2003 Tampa Bay Storm
2003 Tampa Bay Storm
Another change for 2003 was that the Storm's home had a new name. The naming rights for the Ice Palace were purchased by the St. Petersburg Times and the arena was renamed the St. Pete Times Forum.
The opening day roster featured sixteen returning players and eight newcomers. Quarterback John Kaleo was back, however, Scott Milanovich and Shane Stafford were not. Milanovich was traded to Detroit for lineman Kelvin Kinney. Stafford was signed by the New England Patriots and allocated to NFL Europe. Seven year veteran QB Pat O'Hara was signed as a backup. Other key players resigned were Lawrence Samuels and Alvin Ashley. Pete Elezovic, who the team signed for last season's playoff run, took over the kicking duties. Free agents included WR/LB Clif Dell, who played at Orlando and for the University of South Florida, former Orlando lineman BJ Cohen, eleven year veteran and three time All-Arena WR/LB Gary Compton, Arena Bowl 2002 Ironman WR/DB Omarr Smith and former Carolina Panthers lineman Al Lucas.
On the season's first play from scrimmage, Keita Crespina returned an interception for a score and the Storm had a quick lead in Tampa. The Storm went on to intercept Carolina quarterbacks a team records five times with Corey Sawyer equaling the team record with a pair of picks. Chad DeGrenier (9 of 20 for 113 yards with 2 TDs) was intercepted four times, a Storm record for most picks of an opposing QB, and Stewart Patridge (7 of 13 for 57 yards with a TD) was picked off once. The Storm offense also clicked with John Kaleo (16 of 27 for 214 yards) throwing six touchdown passes and four players scoring their first TDs with Tampa Bay. Freddie Solomon, a former Philadelphia Eagle who missed all of the 2002 season due to a training camp injury, caught ten passes for 132 yards and three touchdowns. Clif Dell and Gary Compton caught their first Storm TDs, while Troy Wilson scored his first professional touchdown. Compton also became the third player in league history to go over 10,000 receiving yards. Pat O'Hara (5 of 9 for 47 yards with 1 INT) saw his first action with the team and threw a TD pass. The game was tied 14-14 after the first quarter, then the Storm scored 39 unanswered points to rout the Cobras 60-20. Tim Marcum said of opening night, "We've still got a lot of work to do, but I like what I saw."
In a wild game at Orlando, the Storm never caught a break in the team's first
appearance on NBC. Tampa Bay forced three turnovers, two of them resulting in
scores, but the referees overturned the original call each time. There was
also a questionable out of bounds call on another apparent Tampa Bay touchdown.
Even on the only defensive stop of the game, a fumble recovery in the end
zone for a touchdown that gave the Predators a 27-14 second quarter lead, it
appeared that Orlando was off-sides. John Kaleo (25 of 39 for 270 yards) did
throw six touchdown passes and Freddie Solomon (8 catches for 111 yards) scored
three TDs for the second straight week. Jay Gruden (24 of 41 for 330 yards)
had a big afternoon for Orlando and also threw for six scores. Cory Flemming
caught four of Gruden's TD passes and Travis McGriff (11 receptions for 155
yards) had the other two. Each team was penalized ten times in the game. Tim
Marcum spoke of his team's effort in a 54-52 defeat. "I'm proud of this team.
That dog was hunting all night long." On the questionable calls, the head
coach said, "I can't say anything about the officials because I'll get fined.
Let's just leave it at that." John Kaleo said, "We felt like we got one taken
away from us."
The Storm took a 21 point fourth quarter lead in the first AFL game played at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas. The Gladiators, last season the team was in New Jersey, would come back and defeat the Storm in overtime. John Kaleo (19 of 33 for 251 yards) threw five touchdowns, but one of his two interceptions was returned for a score. Lawrence Samuels caught two touchdown passes and David White ran for a pair of scores, as the Storm built a 55-34 advantage midway through the fourth quarter. Jay McDonagh (19 of 26 for 189 yards) threw three TD passes for Las Vegas and he also ran for two scores. Mike Horacek (10 receptions for 105 yards) caught his second TD pass of the night and the game was tied at the one minute warning. Pete Elezovic missed a 54 yard field goal as time expired, earlier he had failed on three conversions and a short field goal, so the game went to overtime. A 2 yard Sedrick Robinson TD run, he returned a kickoff 56 yards for a score in the first quarter, and the Gladiators had a 61-55 victory. Tim Marcum commented, "I would say from this point forward, our kicking job is open." Elezovic was released during the week.
