by indyprosports
Last night was the inaugural opening night for the Indianapolis Octane. The game was played indoors at Grand Park in from of about 200 loud and energetic fans. The A7FL does not use pads or helmets. It is old fashioned backyard football.
The game started slowly as both teams went back and forth down the field. Quad City scored a touchdown with 1 second left in the first quarter. The extra point conversion failed. The first quarter ended in a 6-0 score.
Quad City scored first in the second quarter on a 52-yard pass with 8:43 to play. The extra point conversion failed.
On the ensuing pass off (there is no kicking in the A7FL) the Octane returner ran it back 40 yards before being tackled by his hair. After failing to get 10 yards for a first down, the Octane passed the ball out at the Crush two-yard line.
The Octane got the ball back with two minutes left in the first half. They scored their first touchdown on an 8-yard pass with 1:19 left. The extra point conversion failed. Quad Cities led at halftime 12-6.
The physicality of the game was demonstrated on the second half pass off. The Indy returner was knocked unconscious on the run back. He laid on the ground for what seemed like a long time and then got up and walked off the field but did not return.
The Octane scored shortly thereafter on a 2-yard run with only 54 seconds off the clock. The extra point conversion failed.
The first turnover of the game occurred when Indy recovered a fumbled pitch to the Crush’s running back. The first play after the turnover was a 34-yard pass for a first down at the Quad Cities one yard line. After being stopped on the first three tries, a touchdown was scored on a quarterback sweep. The extra point conversion was successful. The score at the end of the third quarter had the Octane up 19-12.
In the fourth quarter, Quad Cities scored when their receiver took the ball from the Octane defensive back in the endzone. The extra point conversion was good.
Indy scored again the next time the Crush had the ball. The defensive back that had the ball taken away scored on a 30-yard pick six. The extra point conversion failed. This put Indy up 25-19.
After the pass off, the Crush threw a 50-yard pass to the Octane 9-yard line. They scored two plays later on a run. The extra point conversion was good after their receiver took the ball away again from the Indy defender. This made the score Quad Cities 26 – Indy 25.
The Octane had one more chance to win the game, but their starting quarterback was knocked out of the game. The backup had an opening run of about 10-yards. On his second play, he was picked off in the endzone and Quad Cities took a knee to end the game.
The Octane and the Crush are tied for 3rd in the Western Conference with 1-2 records. The Octane will play next week (4/21) in Columbus, Ohio against the Columbus Explorers. The game will be played at Whitehall-Yearling High School and will start at 7pm.
This is the first time I’ve seen an A7FL game, I had a great time and plan to go back. Even my wife and daughter enjoyed it. The crowd is crazy and the hits are vicious. I cannot recommend it enough.