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+---- Thread: *Week 3: Philadelphia Liberty at O.C. Otters (/showthread.php?tid=2957)
*Week 3: Philadelphia Liberty at O.C. Otters - RedCydranth - 08-05-2017
Week 3: Philadelphia Liberty at Orange County Otters
Week 2 was not kind to either the Liberty or the Otters. Both teams suffered their second loss, and remained winless. Luckily, for one of these teams, that streak will end. For the other, they'll look to Week 4 and hope. The Liberty are on their third straight away game, while their home field Taco Bell Field gets the final touches in place. The Otters are celebrating their home opener. Will they be disappointed or will the Liberty end their road trip with a win, exciting fans back home in Philadelphia for next week's opener?
The game kicked off in sunny Southern California. The Liberty received the ball first. Jameis Christ took the first snap and dropped back to pass and defensive end Adamle Tomlinson hunted him down for a quick sack. It looked as if the left tackle missed the snap count and the veteran just took advantage. Christ on second down made some of it back with a throw to receiver Fox North. Facing a third and 9, Christ took it back to pass once more. This time one of the guards didn't pick up big JJ Reigns who thundered in and took down Christ for the second sack of the game. The Liberty offense looked perplexed on that first drive as some left the field when the punting unit came on. After the following punt, the Otters started the game on their 19 yard line. The Otters chipped away yards in the drive with a Bowers rush and a Boss throw for 5 yards bringing up a 3rd and 3, but a Liberty penalty gave them yards and a first down. Boss dropped back and Ryan Phelps juked and took off past CB Tyler Oles. Boss threw the pass just a bit long, but Phelps hauled it in. It would have gone the distance but Phelps had to make sure his footing was straight, the adjustment gave Oles time to catch up and take him down, but the damage was done for 37 yards. On the ensuing first down, Boss dropped it off the his solid back, Leroy Jenkins who burned down the field for 18 yards ending up on the Liberty 4 yard line. Jenkins was hungry for the ball and Boss fed him, but the Liberty, with their backs against the wall, read the run play all the way and stuffed him for a 2 yard loss. On second Boss surveyed the field and saw the TE George Wright about to break open. Boss anticipated the break but Wright couldn't get both hands on the ball. On third down, Boss looked at Phelps the whole way and the Safety covering Wright bit and broke coverage, Boss adjusted and threw a strike to the recently wide open Tight End for the easy score. 7-0 Otters. On the kickoff the Liberty couldn't get a solid return so they had to start at their own 12. The Liberty went 3 and out with 1 completion and 2 drops. The Otters took the punt and got to their own 49 to start their second drive of the game. But even with great position, the Otters couldn't muster the 10 yards for the first. But their punt landed very well and pinned the Liberty on their own 4 yard line. Normally the play here is to do a run with your strongest back to get some breathing room, but the Liberty called for a pass play, hoping it'd catch the defense unaware. Nobody bit and again, Adamale Tomlinson shoved by the tackle and crucified Christ for a safety. 9-0 Otters. After the free kick the Otters looked to keep piling on and make their home opener a complete blowout. After a good first down rush by Bowers, the Otters dropped back for a pass on second down. Ottokar Von Gerhardt sniffed the play and quickly got to Boss, but he was able to fight his way back to the line of scrimmage. As he was about to go down the ball might have popped out. After the scrum the referees peeled away player after player and it was revealed that Jenkins of the Otters had wound up on the loose ball. Still, the play was reviewed to see if he was down before the line or if he fumbled before his knee hit. The players waited around while the referee was under the hood. Eventually he came out and announced that the knee was not down and that it was indeed a fumble. Jenkins recovered it on the 46 yard line, the original line of scrimmage. Third down. On third down they went back to the run and fed Bowers the ball. He powered for 4 yards, but he was clearly a yard short of the marker. The Otters, even though they were at midfield, played it safe and punted. The punt went out of bounds at what looked like the goal line from most people's point of view. The referees all ran over and conferred and it was determined that the ball exited at the 1 yard line. The Liberty, if they wanted a touchdown would have to drive literally the entire length of the field. Or at least avoid a second humiliating safety. On first instead of rushing, they opted for a pass again, but it fell incomplete. They finally went run on 2nd down but Omar Wright only gained 1 yard. Facing a third and 9 on their own 2, they boldly went pass again. Damien Kroetch took a short pass and took it up field for a 27 yard gain. A little confusion before they got their first down snap off, there were too many men on the field bringing their yardage requirement to 15. Since it worked before, Jameis looked at Kroetch 3 straight times on 3 straight downs. Only on the third try did he catch the ball before quickly