The third consecutive road game took place in Grand Rapids. The Storm took a 28-14 second quarter lead, but it took a Ian Howfield field goal as the first half expired to keep them in front 31-28. Howfield, a five year AFL veteran who had not played since 1997, was signed during the week. John Kaleo (23 of 35 with 3 TDs and 1 INT) threw for 306 yards with Freddie Solomon (9 receptions for 167 yards) catching two TD passes. David White ran for two touchdowns and the Storm held leads of 41-28 and 49-35 in the second half. The Rampage kept coming back with Clint Dolezel (24 of 35 for 282 yards with 2 INTs) throwing for seven touchdowns. Terrill Shaw (9 receptions for 103 yards) hauled in four TD passes, and Willis Marshall (6 receptions for 113) caught two, as Grand Rapids took a 56-55 lead with 49 seconds left in the game. As time expired, Howfield became the hero in his first game with Tampa Bay with a 23 yard field goal. Tim Marcum said of the 58-56 victory, "This is what Arena football is all about. It kept everybody entertained right down to the last second."
The Storm lead Detroit 35-17 at the half and 48-31 after three quarters in Tampa, then had to hang on for a victory. Freddie Solomon caught five passes for 105 yards and two scores, he also ran for two TDs, and Clif Dell hauled in a pair of touchdown passes. John Kaleo (17 of 23 for 317 yards) threw for six TDs and became the first Storm QB to throw for over 300 yards in consecutive games. Andy Kelly (24 of 38 for 297 with an INT) threw for seven Fury touchdowns. Marcus Nash caught four touchdown passes for Detroit and Junior Lord had six receptions for 100 yards. Despite being out-scored 29-14 in the final quarter, the Storm posted a 62-60 victory.
Buffalo came to town and Tim Marcum became the first coach in league history to coach in 200 games. John Kaleo (22 of 34 for 223 yards with 1 INT) threw five touchdown passes, and went over 300 career TD passes, as the Storm won in a rout. Lawrence Samuels was on the receiving end of three TD passes, while Freddie Solomon caught a scoring pass and returned a kickoff for a TD. On defense, Kelvin Kinney sacked Destroyers quarterback Jeff Loots (21 of 34 for 190 yards with 1 TD and 1 INT) for a safety and BJ Cohen returned an interception for another score. The Storm were up 14-0 after the first quarter, scored the game's first 26 points and lead 39-6 at the half. Tampa Bay won going away 52-27.
The Storm's third straight home game took place against Orlando. Al Lucas
sacked Predators quarterback Connell Maynor for an early safety and the home
team was up 16-7 after one quarter. The Storm stretched the lead to 23-7 and
the defense was the key. Maynor (17 of 35 for 249 yards with 3 TDs) was sacked
four times and intercepted once. Omarr Smith recorded the pick and also
recovered a fumble. The Storm ran for a team record five touchdowns with
Freddie Solomon and Basil Proctor each rushing for a pair of scores. John
Kaleo (18 of 30 for 209 yards) added two touchdown passes. Travis McGriff
caught two scoring passes, and Cory Fleming had seven receptions for 115 yards
and a TD for Orlando. The Storm were ahead 26-13 at the half, up 39-19 after
three quarters and posted an easy 52-32 victory. Storm lineman Bj Cohen said
of the game, "They were undefeated. But they had to come in here and take away
something that we earned. We're undefeated at home. You can't come in here
and eat."
The Storm got off to a big lead at Indianapolis. The game was tied 7-7, then the Storm lead 24-7 at the half and 31 unanswered points gave them 38-7 third quarter advantage. John Kaleo (20 of 34 for 218 yards) threw four touchdown passes, David Saunders was on the receiving end of three scoring passes and the Storm rushed for 53 yards. The defense came up big again and intercepted Indiana quarterback James Ballard (11 of 21 for 128 yards with 1 TD) four times. Corey Sawyer and Omarr Smith each equaled the team record with a pair of interceptions. Jeremy McDaniel did catch eleven passes for 128 yards and two Firebirds touchdowns. Saunders said after the 41-20 victory, "Man, it's so much fun out here. With the talent we've got, the only team that can stop us is ourselves."
