and a 53-43 score with a minute left on the clock.  San Jose marched back downfield but for the fourth time that evening had to settle for a field goal as A.J. Haglund kicked one for 17 yards.  With thirty seconds left in the game, San Jose finally put this one away as they were able to recover a Rattler fumble that was eventually turned into another seven as Phil Glover took it to the house.  The final was 63-43, a game that San Jose had to fight for.

With the win, San Jose recorded their 6^th consecutive win over Arizona as well as their 15^th consecutive home opener win.  Quarterback Mark Grieb finished the game completing 20 of 33 for 264 yards and three touchdowns.  A.J. Haglund tied a team record with his four successful field goals although San Jose has to be concerned with their inability to find the end zone four times and having to settle each time for three points.  At the very least two of those possessions should have resulted in seven.  A lot of credit has to go to Haglund who came through with 19 kicking points.

Cleannord Saintil had six catches for 110 yards and two touchdowns.  “I’m in my second year and I am still learning bit by bit, but I felt good out there tonight,” said Saintil who made his fourth career start.  “The credit goes to the coaches and my teammates.  It goes to Coach Malley, Mark Grieb, James Roe, Rodney Wright – I’ve learned from all of them,” he said.

San Jose is now tied with the rival Los Angeles Avengers who lost Saturday night against the Georgia Force.  The SaberCats will next take on the Dallas Desperados this coming Saturday at HP Pavilion.