Tampa Bay Football History Network - 1992 Tampa Bay Storm

1992 Tampa Bay Storm

Quarterback Chip Ferguson and Tom Gizzi, the only holdover from the days when the franchise was located in Pittsburgh, left the team. New wide receivers added to the roster were Michigan State's Eddie Brown and Tulane's Corey Dowden. WR/DB Bobby Byrd, a local product out of Northeast High School and the University of Miami, also joined the team. Western Illinois University's Paul Singer became the new backup quarterback. The Storm defeated Albany in a preseason game played in Ottawa, Canada, which was the first time the team played outside the United States.

On May 29, the Storm opened the season at Orlando. While Jay Gruden (23 of 40 for 243 yards) threw for four scores, Jerry Odom ran for three Predators touchdowns. The game was tied 22-22 at the half and would come down to a Jay Gruden touchdown pass with 4.5 seconds showing on the Orlando Arena clock. Ralph Jarvis, a lineman who was tight end eligible, caught the game winner in a 39-32 victory. Jarvis said of his first career reception, "It was the first catch I ever made, high school, college or the pros."

The next week, 16,123 watched the home opener against New Orleans and it turned out to be the highest scoring game in team history. Brain Wiggins had a huge game for the visitors, 13 receptions for 247 yards with four touchdowns, and the Storm trailed 52-38 with a minute left in the third quarter. The home team roared back with 26 unanswered points to seal the victory. Anthony Howard scored three touchdowns and Jay Gruden (18 of 30 for 235 yards) threw for six TDs in the come from behind win. A total of 124 points were scored, 64 by the Storm and 60 by the Night. New Orleans 60 points set a league record for most points in defeat. Storm lineman Carl Watts said "We're doing it the hard way."

On a Friday night at the Charlotte Coliseum, Jay Gruden (18 of 28 for 232 yards) threw four touchdown passes, Stevie Thomas had 108 yards receiving and two TDs, and Les Barley rushed for 48 yards. The game's final play was a 50 yard field goal attempt by Rage place kicker Damon Hartman, who had kicked a 51 yarder in the second quarter. When the field goal attempt failed, the Storm won 39-37. Lary Kuharich said of the game, "Winning on the last play is common in this league."

When Cleveland came to St. Petersburg, it was a match between the league's only undefeated teams after three weeks. Major Harris ran 7 yards for a touchdown and the visitors lead 7-0 after the first quarter. While Harris (9 of 20 for 175 yards) also threw for three scores, Detrich Wise recorded two of the Storm's four sacks of the Thunderbolts quarterback. The Storm would come back to lead 21-12 at the intermission and 35-18 after three quarters. Jay Gruden (17 of 29 for 286 yards) had three TD passes and Stevie Thomas (177 yards receiving) had a pair of TD receptions in a 35-24 Storm victory.

Tampa Bay trailed 25-22 at the half and 34-22 after three quarters at the Reunion Arena in Dallas. Jay Gruden engineered a comeback with three fourth quarter TD passes, twice hitting Stevie Thomas, and the Storm out scored the Texans 27-3 in the final fifteen minutes. Gruden tossed six touchdowns that night, while Stevie Thomas caught four TDs and a team record 199 yards receiving. Tampa Bay posted a 49-37 victory and had opened the season with five straight wins.

On July 2, Tampa Bay hosted Orlando. The Storm was the only remaining undefeated team after five weeks and had won nine straight games dating back to the previous season. Orlando jumped to an early 17-0 lead, then the Storm came back to lead 27-20. While the Storm generated 353 total yards, 304 yards off the arm of Jay Gruden, the Tampa Bay quarterback had a tough night. Gruden threw a team record five interceptions with Carl Aikens returning two for fourth quarter touchdowns. The Storm were penalized twelve times and each team had three touchdowns called back. Late in the game, when Anthony Howard was ruled down on an apparent touchdown run, Lary Kuharich was called for unsportsmanlike conduct. Kuharich was flagged for being on the field of play and debris was tossed by the Florida Suncoast Dome crowd. Following the 48-33 defeat, an angry Storm head coach talked about the call. "I don't know if it was a high school or college guy who doesn't know the pro rules making the call."

The team bounced back the following week in the first meeting against the expansion Arizona Rattlers. Jay Gruden hit Stevie Thomas for three first half touchdowns and the Storm lead 40-14 after two quarters at the America West Arena. Thomas also caught a second half TD pass from Gruden (17 of 26 for 255 yards) and returned a kickoff 57 yards for a score. Defensively, Reggie Berry became the first Storm player to intercept three passes in a game. After the 59-28 win, Gruden said "We're talking about the playoffs now. We have to take each one at a time, of course, but obviously we're looking at another championship."

Next up, a home game against the Albany Firebirds. Jay Gruden (21 of 25 for 305 yards) tossed a league record eight touchdowns and completed a team record 84 percent of his passes. Stevie Thomas caught eight passes for 155 yards and four touchdowns. The Storm scored five touchdowns on five first half possessions and lead 35-28 at the break. They also out scored Albany 20-7 in the fourth quarter of a 62-42 victory.