Returning home, the Storm found themselves trailing Arizona 32-28 at the half. Tampa Bay would dominate the second half and out-scored the Rattlers 40-7 after the intermission, including 21-0 in the third quarter. John Kaleo (14 of 21 for 276 yards with an INT) equaled the team record with eight touchdown passes and went over 20,000 passing yards for his AFL career. Lawrence Samuels caught three TD passes and intercepted Arizona QB Sherdrick Bonner (21 of 31 for 248 yards with 4 TDs). Freddie Solomon and David Saunders each added a pair of touchdown catches. The Storm defense recovered three fumbles with Keita Crespina returning one a team record 45 yards for a score. Andre Bowden, who returned to the team during the week, rushed for the game's final touchdown. It was the Storm's sixth straight victory and the team moved into sole possession of first place. With a 68-39 victory, Tim Marcum became the first coach in AFL history to win 150 career games. Kaleo spoke of the second half comeback, "That kind of shows you the kind of guys we have on our team."
Georgia took a 14-13 lead after the first quarter in Tampa, then the Storm had a 25-21 advantage at the half. Jarrick Hillery and Tyronne Jones each had two touchdowns receptions to lead the Force. Early in the third quarter, the Storm defense would turn the tide. Bj Cohen returned an interception of Donnie Davis 15 yards for a score and the home team stretched the lead to 38-21. Davis (9 of 19 for 139 yards with 3 TDs and 1 INT) was knocked out of the game trying to make a tackle on the play and Leon Murray (10 of 16 for 122 yards with 3 TD and 1 INT) finished up at QB for Georgia. John Kaleo (25 of 37 for 281 yards and 1 INT) passed for five touchdowns with Freddie Solomon catching nine passes for 109 yards and two TDs. Lawrence Samuels also caught a pair of touchdown passes and Andre Bowden ran for two scores. Kaleo said of the 58-39 victory, "We wanted to send a message." Cohen added, "We're not playing games here in Tampa."
| The Arena Football League made huge concessions to seal a deal to have games
broadcast on NBC, such as starting the season a couple months earlier and
increasing the number of games. The AFL was looking for the exposure of being
on one of the major commercial networks and NBC had scheduling holes to fill.
Almost immediately, there were complaints about the NBC coverage. The network
concentrated on larger market teams and some teams, including the Storm, were With low ratings and reduced exposure, expectations were not met on either side and the four year partnership was not continued. A new deal for the 2007 season saw ESPN assume partial ownership of the league. |
Omarr Smith returned an interception 38 yards for a score, and a fumble recovery set up another touchdown, as the Storm jumped to a 21-0 lead after one quarter against the Colorado Crush. Basil Proctor and Andre Bowden ran for scores and the home team stretched the lead over the expansion team 35-10 at the half. Freddie Solomom caught two John Kaleo (23 of 34 for 308 yards with 3 TDs) touchdown passes and Tampa Bay had a 42-23 lead after three quarters. Colorado battled back, but a Mike Black field goal gave the Storm a 45-36 advantage with 1:39 left in the contest. Quarterback John Dutton (26 of 38 for 340 yards) threw for six touchdowns and lead Colorado to four scores in the fourth quarter. Charlie Davidson (11 catches for 136 yards) also came up big for the Crush with three TD catches and a scoring run. Damien Harrell (10 receptions for 142 yards) caught his second touchdown pass of the afternoon, however, the extra point was blocked and the Storm held a 45-42 lead. The Storm could not run off the 41 seconds on the clock and Colorado got the ball back. Harrell scored again with just two seconds left and the Storm's eight game winning streak was over. Tampa Bay was penalized ten times for 79 yards in a crushing defeat. After six straight games allowing fewer than 40 points, the Storm lost 49-45. Tim Marcum commented, "We found a way to screw it up." Kaleo added, "We're our own worst enemy."
Before a trip to Uniondale, New York, the Storm made some roster moves. Mike Black was having trouble with his kickoffs, so five year veteran David Cool became the team's fourth kicker of the season. After being cut from the Buccaneers practice squad, Antoine "T.T." Toliver rejoined the Storm. The New York Dragons opened the scoring with a field goal, then the Storm jumped to a 19-3 lead after one quarter. The Storm had plenty of highlights on both sides of the ball. Lawrence Samuels caught five passes for 118 yards and a touchdown, returned an on-sides kickoff for a score and recovered a fumble. Freddie Solomom had three touchdown receptions and returned a kickoff for another TD. Bj Cohen recorded two of the team's three sacks and also caught one of John Kaleo's (15 of 24 for 226 yards with 1 INT) six touchdown passes. New York QB Brent Petrus (17 of 33 for 194 yards with 1 INT) threw for three scores and ran for two TDs. Mike Furrey had two touchdown receptions for the Dragons. The game was a bit sloppy at times, Tampa Bay was penalized 13 times for 70 yards and New York 11 times for 66 yards, but the Storm won 59-45.