being tackled by CB Marc Spector. This brought up 4th and 7 and the punting unit. Boss on first down looked at Westfield and threw a lazy pass his way. Safety Vikian Marmeladov easily cut in front of the receiver and came down with the interception returning it inside the Otters 10 yard line. The Liberty took the field and looked confident. Christ scrambled left looking at Hunter Mason but the ball sailed just out of his reach. On second down they let Omar Wright take it through the middle where he got a solid 3 yards. On third, they faked run and did a quick out again to Mason, this time connecting for the touchdown! Liberty in hot pursuit at 7-9 and there was still over a minute left in this exciting first quarter. On the ensuing kickoff, Phelps handled it and zoomed past several CBs and LBs until he was taken down at the Otter 34 yard line. On first down Boss dropped back and again looked at his receivers. They were all covered and pressure was coming, so in an attempt to just get some short yards, he flicked the ball towards blocking TE Josh Davidson. He wasn't ready for the ball and it bobbled around until Safety Lincoln Jefferson took it out of the air and fell down securing possession. Boss had been picked off for the second straight throw. The Liberty had the ball at the 39 yard line and hoped to at least muster a field goal and the 1 point lead. On first down he looked at Fox North and gunned it, but it was too low and hit the turf. On second down they handed it off to their safety Lincoln Jefferson, who was oddly subbed in for Ryan Jensen. The trickery didn't work out as he fell short for a yard. On third they went back to the air and only got 3 yards. The last play of the crazy first quarter was a punt resulting in a touchback.
Starting at their own 20, Boss on first down find Ryan Phelps for a 20 yard strike and gives Orange County some early momentum in the second quarter. Three straight runs, one by Bowers, 2 by Jenkins nets a second first down of the drive. On first down Boss throws again, this time a modest 7 yard throw to Trey Willie, the recently signed free agent for his first reception as an Otter, and in the NSFL. He tossed the ball to the sideline for safekeeping. Now in enemy territory, the drive continues with 4 straight productive runs, one by Bowers and three by Jenkins. At the 36 yard line though, several pass attempts failed and the drive came to a 42 yard field goal attempt. Langdon, who didn't kick a single field goal in week 2's contest, and is 3 for 5 on the season, kicked the ball and it crossed over the bar with about 3 feet to spare. 12-7 Orange County. The kickoff yielded a solid return and Philly started their drive from the 31. A one yard pass followed by an incomplete brought up 3rd and 9. Christ dropped back, and he had no pressure. He took his time and surveyed his receivers. He looked to his most reliable target, Fox North and led him downfield with a spiral. North brought it down and ran about 10 more yards before being taken down by Petrakis. A 37 yard gain put them in Otter territory and in striking distance. Christ again looked North's way and Fox brought in the pass for a 4 yard gain. Second and third down Jameis threw to his other targets but they were either deflected or missed the mark. The field goal unit came on the the 44 yard attempt. Stephen Harris waited for the snap and booted the ball and it sailed through the uprights for 3 points. 12-10 Orange County clinging to a 2 point lead. Orange county started their next drive at their 13 yard line. Boss threw to rookie Willie again for an 8 yard gain and followed it with a 9 yard Jenkins rush. On first down, Boss looked to throw at Bowers for a short pass but linebacker Donovan Maric read the play and got into intercept the ball. The turnover inside Otter territory gave the Liberty their first chance to take the lead in this stadium. On the 41 yard line, Jameis looked to his always reliable receiver Fox North and hit him twice in a row, for 15 and 25 yards. If you're good at math then you'll calculate that put the Liberty on the 1 yard line with three chances to seal the deal and take a 4-5 point lead. On first down Christ looked again to North but before he could throw Franklin Harris broke through the line and sacked him for 6 yards. Now on the 7, they handed the ball off to their back Omar Wright who grabbed a yard back. Third and goal, Jameis took the ball and ran right, looking towards Kroetch but Ian Bavitz, another linebacker, grabbed Christ by the waist and spun him down for another 6 yard sack. The goal line unit stood their ground and the Liberty field goal unit came on. Harris took the snap and kicked the ball, and on the line one of the Otter safeties got a finger on the ball and it spun oddly up. Everyone watched as the ball moved towards to uprights and still managed to wobble its way through for 3 points and the lead. 13-12 Philadelphia took the lead. Boos in Orange County filled the air. The fans were noticeably upset with their team. With just over 2 minutes in the half, the Otters took the ball at their 25 yard line. The drive, despite using all 3 timeouts didn't get very far. By the time they crossed into Philadelphia territory, there was less than a minute and no timeouts. A few quick shots to get into field goal range fell short and halftime came as the home team went into the locker room down to the expansion team.