Former Buccaneers place kicker Donald Igwebuike saw his first AFL action in a game at New Orleans. Jay Gruden connected with Eddie Brown on two scoring passes, but Igwebuike missed his first two extra point attempts and the Storm lead 12-0. Igwebuike made his next five PATs, Gruden finished with five TD passes, and Anthony Howard scored on a fumble return and a touchdown reception. The Storm lead 26-14 at the intermission and held the home team scoreless in the second half of a 53-14 victory. Lary Kuharich commented, "It helps to have guys playing well and confident heading into the playoffs."

The regular season finale was a tight game against Charlotte at the Dome. On the first play from scrimmage, Jay Gruden threw a 30 yard touchdown pass to Stevie Thomas for a quick 6-0 lead. The Rage came back to lead the game 26-19, before the Storm tied it up on the last play of the third quarter. That was the first of 20 unanswered points for the home team in a 39-32 victory. Thomas caught five balls for 117 yards, as he and Gruden hooked up on four touchdowns. Gruden said afterwards, "We really wanted to end on a positive note going into the playoffs."

Orlando and Tampa Bay finished the regular season tied atop the Southern Division at 9-1. Orlando won the title based on total points scored in the games between the two teams (80-72). The Storm had a team record .900 winning percentage and this was the only season they went undefeated on the road. Jay Gruden lead the league in passing and tied the AFL record for touchdowns in one season with 50, however, he also set a team record with 15 interceptions. He had 2,491 yards passing and a quarterback rating of 106.84. Gruden became the first member of the Storm voted the league's Most Valuable Player. Andre Bowden (134 yards and 6 touchdowns) finished seventh in the league in rushing and lead the team with seven sacks. Stevie Thomas, who had career highs in touchdown receptions (26) and receiving yards (1,203), placed fifth in the AFL in receiving. Thomas became the first Storm player to lead the league in scoring (162 points) and averaged a team record 18.0 yards per catch. Paul Hickert (45 points) was ninth in the league in kicking. Gruden and Thomas were named to the All-Arena League team. Tampa Bay lead the league in attendance for the second consecutive year, with an average of 20,092 attending their home games.

The Storm hosted the first round of the playoffs against Cincinnati, as their former coach Fran Curci came back to town. The teams had not met in the regular season and the Rockers had come on strong behind quarterback Art Schlichter. Jay Gruden (15 of 33 for 260 yards with 3 TDs and 2 interceptions) hit Jeff Mayes on the longest touchdown pass in team postseason history, 46 yards. Schlichter (16 of 38 for 191 yards with an INT) threw four touchdown passes and ran for a score. Tampa Bay jumped to a 16-0 lead and won the game 41-36. The Storm had won five in a row going into a semi-final match up with Orlando.

On August 15, the Storm and Predators again met at the Orlando Arena. It was a low scoring game with Orlando holding a 9-3 lead at the half. Jay Gruden (19 of 29 for 229 yards with an interception and no touchdowns) was sacked six times, twice in the end zone for safeties, and the Storm got to Orlando quarterback Ben Bennett four times. Trailing 12-3 in the third quarter, Doug Landry (50 yards rushing on 10 carries) ran for two Storm touchdowns and the score was tied at 21. Each team had a shot at winning the game at the end of regulation. Orlando's Jorge Cimadevilla failed on a 20 yard field goal with 9.5 seconds left and Donald Igwebuike missed a 58 yarder as time expired. What a scenario for the first overtime game in Storm history. During the first minute of overtime, following a fumbled snap by Ben Bennett, Igwebuike attempted his team playoff record sixth field goal. Unfortunately, he missed a 31 yard field goal which would have won it for Tampa Bay. With 6:23 remaining in the first overtime period, Cimadevilla kicked a 17 yard field goal to give the Predators a 24-21 victory. Igwebuike said of missing the field goal in OT, "I don't have any excuses. I just screwed up, period." Jay Gruden added, "It just wasn't meant to be."

The Orlando game set several Storm postseason records. The 45 total points by both teams are lowest for a Storm playoff game. The game also holds the records for smallest margin of defeat, the fewest Storm first downs (13), and the fewest pass completions allowed (13) in the postseason.

On January 30, 1993, the Storm took part in the only Arena Football League game played in Germany. The league had explored the idea of having two seasons in the same calendar year and thought Europe might be a possibility. An exhibition game was held in Paris after the 1990 season, then Paris and London each hosted a game after the 1991 season. After the 1992 season, in addition to the Storm playing Detroit in Frankfurt, two games where held in Paris. In what turned out to be the last European exhibition, Jay Gruden threw three touchdown passes in a 43-35 victory over the Drive. While all the games were well attended, the game at Frankfurt's Festhalle was a sellout, the concept of a second European season never came to fruition.

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