The Storm struggled on their first two possessions at Dallas. After losing yardage on the first drive, and a John Kaleo fumble on the second, a Corey Sawyer interception in the end zone kept the Desperados from gaining the early advantage and the game was tied 7-7 after the first quarter. Dallas turned the ball over four times and each lead to a Storm touchdown. Tampa Bay scored 31 second quarter points to take a 38-28 lead at the half and scored on ten straight possessions to take a 64-42 fourth quarter lead. Kaleo (14 of 22 for 230 yards) threw six touchdown passes, each to a different receiver, and he also had a TD run. One of the TD passes went to Antoine Toliver for his first AFL touchdown. Lawrence Samuels returned an interception for a score, caught a scoring pass and recovered a fumble. The Storm defense had a dramatic goal line stand, as Dallas tried four runs from the one yard line and was denied each time. The Storm may have built a 22 point fourth quarter lead, but the Desperados did not give up. While Dallas QB Jim Kubiak (34 of 42 for 334 yards) fumbled the ball way two times and was intercepted twice, he also threw for nine touchdowns. Dialleo Burks had four touchdown catches and Will Pettis set a Desperados record with 266 all-purpose yards. The home team scored three times in 2:30 and the Storm had to hang on for the win. Tampa Bay was out- gained 334 to 244 in a 67-64 victory and clinched a bye in the first round of the playoffs. Tim Marcum said, "There's no excuse for how we started. The fact that we were able to get the turnovers and get back in it was huge. It was a combination of us playing hard and them being charitable to us."
The Storm defense played well in the regular season home finale, however, the offense and special teams had a tough afternoon against San Jose. The game was scoreless after the first quarter and the Storm almost did not score in the entire first half. Just 40 seconds before the intermission, Freddie Solomon caught the first of his two long touchdown passes to put the team on the board. It should have been 10-6 SaberCats at the half, but the Storm bungled a missed field goal attempt and it was 17-6. San Jose returned the second half kickoff for a touchdown and the Storm continued to misfire. John Kaleo (15 of 41 for 260 yards with 4 TDs) was intercepted three times with one pick returned for a score. While San Jose quarterback Mark Grieb (14 of 35 for 185 yards with 1 TD) was held in check, and Barry Wagner ran for two touchdowns, special teams were the difference. David Cool was out with a rib injury, so former Miami Hooters kicker Steve Kratz became the Storm's fifth place kicker of the season. Once again, Tim Marcum had to say "I was very disappointed with the kicking game." Despite the 47-34 defeat, Kaleo said "We're a good team. We can still win the Arena Bowl easily."
The regular season ended at the Gwinnett Center in Duluth, Georgia. Another
game, another kicker. The Storm signed, Kenny Stucker, the team's sixth place
kicker of the season. John Kaleo (25 of 38 for 315 yards with 5 TDs and 2
INTs) and Freddie Solomon (14 receptions for 172 yards) hooked up on four
touchdown passes to pace the offense. Georgia QB Leon Murray threw four TD
passes and Jarrick Hillery had a pair of TD catches for the Force. The score
was tied 14-14 after the first quarter, 21-21 at the half and 28-28 after
three. It took a touchdown run by David White with 21 seconds left to pull out
a 42-38 victory for Tampa Bay. Tim Marcum, who won his 100th game with the
Storm, said "It was huge for us to get this victory."
The Storm finished 12-4 and won the Southern Division championship. They equaled the team record for victories over the expanded schedule and set a team record for points scored (849). Tampa Bay was near the top of most of the league's defensive statistical categories and second in scoring defense. They lead the AFL, and tied the team record, with 29 sacks and set a new team record with 22 interceptions. The Storm home attendance averaged 12,463, which was seventh best in the league.
Freddie Solomon set Storm records for receptions (106 - seventh in the AFL) and receiving yards (1,553 - sixth in the league). He was second in the league in all purpose yards (2,805) and seventh in the AFL in scoring with 204 points. John Kaleo was fifth in the league in total offense and set team records for touchdown passes (75), passing yards (4,188), completions (316) and attempts (508). Omarr Smith lead the league in fumble recoveries with five and was fifth in the AFL with eight interceptions. Bj Cohen lead the AFL in tackles for a loss (5.5) and was fourth in the league with 6.0 sacks.
