Cleveland Gladiators @ Philadelphia Soul 1 PM ET ESPN

This is a matchup of two cities starving for a title. Cleveland hasn’t one a major one since 1964, and Philly not since the 1980’s. Cleveland pulled off an upset win on the road over the Georgia Force. Raymond Philyaw has been the big reason why Cleveland is here, so far in two playoff games, he has thrown for 730 yards and 16 touchdowns to just one interception. Matt D’Orazio’s six touchdown passes got Philly past New York 49-48, and the Soul will look to reach ArenaBowl XXII as the favorite.

Grand Rapids Rampage @ San Jose Sabercats 3:30 PM EST ESPN

The defending champs are back, trying to reach the ArenaBowl to defend their crown. Grand Rapids is the Cinderella of the playoffs, finishing the regular season at 6-10, barely making the playoffs. They’ve already beaten Arizona and Chicago, and now look to spoil Mark Grieb and the Sabercats repeat party. James McPherson’s 11 touchdowns have been a big reason for the Rampage’s success, and they will need a great performance from him to win.

The biggest upset of the year, and in recent AFL playoff history occured Friday night. At the beginning of the season, many (including myself), were wondering if Dallas could go undefeated this season. They ended up a respectable 12-4, but got trounced in the Wildcard Round by the underdog New York Dragons. Aaron Garcia completed 28/39 passes for 330 yards and nine touchdowns to lead the Dragons. Dallas’ Clint Dolezel went 35/47 for 325 yards and seven scores in the losing effort.

Colorado 49 @ Utah 44

The Utah Blaze bowed out in the first round, but who would have thought they would even be here? They began the year 0-8, but finished 6-2 to reach the Wildcard round. John Dutton led the Crush with 268 yards and six touchdowns. Joe Germaine had an excellent year at QB for the Blaze, and finished it with 252 yards and six touchdowns.

Orlando 66 @ Cleveland 69

It took Raymond Philyaw six touchdown passes, but the Gladiators of Cleveland are moving on to the second round of the playoffs. He finished with 436 passing yards, and his six scores. Shane Stafford had himself a game in a losing effort, he threw for 376 yards and eight touchdowns.

Grand Rapids 48 @ Arizona 41

James MacPherson threw for 285 yards and five touchdowns in the win, including the game winning 28-yard pass with 6:26 to go in the game. Former MSU standout Jeff Smoker led the Rattlers with 233 yards and four touchdowns.

American Conference:

No. 1 — Chicago Rush (11-5)
No. 2 — San Jose SaberCats (11-5)
No. 3 — Arizona Rattlers (8-8)
No. 4 — Utah Blaze (6-10)
No. 5 — Colorado Crush (6-10)
No. 6 — Grand Rapids Rampage (6-10)

National Conference:

No. 1 — Philadelphia Soul (13-3)
No. 2 — Georgia Force (10-6)
No. 3 — Dallas Desperados (12-4)
No. 4 — Cleveland Gladiators (9-7)
No. 5 — Orlando Predators (9-7)
No. 6 — New York Dragons (8-8)

As you can see, the American conference is the weak one this year. A big reason is not having to play the Soul and Desperados consistently. Those two teams tore up the National Conference, and should be an exciting matchup assuming they meet in the playoffs. The most interesting team is probably the Utah Blaze. The Blaze started the season 0-8, but won six of eight to reach the playoffs as a four seed. Here are the first round wildcard matchups:

Friday, June 27
No. 6 New York Dragons at No. 3 Dallas Desperados, 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)

Saturday, June 28
No. 5 Colorado Crush at No. 4 Utah Blaze, 4 p.m. ET (ESPN)

Monday, June 30
No. 5 Orlando Predators at No. 4 Cleveland Gladiators, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
No. 6 Grand Rapids Rampage at No. 3 Arizona Rattlers, 9:30 p.m. ET (ESPN2)

I will (probably) be hosting a recap podcast of each week, and a preview show of the semi-finals and Arena Bowl. This is assuming I have no techincal difficulties with my recording program. Either way, check back here for previews and recaps. The playoffs begin Friday.

After rattling off five straight wins to improve to 6-4, the Dragons have dropped two in a row to fall to 6-6. They have one of the tougher schedules remaining, after playing the Crush they host New Orleans, travel to Dallas, and then wrap-up the season at home against the Philadelphia Soul. Aaron Garcia keeps on ticking despite his advancing age, he has thrown for 2,522 yards and 60 touchdowns on the year. They will need a big night from him if they are going to come out of Denver with a win.

The Crush have lost three straight to put their playoff hopes on the brink. A relatively easy schedule is ahead of them, but they will most likely have to win at least three of them. Despite his team’s struggles, John Dutton keeps on rolling. He has thrown for 3,336 yards and 69 touchdowns. A healthy dosage of balls to Ben Nelson and Willie Quinnie will help the Crush get back on track.

The game is a late kick-off, it’s scheduled to begin at 10:30 in Denver. The game, as always, can be seen on ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD.

The Force have won three straight to get back into the playoff conversation. Chris Greisen is the offensive catalyst, he has thrown for 3,471 yards and 68 touchdowns. Look for him to spread the ball around to his three main targets; Troy Bergeron, Carl Morris, and Tiger Jones. That will be key to Georgia’s success.

Two weeks ago, New Orleans was a top team at 7-2. After two straight losses however, the VooDoo find themselves fighting for a playoff spot as well. Danny Wimprine has done a solid job at QB for New Orleans, he has thrown for 2,709 yards and 56 touchdowns. James Jordan has been big for New Orleans, catching 72 passes for 819 yards and 25 scores.

