In the freezing weather and the snow and the altitude, the Orlando Apollos were better equipped for a winter game than the Salt Lake Stallions were at home.
"Actually, the conditions weren't all that bad," said Stallions coach Dennis Erickson after the 20-11 loss. "They obviously adapted just as well as we did or better."
Or better.
Imagine that: a Florida team adapting to the snow better than the one from Utah. You can attribute that to preparation and play-calling. Apollos coach Steve Spurrier had tricks up his sleeve, as he often does. Before the field of Rice-Eccles Stadium was plowed in the second half, Spurrier was calling a series of misdirection plays designed to freeze (no pun intended) the Stallions defense in its tracks. It was already hard enough to move around the field anyway, and misdirection was especially effective since the offense knew where it was going and the defense had to react. Perhaps no example was more appropriate than the Apollos' two-point conversion that gave them a 14-3 lead in the third quarter.
Trick play for ✌️? You knew the Head Ball Coach had something up his sleeve.@aafapollos | #JoinTheAlliance pic.twitter.com/LIjdDNJ2HM
— The Alliance (@TheAAF) March 5, 2019
Tim Ruskell, Orlando's general manager, has pointed out that what makes Spurrier difficult to prepare for -- and why he's one of the best offensive minds in football -- is that he doesn't show many tendencies. To wit, Spurrier has showed something different practically every week. In a 37-29 win at San Antonio, the Apollos feasted on a vertical passing game thanks to ideal conditions inside the Alamodome. Garrett Gilbert threw for a season-high 393 yards with three passes of more than 50 yards. The following week against Memphis, Spurrier utilized Gilbert's legs to keep the Express defense honest in a tight 21-17 win. Then, against the Stallions, it was a season-high 33 rushing attempts and possession passing game with Gilbert and top wideout Charles Johnson.
Whatever the situation has called for, Orlando has been impressively versatile through game-week preparation and/or in-game adjustments. While no team is perfect, the Apollos are the only undefeated team left in the Alliance after one month. Additionally, they've covered in three of their four games. With the midway point in the season coming up this weekend, can anyone catch this team?
Let's start with the fact that no one in the AAF is dominating on a weekly basis like the Apollos. In that vein, no one is scoring points at the same rate like the Apollos. While Orlando's scoring output has declined each week -- their points per game also includes two pick-sixes -- no other team is within 10 points in the same category. And only the Birmingham Iron are winning in as convincing a fashion (+11 in point differential), but even then, the offensive differences between the Apollos and the Iron are stark.
Here's a look at the four AAF teams with a positive point differential.
| Team | Points per game | Points allowed per game | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
Orlando Apollos | 29.5 | 15.8 | +13.7 |
Birmingham Iron | 19.3 | 8.3 | +11 |
San Diego Fleet | 21 | 16 | +5 |
Arizona Hotshots | 21 | 19.3 | +1.7 |
Maybe a more specific metric for Orlando's dominance is in offensive efficiency. The breakdown on a per-play basis shows just how far ahead the Apollos are from their counterparts, too. After four games Orlando is averaging 7.16 yards per play, over a full yard more than San Diego at 5.9. San Antonio's YPP is 5.14 with Birmingham at a woeful 4.42.
Why is Orlando that much further ahead? It's too simplistic to chalk up Orlando's success to circumstance, but there is a level of good fortune that has accompanied this team. Gilbert and Johnson were capable NFL journeymen who got lost in the thresher of an unforgiving league. They'd be second-contract guys if they were still in the NFL. Instead, they're showing what happens when they actually get playing time in the right situation.
And none of this is to overshadow the defense. Before he was sidelined with a knee injury, linebacker Terence Garvin had two interceptions, one of which he returned for a touchdown, and was named the Defensive Player of the Week for the AAF in Week 1. The secondary, anchored by cornerback Keith Reaser and safety Will Hill III, has helped the pass defense thrive. The Apollos allow just 5.55 yards per attempt through the air, third-best in the Alliance.
Winning the AAF championship is probably not too dissimilar from what it takes to win a championship at the college level. You need future pros. Even though AAF rosters are made up of guys who didn't quite make it in the NFL for one reason or another, you still need a handful of key parts who could realistically get back to playing on Sundays. Orlando has those parts and a great coaching staff.
As far as who could usurp the Apollos as favorites, and what it would take to do so, the options are limited. Consider the only other three teams to have a positive point differential. Birmingham would have to force Orlando to play its style of football: low-scoring, death by boa constrictor. We'll find out in Week 5 if that style can work against Orlando. Meanwhile, San Diego just lost its quarterback, Philip Nelson, to a clavicle injury that will sideline him for at least the next month. His availability may be non-existent depending on whether the Fleet can make the playoffs. Arizona is 100 percent trending in the wrong direction.
To be sure, Orlando will (likely) lose at some point, if for no other reason than it's remarkably hard to go undefeated. It is still worth noting that three of the Apollos' next four games are on the road -- and all three are against divisional opponents, two of which (Memphis and Atlanta) they've played already. And both of those teams are improved. But unless a team comes together offensively and starts matching the output of the Apollos, the biggest threat to Orlando is a tight, low-scoring game, because few teams can afford to get into a shootout with Spurrier. San Antonio came close in Week 2, but didn't quite have the individual playmakers to finish the job.
If chalk holds and Orlando gets to the playoffs in April, either Birmingham, Memphis or Atlanta will get their third shot at the overwhelming favorites in as many months. That playoff semifinal, more than the championship game itself, will be the biggest threat to the Apollos' quest for an AAF title.
