Post by marinersmedia on Apr 14, 2010 11:07:25 GMT -5
SLUGGISH START TURNS INTO A STRONG FINISH
BALTIMORE, MD (April 13th, 2010) – The Mariners came off a bye week knowing that the next three games would be a challenge. The one worry I had coming into this game was that the Mariners would become complacent, and it seemed like that for the first half of the game. The Mariners were barely holding off the last place New Jersey Revolution with a 26-20 halftime lead. To put it simply, the Mariners looked flat and the Mariner faithful that made the three hour drive to the Mennen Arena looked worried. As my broadcast partner, John Wolfe, stated; “I would’ve loved to be a fly on the wall in that locker room.”
And so begins the second half, and the Mariners finally found their swagger. Baltimore scored 28 unanswered points and silenced the Blue Crew at the Mennen Arena. When the chips are down, it seems like the Baltimore Mariners always step their game up to another level. The exams are in; let’s see how the Mariners did against the Revolution.
Offense: B
A slow start to the scoring in the first half and an inability to create any separation in the first half dropped the Mariners offense grade down a little. However, thanks to their dominating second half performance, the offense gets a good grade for this week. Quarterback E.J. Nemeth surpassed a career high in touchdown passes, throwing seven strikes and 263 yards. Running back Isaiah Grier racked up 20 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns and one touchdown catch. The favorite target of Nemeth was wide receiver Aaron Yarbough, who had a career day on Sunday catching 11 passes for 134 yards and two touchdowns. The Mariners managed to outscore the Revolution 28-7 in the second half, which led to the win.
Defense: B-
The defense struggled in the second half against the New Jersey offense, which ranked 12th in the AIFA was coming into last Sunday’s game. Coach Gaunt’s 6th ranked defense gave up 20 first half points to New Jersey, and allowed the Revolution to stay in this game. They only forced one turnover in this game, which was yet another Armar Watson interception, but just like the rest of the team, they stepped up their game in the second half, only allowing seven points.
Special Teams: C+
This really isn’t a fair assessment for kicker J.R. Cipra and the rest of the special teams, as the Mennen Arena had a very low ceiling, which made kicking virtually impossible. Cipra missed a 34 yard field goal that was negated because it hit the ceiling. None the less, J.R. Cipra was perfect on extra points, and Richard Johnson put the Mariners offense is good field position.
You can’t help but respect the toughness and strong will of the Baltimore Mariners. Just when you think all is lost, and the team looks unfocused and beaten; they rally and come out fighting. I am reminded of the Muhammad Ali/George Foreman fight, where it looked like Foreman was getting the best of Ali. However, Ali was just baiting Foreman, and wound up beating George Foreman for the Heavyweight title in Manila. The moral of the story; it’s ain’t over until it’s over!
For more information about the Baltimore Mariners go to www.baltimoremariners.com.
BALTIMORE, MD (April 13th, 2010) – The Mariners came off a bye week knowing that the next three games would be a challenge. The one worry I had coming into this game was that the Mariners would become complacent, and it seemed like that for the first half of the game. The Mariners were barely holding off the last place New Jersey Revolution with a 26-20 halftime lead. To put it simply, the Mariners looked flat and the Mariner faithful that made the three hour drive to the Mennen Arena looked worried. As my broadcast partner, John Wolfe, stated; “I would’ve loved to be a fly on the wall in that locker room.”
And so begins the second half, and the Mariners finally found their swagger. Baltimore scored 28 unanswered points and silenced the Blue Crew at the Mennen Arena. When the chips are down, it seems like the Baltimore Mariners always step their game up to another level. The exams are in; let’s see how the Mariners did against the Revolution.
Offense: B
A slow start to the scoring in the first half and an inability to create any separation in the first half dropped the Mariners offense grade down a little. However, thanks to their dominating second half performance, the offense gets a good grade for this week. Quarterback E.J. Nemeth surpassed a career high in touchdown passes, throwing seven strikes and 263 yards. Running back Isaiah Grier racked up 20 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns and one touchdown catch. The favorite target of Nemeth was wide receiver Aaron Yarbough, who had a career day on Sunday catching 11 passes for 134 yards and two touchdowns. The Mariners managed to outscore the Revolution 28-7 in the second half, which led to the win.
Defense: B-
The defense struggled in the second half against the New Jersey offense, which ranked 12th in the AIFA was coming into last Sunday’s game. Coach Gaunt’s 6th ranked defense gave up 20 first half points to New Jersey, and allowed the Revolution to stay in this game. They only forced one turnover in this game, which was yet another Armar Watson interception, but just like the rest of the team, they stepped up their game in the second half, only allowing seven points.
Special Teams: C+
This really isn’t a fair assessment for kicker J.R. Cipra and the rest of the special teams, as the Mennen Arena had a very low ceiling, which made kicking virtually impossible. Cipra missed a 34 yard field goal that was negated because it hit the ceiling. None the less, J.R. Cipra was perfect on extra points, and Richard Johnson put the Mariners offense is good field position.
You can’t help but respect the toughness and strong will of the Baltimore Mariners. Just when you think all is lost, and the team looks unfocused and beaten; they rally and come out fighting. I am reminded of the Muhammad Ali/George Foreman fight, where it looked like Foreman was getting the best of Ali. However, Ali was just baiting Foreman, and wound up beating George Foreman for the Heavyweight title in Manila. The moral of the story; it’s ain’t over until it’s over!
For more information about the Baltimore Mariners go to www.baltimoremariners.com.