The start of the third quarter, the Otters got the ball at the 27 yard line but could only get it to their 41 before having to punt away. The Liberty were even less successful on their first drive of the second half, failing to even get a first down and quickly punted back to Orange County. Defense was solid for the Liberty again, for the Otters second drive. Stuffing the run at the line of scrimmage and two incomplete passes forced the Otters to have a three and out and again punt. The Liberty second drive started at their 41 had Wright rush for 7 early yards and Mason pull down a 7 yard pass for a first down. Now in Otter land, Christ returned to Hunter Mason but the pass was out of reach. On second down Wright gained one yard bringing up a long 3rd down. Christ went to pass, looking for Fox North but recently signed Romeo Devitt made his presence felt with a sack of 6 yards, putting the 4th down on exactly the 50 yard line. After a touchback, Orange County took the ball, but once again their offense failed to generate 10 yards and returned the ball to Philadelphia. The Philadelphia drive was slightly more productive as they gained a first down with a short pass and run combo between TE Paul DiMirio and Omar Wright. On the following set of downs they ran 3 straight times with Wright but only came away with 3 yards and a 4th and 7. The Liberty once again punted the ball. Boss took the ball at their 20 yard line and passed it for a 5 yard gain to George Wright, and then a dump pass to Jenkins for another 5 yards. 2 straight Bowers runs led to a 3rd and 3 where Boss once again targeted his tight end. Wright hauled in the pass for 11 yards and the first down. On first and ten, Boss quickly got the ball off and into the hands of Phelps for a 10 yard pass that he ran and extended into a 31 yard gain. Now inside the Philadelphia red zone, the crowd grew excited. On first Boss went to Wright again, but he couldn't connect. On second he targeted Jenkins for a 5 yard pass. On 3rd and 5, Boss watched as one of the safeties failed to cover rookie Trey Willie over the middle. Boss threw a dart his way and Willie was more than ready for it. He hauled it in at the 4 yard line and leapt into the end zone for the touchdown! The scoreboard flashed 19-13 and the Otter fans were waving their orange flags and music filled the stadium. On first down after the touchback Jameis passed in the direction of Hunter Mason. Mason couldn't connect with the ball but a hard hitting Marc Spector took him down hard anyhow. An unnecessary roughness penalty was called. Mason got up and started saying something to Spector, Spector got in Mason's face talking back. Fellow CB Anthony Petrakis came to pull him away from the situation while Fox North did the same to Hunter Mason. The two were sent to the sidelines to cool off for a few plays. After the fracas, the concentration of Jameis Christ was off, and he threw 3 straight incomplete passes. A punt ended the 3rd quarter.
