posted February 15, 2006 at 10:16 EST in NCAA F Articles

Austin D tough

Defense wins football games, even in the high-flying, high-scoring AFL.

Through the first three weeks of the season, the Austin Wranglers have allowed the fewest touchdowns in the league at 14 (tied with Orlando), and the second-fewest touchdown points at 113 (taking into account conversions).

Not bad for a passing-oriented league where most quarterbacks regularly score more than five TDs per game.

Last week, Austin’s defense shut down the Kansas City Brigade as the Wranglers cruised to a 37-33 victory as 1.5-point road favorites in front of a capacity crowd of more than 16,500 fans at Kemper Arena. The final score, which resembled an NFL game, was nearly four TDs below the 96-point total.

With the win, the Wranglers improved their record to 3-0 SU (3-0 ATS) and took sole possession of top spot in the Southern division. Last season, Austin finished in the basement of the division with a 6-10 SU record.

Leading the charge for the Wranglers last Sunday was defensive specialist (DS) Donvetis Franklin (Michigan State), who had three tackles and broke up two passes including a potential game-winning touchdown as the clock expired.

But the big star on the Wranglers’ defense is DS Damon Mason, who joined the team as a free agent in the offseason. Although only 5-foot-9 and weighing just 190 pounds, Mason is the AFL’s all-time leading tackler having logged more than 740 tackles on six teams over his nine-year career.

In three games, Mason leads the Wranglers in tackles with 20 and leads the league in interceptions with five. In Week 2, Mason set a team record with three picks in a 53-34 win over the Arizona Rattlers as 3-point road dogs. Mason also recorded four tackles and broke up three passes en route to nabbing the AFL’s Defensive Player of the Week honors.

In college, Mason played for three seasons at Louisiana Lafayette where he was teammates with NFL stars Jake Delhomme and Brandon Stokley. Mason led the Ragin’ Cajuns in tackles for two seasons.

This Friday, the Wranglers face their biggest challenge of the season when they visit the American Airlines Center to take on the Dallas Desperados in a Texas showdown (8:30 p.m. ET, FSN Southwest).

The Desperados are also off to a 3-0 start both SU and ATS and lead the Eastern division. Last Saturday, the Desperados downed the Columbus Destroyers 52-38 as 4.5-point road favorites. The final score fell below the 99-point total.

Dallas QB Clint Dolezel completed 23 of 34 passes for 281 yards and six touchdowns. Through three games, Dolezel has the second-most TDs in the league with 19, the second-most passing yards with 895, and the second-best passer rating at 132.3. He has thrown just one pick so far.

Dolezel has played on six teams through 11 seasons and is one of the most prolific passers in AFL history. He was Dallas’ primary free-agent signing in the offseason.

Other key games:

Colorado Crush at Nashville Kats (Saturday, 8:00 p.m. ET, FSN Rocky Mountain)

The defending AFL champion Crush is 3-0 SU (2-1 ATS) and leads the Central division. Last Sunday, the Crush battled back from a 15-point third quarter deficit to beat the Las Vegas Gladiators as 9.5-point home favorites.

On Saturday, Colorado will visit the Gaylord Entertainment Center to take on the division-rival Kats, who are 2-1 SU and 3-0 ATS. The Kats are coming off their first defeat of the season: a 56-55 loss to the Chicago Rush as 2-point road dogs. 

The Crush have scored the most TDs (25) and have recorded the most TD points (191) in the league through three games. All three of their games have gone OVER the total.

NY Dragons at Philadelphia Soul (Sunday, 3:00 p.m. ET, Sirius Satellite Radio)

Both these teams are 2-1 SU and ATS and sit behind Dallas in the Eastern division. The Dragons are coming off a barn-burning 84-81 win over Utah as 3-point road dogs. The score in that game shattered the 99-point total.

New York QB Aaron Garcia completed 24 of 26 passes for 354 yards and an incredible 10 touchdowns, which is one TD pass short of his single-game Arena League record. Garcia is the top passer in the AFL with a 133.5 pass rating and an outstanding 76.5 completion percentage.

The Soul are coming off a 47-33 loss to Orlando as a 1.5-point road favorite. Philly has scored just 15 TDs this season, fourth fewest in the 18-team league.

All three of the Soul’s games have gone UNDER the total. Comments? Email FaceOff@BetUS.com. Note: BetUS.com is a proud sponsor of 7 Arena Football League teams.