Utah Blaze: Fate conspires for the perfect Storm

WEST VALLEY CITY — The return of starting quarterback Brett Elliott, plus an extra week to get used to the new coaching staff, had the Utah Blaze hoping they'd see a turnaround in their football fortunes.

But when injuries, player suspensions and various other factors combined to leave the Blaze far from full strength, there weren't a lot of things going for Utah.

The result was a 65-40 loss to Tampa Bay as the Storm forced five turnovers and sent the Blaze to their sixth consecutive loss.

"We were pretty much putting everything together with baling wire and duct tape," Blaze coach Ron James said.

The loss drops Utah to 1-9 overall while Tampa Bay improved to 7-3.

Three interceptions and a pair of fumbles were more than enough to keep the Blaze from making the progress they'd hope to see.

"We are not a good enough football team," James said, "to overcome that kind of turnover deficit."

The Blaze, even playing the third game with the new staff, showed they're still trying to get used to the new people and plays.

On Tampa's first snap, the team completed a 36-yard touchdown from Brett Dietz to Hank Edwards. Utah, on the other hand, committed a turnover on its first offensive play and was suddenly in a 14-0 hole barely two minutes into the game.

But with Elliott back under center for the Blaze — he'd missed the past four games with a hand injury — Utah worked its way back into the game and closed the gap to 28-27 before allowing a Tampa Bay touchdown with eight seconds left in the half.

Elliott completed 11 of 16 passes in the half with three touchdowns — two going to Aaron Boone.

But Boone also had a pair of fumbles as he fought for extra yards.

"To see that was disappointing," James said. "Typically, Aaron Boone is not the kind of guy to put the ball on the floor."

The Blaze had a chance to jump right back into the game as the third quarter opened, but after driving deep into Storm territory, Boone fumbled the ball while being tackled and Tampa Bay extended its lead to 42-27 on the ensuing possession.

Utah scored just twice in the second half and James said that's not going to get it done no matter how good the defense might be playing.

"To score 13 points in the second half just isn't arena football," he said.

The Blaze are back in action next week at Iowa before hosting another two-game homestand.

e-mail: jeborn@desnews.com