The first drive in the final quarter of this heated game had the Otters go three and out as only Jenkins could get a 2 yard run as production. The following Philly drive began at their own 18 and on first down rookie Ben Green got his first sack of the season taking Jameis Christ down at his 14 yard line. On the following play, Jameis connected with Hunter Mason for a 15 yard gain but it was called back because Damien Kroetch was called for tripping Marc Spector. Marc was visibly upset but he looked over to Petrakis and nodded, keeping his cool. Half the distance to the goal on what would have been a 15 yard penalty meant the Liberty were on their own 7 facing a 2nd and 21. Instead of risking a sack, they opted to hand off to wright twice and he could only get 2 yards back and the Liberty were forced to punt. The Otters started the drive on their own 45 yard line and quickly crossed into Liberty turf with a 4 yard rush and an 8 yard pass to Wright. On first down a 6 yard pass to Westfield moved them closer to field goal range and hopefully the goal line. On the next play Liberty CB Tyler Oles got his fingers up in Ryan Phelps helmet and the referees caught it, flagging him for a facemask, giving the Otters free yards. Now a first down at the 22 yard line Jenkins was met at the line of scrimmage for a gain of maybe an inch. On second down Wright took a catch for 5 yards and on third Boss looked all the way at Bradley Westfield in the endzone. He had it in his hands but a solid hit by Oles caused the Pro-Bowler to drop the 6 point pass. On 4th down, Langdon came in and booted a field goal putting the Otters up 22-13. Philadelphia took the ball at their 35 yard line and was unable to make much use of their drive only gaining a 3 yard run by Wright. The punt to the Otters went into Otter territory and they would begin at their 33. The Otters clearly wanted to drain clock and keep the ball out of Liberty hands, and hopefully pad their 2 score lead. A rush started the drive and a first down was gained on a 21 yard pass to Ryan Phelps. Now in shallow Liberty territory, the Otters playcalling was definitely designed to drain the clock. 4 straight runs, resulting in 7 yards and a turnover on downs put the clock at 5:08. Philadelphia needed to score on this drive and hopefully get the ball back again, while using their timeouts wisely to have hope of winning. A dripped pass on first down and a 5 yard pass to Kroetch put the Liberty at a 3rd and 5. Omar Wright took the handoff and juked past Devitt only to be met by LB Tomlinson for a 3 yard gain. Short of the first down, the Liberty had to punt and pray. On their 20, Boss wanted to get some yards before draining the clock more, so he tried a couple passes. One went for 2 yards and the second was deflected by Perry Tucker. On third down they handed it off to Leroy Jenkins and he plowed his way forward for 3 yards. Not enough to keep the ball, but the clock kept ticking as the punting unit took the field. By the time the Liberty took the ball there was only 3 minutes left. Starting at their own 42, Wright ran for 6 yards. Instead of burning a timeout, they spiked the ball. On third down Damien Kroetch took a pass for 7 yards and the first down. Timeout #1. Two straight incomplete passes brought up 3rd and 10. An 8 yard pass and Timeout #2 brought up 4th and 2. On 4th Christ again looked Kroetch's way for a 4 yard completion. Timeout #3. With only 52 seconds left, the Liberty brought in Lincoln Jefferson as a third receiver. The defense scrambled to figure out what sort of trickeration this was going to be. Christ snapped the ball and handed it off to Wright, who lateraled it back to Christ. It was the flee flicker! DBs and Safeties scrambled around the field trying to cover the receivers. Kroetch was entangled with Spector, Harris was covering Mason and Petrakis had been assigned to cover the CB turned WR Lincoln Jefferson. The safeties were covering the middle where the TEs ran an X pattern. Christ let the ball fly and it was a jump ball between Petrakis and Jefferson. Jefferson came down with is and began running fowards the endzone, but he couldn't get far as Petrakis jumped on his back and brought him down as the playclock hit 0:00. The Otters had won their first game of the season over a very competitive and thirsty Liberty team.
Overall the game was solid. While Mike Boss won, he was the poorer QB throwing 3 Interceptions, but he also got 2 touchdowns. Jameis Christ got a TD but did not throw an picks. In the running game neither was outstanding, but the Otters gained more from scrimmage than Philadelphia. Phelps was the most productive receiver yardwise with 117 yards but Wright and Willie brought in the TDs. For Philly, it was Fox North who gained the most yards but rookie Hunter Mason who gained their lone TD. Donovan Meric led the game in tackles with 11. The Liberty also had 11 pass deflections to the Otters' 4. The Liberty couldn't get to the QB at all, and the Otters brought down Christ a whopping 7 times. I think that was a huge reason the Otters won today.
MVP: Adamle Tomlinson - 4 Tackles, 2 Sacks, 1 Safety
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