Rattlers roll Iowa 55-26, move to 4th in West

It was the first complete game we've played all year. Our defense came up with 8 stops and offensively we were really efficient.”

Kevin Guy, Arizona Rattlers Head Coach

IFL WEST TOP 5 (AS OF 6/29)

x-Bay Area 11-2, 10-2

Vegas 9-4, 7-3

San Diego 9-5, 8-4

Arizona 9-5, 5-5

Northern Arizona 8-5, 7-5

x-clinched playoff berth

Top 4 teams make playoffs

By Matt Loeschman
Mail | X: @MattLoeschman

GLENDALE — Needing to win out and get an assist from other IFL teams to qualify for the upcoming postseason, the Arizona Rattlers did their part on Saturday night at the Snake Pit.

Led by a stifling defense that picked off 3 passes and 7 rushing touchdowns on offense, Arizona manhandled the Iowa Barnstormers 55-26 at Desert Diamond Arena to move back into 4th place in the Indoor Football League's wild Western Conference.

"We needed a game like this," said Rattlers Head Coach Kevin Guy. "It was the first complete game we've played all year. Our defense came up with 8 stops and offensively we were really efficient — and special teams were good, too."

The win moved Arizona to 9-5 and back into playoff position for now. The Rattlers sit in 4th place in the IFL's Western Conference, trailing Bay Area (11-2), Vegas (9-4) and San Diego (9-5). The Strike Force are sitting third due to the conference record percentage tiebreaker (.667 to .500) over the Rattlers. Northern Arizona is 8-5 for 5th place in a race that seems destined to come down to the final week. The top 4 teams in each conference make the playoffs.

"We've been in playoff mode for about a month now," said Rattlers quarterback Dalton Sneed, whose team has won 8 of 10 after starting the season 1-3. "I want to win and I don't care how we do it. This was a solid game for us in all three phases."

Early on, the Barnstormers struck first on a 22-yard TD strike from quarterback Brandon Alt to receiver Quian Williams. Gabriel Rui made the PAT to give Iowa a 7-0 lead three minutes into the game. The Rattlers quickly responded with a 3-yard TD rush by Shannon Brooks after an Iowa pass interference penalty. Dawson Evitts' PAT tied the game 7-7 at the 9:49 mark of the first quarter.

Arizona's D stepped up and forced a Rui 21-yard field goal. Then on the ensuing kickoff, Rui hit the upright and the ball bounced toward the side boards. It then deflected off an official back toward the middle of the end zone. The Rattlers were forced to cover the ball and were tackled, resulting in a 1-point rouge for the Barnstormers. Iowa led 11-7 with five minutes left in the first.

Sneed then found the end zone from 6 yards out to give Arizona the lead. He faked a handoff, dodged a couple tackles and leaped in for the TD. Evitts' kick made it 14-11 Arizona early in the second quarter.

The Rattlers' defense stepped up on the next possession to force three Alt incompletions and a missed 62-yard field goal attempt by Rui. That immediately led to a 29-yard TD pass from Sneed to Nih-Jer Jackson over the middle. The PAT hit the upright and bounced away and Arizona led 20-11 with 8:29 before halftime.

Arizona's Jermaine Doubs picked off Alt on Iowa's next series for a second straight stop. After a fourth-down conversion on a Sneed run, Brooks pounded the ball up the middle for a 2-yard score. Evitts was true with the PAT to give the Rattlers a 27-11 advantage with 3:48 left in the second quarter.

Iowa (4-9) got closer with a 46-yard bomb from Alt to Keshaun Taylor with the 53.7 seconds left in the half. Rui made the PAT but missed a deuce attempt on the ensuing kickoff. The Rattlers then finished the half perfectly, running down the clock and handing the ball to Brooks who plunged in from a yard with 7 seconds left. Evitts' PAT gave the home team a 34-18 lead at halftime.

"For once this year, we got to play with a lead," Guy said. "We tend to relax and play our game in that situation. It was good to see us execute a solid four quarters."

Iowa started the second half with a fourth-down stop but Arizona's Dillion Winfrey squelched any Barnstormer momentum with an interception three plays later.

"We were out to make up for last week when we lost at Vegas," Winfrey said. "I think we are starting to peak at the right time. On the pick, the D-line got a ton of pressure on the QB and I was in the right place at the right time.

The Rattlers then extended their lead on a Sneed 5-yard TD scramble. The PAT made it 41-18 midway through the third and the crowd of 9,039 roared their approval.

"It wasn't our game plan to run that much but that's just the way the game played out tonight," Sneed said. "The ground game was rolling."

Iowa continued to struggle on offense. A Rui 55-yard field goal attempt was not close and actually ended up landing in the tunnel in the left corner of the end zone. Sneed (43 rushing yards, 3 rushing TDs) scored his third TD on the ground on the next series and the Rattlers led 48-18. It completed a dominant 41-7 scoring run. 

"The gave us a lot of different looks on the Cover 2," Guy explained. "We just kind of knew we would need to nickel and dime it down the field and once we got close, our offensive line consistently got the push to get the ball over the goal line."

Brooks (42 rushing yards, 4 rushing TDs) agreed.

"Anytime the O-line gets that kind of push, we are going to be successful," he said. "We are improving in the red zone, too."

After being shut out in the third quarter, Iowa completed a 37-yard TD pass from Alt to Williams. The Barnstormers then recovered an onside kick but Arizona's Devontae Merriweather picked off Alt for the Rattlers' third INT of the game.

"We challenged our defense this week and  I feel like they responded," said Guy, whose D recorded eight total stops. "It was a step in the right direction."

Brooks then darted to the left for a 1-yard TD rush — his fourth of the night — and Arizona led 55-26 with 7 minutes left. Fittingly, the Rattlers' D put up a goal line stand in the final minute to preserve the 29-point blowout. 

Sneed attempted just 16 passes in the game, completing 12 of those for 116 yards and one TD to Jackson. Doubs, Winfrey and Merriweather had one interception each on defense.

Alt threw 3 touchdowns for Iowa, two of those to Williams, but suffered three interceptions to halt any possible momentum.

Another must-win game is on the horizon. Arizona remains at home for a Sunday, July 7 showdown with in-state rival Tucson (2-11). Kickoff is set for 3:05 p.m. and the game can be seen live on the IFL's YouTube channel.

"We have two games to go and we want to be peaking as we get ready for the playoffs," Guy said. "We feel like we control our own destiny because the other contenders all play each other — someone is gonna fall. Tucson is coming in and we can't simply look at their record and think it's a win. We will be ready to play."

Matt Loeschman
Editor | Daily Independent

mloeschman@iniusa.org

I have edited and written about almost everything in my 20-year journalism career, but I have a strong passion for sports since my father was a teacher and coach when I was young.

My job has allowed me to meet many influential people, including Hillary Clinton, Al Gore (I have a brief, on-camera part in his second movie), George Strait, Matthew McConaughey and several world-class athletes.

I have worked for Independent Newsmedia on two separate occasions – 2000-09 and 2018-present – after studying journalism at the University of Texas at Austin.