"ArenaBowl XXII: San Jose SaberCats vs. Philadelphia Soul" Philadelphia was regarded as the top team in the Arena Football League throughout the season. San Jose is the defending champions. The two will meet for the second time this season on Sunday, July 27 at 3:00 pm ET on ABC. The first meeting between these two teams came in the regular season, when the Soul rallied late to defeat the SaberCats in a thriller. Revisit what turned out to be an ArenaBowl preview way back in Week 7 of the regular season.

Week 7: Philadelphia 58, San Jose 57 (Watch the game highlights here).
April 12, 2008 in San Jose’s HP Pavilion

The SaberCats jumped out to a big lead early, shutting out the Soul 20-0 in the first quarter. The Soul got on the board in the second quarter, but traded touchdowns to go into halftime down 33-14. The Soul’s perfect 6-0 record at the time seemed to be in jeopardy. But behind two Larry Brackins touchdown receptions, Philadelphia managed to trim the lead to 40-28 heading into the fourth quarter.

There, the Soul would stage a dramatic rally. After trading scores, Soul DB Mike Brown returned a kick 57 yards for a touchdown, cutting the deficit to just five points. After an A.J. Haglund field goal put San Jose up eight, Philadelphia QB Matt D’Orazio threw a 41-yard strike to WR Chris Jackson and Philadelphia tied the game at 50-50 with a minute left. San Jose QB Mark Grieb responded just 11 seconds later with a 30-yard touchdown pass to Rodney Wright. The Soul got the ball back, down 57-50, with 49 seconds left.

Philadelphia would then orchestrate a six-play, 42-yard drive, culminating in a Matt D’Orazio five-yard run. Soul Head Coach Bret Munsey elected to go for the win and called for the two-point conversion. With 10 seconds left, FB/LB Clifton Smith ran it in with 10 seconds left, completing an amazing comeback for the Soul.