For the first time throughout the entire 2015 Arena Football League season, the San Jose SaberCats actually appeared vulnerable against the defending American Conference Champion Cleveland Gladiators on Saturday night, trailing 49-35 in the second quarter and 52-42 at halftime.
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Any fan of arena football simply couldn't have asked for a better matchup. The three-time defending ArenaBowl champion Arizona Rattlers against the 17-1 San Jose SaberCats, the former looking to do the implausible in professional sports, and the latter looking to unleash three consecutive seasons of postseason revenge. And to top it all off with a trip to ArenaBowl XVIII on the line. The result? Arguably the best Arena Football League game of all-time.
The San Jose SaberCats successfully came out on top against Spokane on Saturday night with a relieving victory that dramatically skyrockets the chances of their first division crown since 2008. With a 9-4 record, San Jose now has a three-game lead in the National Conference Pacific with just five left to play, as well as the critical head-to-head tiebreaker over Spokane due to winning the season series 2-1 after initially trailing 1-0.
Despite clinching their ninth division title, locking up their #2 playoff seed, playing against a Tampa Bay Storm team with a winning record that had major playoff implications on the line, and the defense having arguably its worst game in a matter of months, the San Jose SaberCats still managed to give their fans a beauty on Fan Appreciation Night in their regular season home finale.