Certainly a great game with a lot on the line will entertain us AFL fans tonight. Kickoff is at 8 PM EST on ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD. Happy Memorial Day to all, and a special thank you to all veterans and current soldiers out there.

Brett Dietz put in another solid game for Tampa Bay. He was 20/40 for 293 yards and five touchdowns. Torrance Marshall also ran for two scores for the Storm. James MacPherson led the Rampage with 268 yards and six touchdowns, but he also threw four picks.

Kansas City recorded just their second win of the season, as Columbus dropped to 2-8 as well. Four different receivers caught touchdowns for the Brigade. Matt Nagy led Columbus with 294 passing yards and five touchdowns.

Grand Rapids 54 @ Dallas 65

The 9-1 Dallas Desperados continued to roll last night. It was a passing fest, and Clint Dolezel got the win. Dolezel was 25/35 for 321 yards and eight touchdowns. Marcus Nash caught nine passes for 145 yards and six touchdowns for Dallas. James MacPherson led the Rampage with 335 yards and seven touchdowns.

Colorado 36 @ Utah 71

Utah, winless after nine games, recorded their second straight win last night over the Crush. Joe Germaine was 25/33 for 289 yards and six touchdowns to lead the Blaze. John Dutton led Colorado with 298 yards and four touchdowns.

New York 52 @ Los Angeles 48

The Dragons improved to 6-4 with a big road win over the Avengers. Aaron Garcia threw for 208 yards and six touchdowns. Jason Willis caught nine passes for 127 yards and four touchdowns to help lead the Dragons.

Raymond Philyaw and the Cleveland Gladiators continued rolling after last week’s win over the undefeated Philly Soul. Raymond Philyaw threw for seven touchdowns, and even caught one. Robert Redd led the receiving charge for Cleveland, catching nine passes for 126 yards and three touchdowns.

New Orleans 37 @ Tampa Bay 41

New Orleans dropped their second straight game and Tampa Bay improved to 4-6. Brett Dietz continues to be one of the most efficient passers in the league, he went 22/32 for 274 yards and four touchdowns. Torrance Marshall also ran for two scores for the Storm.

San Jose 63 @ Arizona 42

The game was tied at 42 to begin the fourth quarter, but San Jose scored three unanswered touchdowns to take the win and improve to 6-5. The defending champs were led by QB Mark Grieb, who went 28/35 for 289 yards and eight touchdowns. Former Michigan State quarterback Jeff Smoker led the Rattlers with 250 yards and four scores.

The last unbeaten team in the AFL fell this week in Cleveland. The Soul held a 34-27 lead at recess, but the Gladiators outscored them 40-21 in the second half to take the 67-55 victory. Raymond Philyaw got it done through the air for Cleveland, he threw for 290 yards and five touchdowns. The running game was a big catalyst of the offense, Marlion Jackson ran 11 times for 49 yards and four touchdowns. Tony Graziani and Matt D’Orazio split time at QB for Philly, each throwing three scores. D’Orazio started the game, but left with an undisclosed injury.

Grand Rapids 28 @ Colorado 63

The Rampage continued to struggle as they were thrashed by the Crush. John Dutton led Colorado, completing 34/46 passes for 319 yards and five touchdowns. Four of those scores went to Aaron Hosack, who caught 10 passes for 88 yards and the four touchdowns.

New Orleans 39 @ Georgia 66

The VooDoo had a rare stumble as they fell to 7-3 after a loss to the Georgia Force. Chris Greisen led the force throwing for 290 yards and six touchdowns. Danny Wimprine led the VooDoo with 297 passing yards and five touchdowns.

Dallas 48 @ Columbus 45

The Desperados bounced back after recording their first loss against Philly. Clint Dolezel found Will Pettis with 15-seconds to go to win the game. Dolezel was 24/37 for 291 yards and seven scores. His counterpart Matt Nagy threw for 267 yards and four touchdowns.

San Jose 35 @ Orlando 61

The defending champs could not find any luck in Orlando as the Preds routed the Sabercats. Orlando had three defensive touchdowns, including two by Kenny “The Glove” McEntyre. Mark Grieb threw five touchdowns in the loss for San Jose.

Kansas City 50 @ Utah 67

The Utah Blaze finally got in the winning column against the struggling 1-8 Brigade. Joe Germaine continues to dazzle the AFL with his passing, he threw for 337 yards and eight touchdowns. He also completed 24 of 30 passes thrown.

Arizona 59 @ Los Angeles 66

A western division rivalry game delivered another gem. With the game tied at 59, Tim Hicks found Timon Marshall with 22-seconds to go to win the game by a slim touchdown. Hicks threw for 328 yards and six touchdowns. Lang Campbell also had a nice game for the Rattlers, he threw for 277 yards and seven scores.

Chicago 51 @ Tampa Bay 46

Russell Athletic Monday Night Football provided another great game this week. Despite a late surge from Brett Dietz and the Storm, the Rush held them off to improve to 8-2. Russ Michna led Chicago with 184 passing yards and four touchdowns. Brett Dietz threw for 290 yards and three touchdowns to lead Tampa Bay.

In only three games, Clint Dolezel has thrown for 768 yards and 19 touchdowns. His backup, Chris Sanders, threw for only 18 touchdowns in six games. Marcus Nash and Will Pettis make the best wide receiver duo in the league, Nash has 15 touchdowns while Pettis has 14. In six games, Matt D’Orazio has thrown for 1,496 yards and 31 scores. Chris Jackson is putting up MVP-like numbers, he has caught 72 passes for 915 yards and 29 touchdowns. If you shutdown Jackson, you just may derail the offense.

The game can be seen tonight at 8 PM ET on ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD. These two teams are in the same division, so this is already playoff implications. Should be a great game, a real toss-up to pick.