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Firecats rally past Manchester for 6-0 start
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ESTERO — Chris Wallace missing open targets. Penalty markers flying. Blown assignments on fourth-down scoring plays.
Finally, the fourth quarter arrived.
And the old Firecats showed up.
Florida erased 45 minutes of sluggishness with a 21-6 surge to open the final frame, propelling the arenafootball2 team to a history-making victory.
By shaking off Manchester to pick up a 49-43 win on Saturday night at Germain Arena, the Firecats completed the first 6-0 start in the franchise's eight seasons.
Not even Wolves receiver Bradly Chavez, who scored four touchdowns through the air and two on the ground, could keep Florida on the mat.
The Firecats, who trailed in the fourth quarter for the first time this season, scored on three long TD passes by Wallace to jump ahead 49-36 in the final minutes.
Manchester (1-5) scored its last points on a short reception by Chavez, Manchester's one-man wrecking crew, with one second to play.
By then, Florida had survived.
Saturday's win, though, was the toughest thus far for the Firecats, who cruised by double digits to win their first five games this season.
Florida trailed 30-28 to start the fourth quarter. It trailed 36-35 before Wallace connected with Chris McKinney on a 47-yard strike -- the quarterback's longest completion this year -- for a six-point cushion with 7:33 to go, shifting the pressure back to Manchester's offense.
Finally, Chavez made a mistake.
On fourth-and-goal from the Manchester 23, rookie quarterback James Pickney, subbing for Brian Jones, located his star playmaker around the Florida 15.
Chavez had the ball in his hands in the open field but couldn't hold on. He juggled it a few times before the pass went incomplete with less than 40 seconds left.
Wallace then connected for another big touchdown strike, this time on a fourth-down lob to Matt Burstein for an 18-yard score with less than 10 seconds remaining.
That completed the turnaround for Wallace, who was off target for most of the first three quarters. Like a struggling shooter asked to rescue his basketball team late, the af2 veteran rediscovered his accuracy when Florida needed it most.
That's what it came down to.
In what most perceived a mid-season mismatch, Florida notched its fastest start to a season despite one heck of a slow start in its sixth game.
Wallace missed open targets throughout the first half. Penalty markers littered the field, helping the Manchester offense get into the red zone.
Florida's lead at the half: 26-20.
And that is only because Wallace, draped by defenders near midfield, fired a TD strike to Brent Burnside with seven ticks on the clock.
Fact is, Florida, with all those double-digit victories to start the season, were fortunate to pick up a win in a game that had blowout potential.
The Wolves, a playoff team the past three seasons, are off to the slowest start in franchise history. They've now lost five straight, their longest losing streak since dropping eight straight to close out the 2002 campaign, Manchester's first year in the league.
They didn't even have their starting QB for this one, as Jones, whom coach Danton Barto brought along for the trip, missed his second straight start with a shoulder injury.
Pickney filled in for him again and -- as in last weekend's loss to expansion Daytona Beach -- had his moments.
The best one came late in the first half, when he connected with Chavez to forge a 20-20 tie. Slow to get up on the play, Pickney, who'd been blasted by Thomas Carroll, heard teammates chanting his name from the sideline as he celebrated the score.
Florida got the game's next two scores -- including a safety in the opening minutes of the second half -- but a pair of Firecats four-and-outs followed.
The door stayed open.
Manchester took a 30-28 lead, its first since the first quarter, when kicker Connor McCormick connected with 30 seconds left in the third quarter.
Florida's players had four fingers in the air soon after that. It was the first time this season they entered the fourth quarter facing a deficit.
It took less than two minutes, however, for Florida to erase it, as Wallace dropped an 18-yard lob over the shoulder of Burstein for a 35-30 lead.
The old Firecats were back, headed to a place the franchise had never been.
Six games played. Still perfect.
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