Soul look to continue success at Console Energy Center in Pittsburgh

The Soul will seek their fourth straight win this weekend when they hit the road to take on their cross-state rival Pittsburgh Power at 7 p.m. Saturday, May 3 at the Console Energy Center in Pittsburgh.

The Philadelphia Soul have never lost at Console Energy Center, winning all three contests they've played in the Steel City. However, this is a different Power team than Philadelphia has ever faced in the past. After some major reconstruction to the roster in the off season, Pittsburgh has compiled a team built to compete for an Arena Bowl, and for portions of the season the Power have done just that.

But for as much success the Power have experienced through the first portion of the season, they’ve faced just as much adversity in many different forms.

The Pittsburgh Power are heading into the weekend with a 3-3 record, tied with the Soul and the Iowa Barnstormers for second place in the East Division of the American Conference. The Power have lost their last two contests, their most recent a 55-28 whomping from the Cleveland Gladiators on Saturday, April 26 in Cleveland.  

Former league MVP quarterback Tommy Grady has appeared to revive his career to an extent from his disastrous season with the Utah Blaze last year. Grady has completed 137 passes on 243 attempts, putting up 32 touchdowns and six interceptions through the first six games of the season.

Grady could be hitting the field without his two best receivers in Aaron Lesue and Prechae Rodriguez this weekend. Lesue, who joined the Power from Utah this past offseason as well, has 592 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns on 57 receptions this season. Lesue left last week’s game against Cleveland with what appeared to be a serious knee injury, and while there hasn't been any official statement regarding his status, it’s unlikely we will be seeing him on the playing field for some time.

The Power have already been playing without receiver Prechae Rodriguez the past four weeks, who has been suffering from a foot injury since the second game of the season for Pittsburgh. Rodriguez had 185 and seven touchdowns on only 17 receptions through his first two weeks to start the season. The Power have seen Shaun Kauleinamoku step up play in the absence of their receivers, as Kauleinamoku has brought in 485 yards and eight touchdowns on 42 receptions for Pittsburgh.

        

      The Soul offense will face a great challenge with a familiar face that they know all too well in defensive back Virgil Gray, who played a contributing role on the Arizona Rattlers defense that rolled past the Soul in the last two Arena Bowls. Gray has brought in six interceptions for the Power for 110 yards this season.

        

 Hopefully Dan Raudabaugh will be able to cool down Gray’s hot streak while keeping a few of his own team’s streaks alive.

The Soul are coming off a 60-55 win over the Iowa Barnstormers on Sunday, April 27 in Philadelphia. The win was the first division game for the Soul on the season, and their third straight win. A win on Saturday would be the fourth team victory on the season and at Console Energy Center, an arena that Philadelphia teams have strived in since it opened in 2010 and has been referred to as “Wells Fargo West” by many sports fans in this rivalry.

In fact, the road team has won all but one of the six games these two teams have played over the last seasons. The only home team to win a game in the series was the Soul in 2012. Philadelphia leads the all-time series against the Power 4-2 as well.

        

      In a rivalry game such as this, it’s going to be a defensive battle that will determine who comes out on top and sits in second place of the division. It may be the first time suiting up in the black and yellow against the Soul for many players on the Power, but it never takes long for anyone to understand the Philadelphia-Pittsburgh rivalry in any sport.

     The Soul have the slight edge heading into this game, with all the struggles and injuries that have been piling on the Power the past few weeks. Philly will need defensive back Rayshaun Kizer and lineman TJ Langley to continue their play that has stepped up and improved the Soul defense the last few games if they are going to shut down a former MVP in Tommy Grady, with or without his biggest playmakers.

Philadelphia will play the Power three times this season, with the next two coming Saturday, June 14 in Philadelphia and Saturday, July 26 back in Pittsburgh to end the season. There are no easy games in professional sports, but one would have to think that this one will be the easiest game in the season series for the Soul to win. Bragging rights in the state of Pennsylvania are on the line, and hopefully we’ll be able to continue to own them after Saturday.