Detroit came to town for a playoff game that featured a dozen lead changes. While he was sacked three times, John Kaleo (20 of 32 for 269 yards) tossed six touchdown passes. Freddie Solomon had a big afternoon with eight receptions for 141 yards and four TDs. Quarterback Andy Kelly (25 of 33 for 238 yards) threw four touchdown passes to Marcus Nash to keep the Fury in the game. Two kickoff returns for touchdowns by Detroit's Ron Carpenter made it difficult for the Storm pull away. With 38 seconds left, Omarr Smith intercepted Kelly in the end zone to preserve the win. After the 52-48 victory, Solomon talked about the Storm's most obvious weakness. "We need to tighten up on special teams. It's been a problem for us all year."
A berth in the Arena Bowl was at stake when arch rivals played in Tampa.
After Orlando took a 14-6 first quarter lead, Bj Cohen batted down an attempted
lateral by Predators quarterback Jay Gruden and the momentum changed. John
Kaleo (15 of 21 for 209 yards with 1 INT) threw for five touchdowns, ran for
another score and completed his first nine passes. Freddie Solomon and Antoine
Toliver each had a pair of TD catches and the Storm stretched the lead to 47-
31. Gruden (25 of 42 for 341 yards with 2 INTs) threw six touchdown passes and
Orlando battled back. Thabiti Davis and Corey Fleming each had two TD catches,
while Travis McGriff had 11 receptions for 168 yards with a touchdown. The
Predators pulled to within 47-44, before Basil Proctor ran for his second
touchdown of the game to make it 53-44. With 2:03 left, Clif Dell intercepted
Gruden in the end zone to stop Orlando's next drive. The Storm could not move
the ball and the Predators were not out of it yet. With 40 seconds remaining,
the crowd erupted as Toliver intercepted Gruden and return the pick 30 yards
for his third score of the day. While the Storm was out-gained 330 to 213, a
60-50 victory sent them to the league championship game. Former Predator Bj
Cohen said of the victory, "In all my years of football, this is probably the
sweetest win I've had. We go to the Arena Bowl and they go home."
A sellout crowd of 20,496, the second largest in Arena Bowl history, was on hand to watch the game at the St. Pete Times Forum. The record of 25,087 was set in 1995 at the Thunderdome, which is now Tropicana Field. In fact, the Tampa crowd was the largest to ever watch an AFL game not played at the Thunderdome.
A Sherdrick Bonner touchdown run gave Arizona a 10-6 first quarter lead in
Arena Bowl XVII. It would be the last time the visitors would lead the game
and things would rapidly fall apart for the Rattlers quarterback. The Storm
lead 14-10 after the first quarter, then Kelvin Kinney returned a Bonner fumble
26 yards for a touchdown. Bonner (15 of 31 for 164 yards with 2 TDs) would
lose three fumbles, was intercepted once, sacked twice and Arizona lost an
Arena Bowl record four fumbles. The Storm lead 23-16 at the half, then John
Kaleo (8 of 13 for 136 yards with 1 TD) took a hard hit and was forced from the
game with a sprained back. Pat O'Hara, who had throw just fourteen passes all
season, would take over the quarterback duties. O'Hara (7 of 13 for 103 yards)
threw two touchdown passes and his TD run put the Storm up 43-22 late in the
fourth quarter. Lawrence Samuels had a huge game and was the first player in
league history to be named both the Most Valuable Player and Ironman in the
same Arena Bowl. Samuels caught five passes for 109 yards, had three
touchdowns and recovered one of the fumbles. The Storm won a league record
fifth title by the score of 43-29.
AFL Commissioner David Baker presented the Founders Trophy to, as he put it, "The city of champions, the pro football capital of the world, and Woody Kern and Tim Marcum of the Tampa Bay Storm." Tim Marcum said, "We took some inspiration from the team across town. We're holdin' a trophy, they're holdin' a trophy, we love it." Lawrence Samuels added to the theme, "Two teams, two rings." Pat O'Hara said of coming off the bench to help the Storm to the league title, "This is not my first barbecue, I've played in Arena Bowls before. This is John's ring. I'm just glad I could help him get it."
| Related Links |
| 2003 Tampa Bay Storm Results |
| 2003 AFL Southern Division Standings |
| 2003 Tampa Bay Storm Statistics |
| Back to Tampa Bay Storm History Page |
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broadcast infrequently. Early on NBC provided decent promotion of AFL
telecasts, but that dropped off dramatically. By 2006, with NBC broadcasting
the Winter Olympic Games and the Stanley Cup Playoffs, there was only sporadic
coverage of regular season games.