Pesky Blaze crush Colorado

DENVER — The Denver Crush might be the defending ArenaBowl champions. They might have the new single-season record-holder for touchdown catches. And they might already be locked into the playoffs.

But on Friday night, at least, it was the first-year Utah Blaze who owned the indoor football field.

Led by a strong defensive effort for the second straight week, the Blaze upset the defending AFL champs and waltzed out of the Pepsi Center with a 52-40 win.

As has been the case all season for the Blaze, the game was determined by defensive stops. And Utah got the breaks this time. The Blaze had no turnovers, intercepted Colorado twice and did just enough of the little things to improve to 5-8 and make a serious step toward qualifying for the AFL playoffs with three weeks remaining in the regular season.

The first defensive stop happened right away as the Blaze held the Crush (9-4) on the game's first possession, allowing only a 49-yard field goal by Clay Rush.

Kautai Olevao then capped a long drive for the Blaze just a few minutes later with a 1-yard bull rush to give Utah its first lead. The drive featured a pair of Utah penalties that pushed the ball almost to the end zone. The Blaze then marched for the score on a nine-play, 47-yard drive that took 6:57 off the clock and included 60 yards of offense and five first downs.

Colorado answered in a hurry, though, as QB John Dutton hooked up with Damien Harrell from six yards out to reclaim the lead. The catch was Harrell's 44th touchdown of the season and was the 62nd consecutive game with a touchdown reception for the AFL's top offensive weapon.

Playing shorthanded — starting linemen Hans Olsen and Ernest Grant missed the game with flu-like symptoms — and with a suspect defense, Utah did what many football teams do when facing an explosive opponent. They ate the clock whenever possible.

Utah's grind-it-out gameplan ate up another chunk of clock as the Blaze put the ball in Kevin Clemons' hands for a 4-yard touchdown. That drive consumed 4:51 and kept the high-powered Crush offense away from the ball.

The Blaze got another big defensive stop on Colorado's next drive, holding the Crush to just three plays and a missed 29-yard field goal. That gave Utah the ball with a 14-10 lead midway through the second quarter.

But that momentum was quickly snuffed out as Andy Kelly was sacked in the end zone for a safety, giving the Crush two points and the ball.