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I have seen many games where the referees made questionable calls against our beloved Xplosion team, but in the end our guys could overcome it and get the win that they deserved.  Yesterday afternoon (6/29/08), I walked out of Wings Stadium with so much frustration that I was stewing all night.  Heck, I still am right now!

I, like most everyone there, saw the bobbled Saginaw "catch" that the refs called good.  See, "most everyone" would mean everyone BUT the refs.  The Saginaw fans knew it wasn't a catch, but they wanted the call and they got it.

I was sitting in the endzone where I could clearly see the extra point that Saginaw clearly DID NOT make--the ball hit the ceiling rafter that was 6 feet IN FRONT of the goal posts.  Yes, it hit the ceiling--which is out of bounds--and came straight down to the field.  It did not go THROUGH the uprights.  Doesn't matter if it "would have" since it went out of bounds FIRST.  Refs allowed the point.  Grrr.

I also saw, almost directly in front of me, the Saginaw QB CLEARLY signal time out BEFORE the ball was hiked on a drive (3rd down I belive) that was played through (refs didn't issue the time out as requested), which resulted in a first down that eventually ended up in a touchdown.  Gee--had that timeout been made as signaled, and play resumed with 15-20 yards to get the first down, K'zoo may have been able to stop the drive and get the ball back in their own red zone.

It's tough to say how things would have played out had the refs called everything right (or at least REMOTELY close).  We'll never know now, but in my mind, the Xplosion did not get a fair game and I feel so upset and sorry for every single Xplosion player because they spent all season putting everything into bringing us an exceptional team and fantastic season.

Saginaw should not feel like they got a legitimate win.  I hope that the CIFL recognizes the importance of accurate refereeing and that all game tapes are reviewed for accuracy of the calls made, then apologies should be issued far and wide, and then... pink slips issued.

Chad Bennett, kzooxplosion.com
    
Kalamazoo Xplosion (13-1) extends their franchise home win streak to fifteen games tying the CIFL record.  Rock River heads back to Illinois after an 8-6 inaugural CIFL campaign.  The Xplosion gear up to play in the CIFL championship game Sunday.  Kalamazoo Head Coach Mike Sparks said a key to win the championship is “match the second half intensity for four quarters.”

For another week the Xplosion let the visiting team score first with Rock River quarterback Steven LaFalce tossing a three-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Tobias.  Kalamazoo answered with a quick twenty-yard touchdown catch from Brain Dolph.  Xplosion linebacker Scott Russell would pick up a fumble in the endzone by Rock Rivers LaFalce making the score 13-7 in favor of Kalamazoo after the extra point by Brad Selent to end the quarter.

Rock River would start the scoring in the second quarter with back-to-back touchdowns lead by quarterback LaFalce.  The Xplosion would counter the Rock River attack with a thirty four-yard field goal by Selent making the score 21-16 Rock River.  Again LaFalce would run for a score to make it 28-16 for the visitors.  Randy Hutchison would lead the Kalamazoo offense down the field with a 1-yard touchdown pass to Eric Gardner to bring the Xplosion within a touchdown 28-22.  CIFL interception record holder David Gater would pick off Rock River with no time left on the clock and return it thirty four-yards for an Xplosion score.  “I just played my position and ran our defense to make the pick.” Says Gater.  Kalamazoo would take the lead 29-28 going into the locker room at halftime.

Rock River would take the lead early in the third quarter (35-29) with a touchdown grab from Luke Cradle.  Xplosion running back Little John Flowers would take a hand off from Hutchison and scurry to the end zone for a 50-yard touchdown run making the score 35-35.  Hutchison would throw his third touchdown pass of the day to Dan Musielewicz putting the Xplosion in the lead for the final time 42-35 late in the third quarter.

Musielewicz would catch another touchdown pass from Hutchison to make the score 49-35 with eleven minutes left in the contest.  Hutchison would throw his fifth touchdown pass of the game to Eric Gardner making the score 56-35 with the Selent extra point.  Rock River would score with only 58 seconds left to make the final score 56-42 for the Xplosion victory.

Xplosion quarterback Randy Hutchison would finish 18 for 27 with 182 yards and 5 touchdowns.  Little John Flowers lead the rushing attack with 9 attempts for 79 yards and 1 touchdown.  Dan Musielewicz would lead the receivers with 7 catches for 80 yards and 2 touchdowns.  Richard Newsome would lead the defense with 7 tackles and 1 interception while David Gater would continue his record setting year with 3 more interceptions.

The Xplosion will host the CIFL championship game Sunday June 29th at Wings Stadium.  Kickoff is set for 3:00 p.m. Kalamazoo will play the winner of the Saginaw Lehigh Valley game.  For tickets call the Wings Stadium ticket office: 269-345-5101
 

Way to go tonight guys! 49-19, great game.  I actually thought it would be a closer game but we blew them out of the water!  It was my first game of this season (went to every home game last year) and wasn't disappointed with this game at all. Disappointed I haven't been able to attend more.

Hopefully I'll get to another before the season is over. I can only go to Saturday games:(

heyy this is jake and i wanted 2 know who r your favorite xplosion football player is... let me know thank you very much 

Don't miss the crowd favorite - Zeke and the Wonderdogs - they have learned new frisbie routines and are planning to "Wow!" the crowd once again! 

This is going to be a great game! The rivalry between the two teams is growing tough and we MUST win this game to secure our #1 spot in our division - I can't wait!!!