HENDERSON, Nev. — Revenge is sweet, especially when served in the postseason.
After losing a pair of nailbiting regular-season games to the Vegas Knight Hawks earlier this year, the Arizona Rattlers turned the tables Saturday at Lee's Family Forum by scoring a touchdown on the game's final play to win an IFL Western Conference Semifinal 39-38 and stun nearly everyone in attendance.
"It was a complete team effort," said Rattlers Head Coach Kevin Guy, who with the victory became the winningest head coach in arena/indoor football history with 262 coaching triumphs. "It was sloppy at times, but our guys made the plays when we needed to and we found a way."
Trailing 38-33 with the crowd at a fever pitch, Rattlers quarterback Dalton Sneed did the honors. The gutsy signal caller, a champion with Bay Area last season, called his own number on fourth down with 2 seconds left and darted to the left side for a one-yard diving score. As the clock hit 0:00, Sneed and his teammates ran down the field in celebration of a memorable walkoff win.
The victory means 3-seed Arizona (12-5) advances to the Western Conference Championship next week. If Bay Area beats San Diego on Sunday, the Rattlers will head to San Jose for that game. But if the Strike Force can take down the top-seeded defending champion Panthers, Arizona would host the West final on Monday, Aug. 5 at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale.
"Now we wait and see who we play next week," Guy explained. "But I'm very proud of the way our players played and our coaches coached tonight."
The East final pits #3 Massachusetts at #1 Green Bay on Friday, Aug. 2. Second-seeded Vegas' season ended at 11-6.
Arizona's defense, maligned much of the season, set up the heroics at the end. They forced the Knight Hawks to kick a 35-yard field goal with 48 seconds left that gave Vegas just a 5-point lead.
The Rattlers' final drive started poorly, with a penalty and a sack forcing second-and-long. But Corey Reed Jr. and Jamal Miles both caught key passes from Sneed to quickly move into scoring position. Shannon Brooks then caught a screen pass but was tripped up at the 1 yard line as the clock ran under 10 seconds. Sneed calmly set his team and spiked the ball with 2 seconds left, setting the stage for his scoring scramble to the left side.
Arizona's first opening-round playoff game on the road since 2010 started on the positive side as Reed Jr. punched in a 5-yard rushing score.
The teams traded scores as Vegas quarterback Ja'Rome Johnson showed his two-way ability to run and pass. His 14-yard rushing score gave Vegas a 21-12 lead after Arizona's Glen Gibbons Jr. had given the Rattlers life with a 49-yard kickoff return touchdown. The Rattlers' Nih-Jer Jackson got the Rattlers within a point with a 4-yard catch from Sneed but the Knight Hawks executed perfectly to end the half, scoring on a 7-yard TD pass to lead 28-20 at the break.
Arizona was shut out in the third but outscored Vegas 19-3 in the final stanza to steal the win and end Vegas' season. With 4:47 left in the third, the Knight Hawks held a 35-20 lead but the Rattlers' run in the final 20 minutes began with Brooks scoring on a 1-yard plunge.
The defensive line then pressured Johnson into a bad throw that was easily picked off by Arizona's Devontae Merriweather. Sneed turned that into points with a 2-yard TD on fourth down to bring the Rattlers within 35-33 with 6:10 left in the game.
Vegas could only manage the field goal from Kevin Macias on their next drive. Johnson was injured on a scramble play and Jorge Reyna replaced him and threw a pair of critical incompletions, saving timeouts for the Rattlers and giving Sneed just enough time to lead his squad down the field and silence most of the 4,063 in attendance.
Sneed finished with 3 total TDs, 2 on the ground and a single passing score. Jackson caught that lone TD while Brooks and Reed Jr. added one rushing touchdown each. Defensively, Merriweather and Jarmaine Doubs each snagged INTs.
Vegas QB Johnson had four total touchdowns but threw a pair of costly interceptions in the game.
Guy said the large contingent of Rattler Nation that made the trip just outside Sin City made a difference. As he left the field, the Rattlers head coach was seen high-fiving and celebrating with Arizona fans along the side boards.
"I appreciate all the Rattlers fans that came up to see us play," said Guy. "We will enjoy tonight and start working again tomorrow."
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