Adrian Fedkiw
With all the four major sports teams in rebuild mode, there is one team in Philadelphia where the future is now.
The Philadelphia Soul hung on for a 56-42 win over the Arizona Rattlers in ArenaBowl XXIX to capture their second Arena Football title on Friday night.
The third time was the charm for the Soul against the Rattlers, who had defeated Philadelphia on two prior occasions in the ArenaBowl. Philadelphia won it all in 2008 when it beat the San Jose Sabercats for all of the marbles.
Philadelphia opened up a 28-7 first quarter advantage before the Rattlers stormed back in the final frame to tie the game at 42-42 with 14:09 to play. Dan Raudabaugh then connected with Shaun Kauleinamoku for a pair of TD passes, including a 30-yard score to essentially put the game away with 3:59 left.
Raudabaugh was 20-of-36 for 278 yards with three of his six touchdown passes going to Kauleinamoku, who caught eight balls for 110 yards.
The Soul and Rattlers were the two best teams in the league at 13-3.
Philadelphia tallied a pair of non-offensive touchdowns in a matter of seconds to help it jump out to its 21-point margin. Dwayne Hollis was responsible for the first one, returning a Mykel Benson fumble around the goal line 49 yards for a score. Tracy Belton then recovered the ensuing kickoff in the end zone when it ricocheted off the left upright and took a precarious bounce before Belton corralled it.
The football season may not be over for wide receiver Darius Reynolds and defensive lineman Jake Metz, who led the league in sacks. Both will report to the Philadelphia Eagles for workouts on Monday.
Congratulations Soul!