Wrapping up the final games for The Spring League North Division is the Conquerors taking on the Aviators. After the Linemen secured a spot in the Mega Bowl, this game comes down to pride. The Conquerors will hope to go 4-3 on the season, whereas the Aviators will hope to end the season with a win.
Coming Up! Conquerors v Aviators @TheSpringLeague on @FS1 with ⭐️ broadcaster @kevinkugler pic.twitter.com/AWK1au2dsF
— Petros Papadakis (@Theoldp) June 12, 2021
1st Quarter
The Aviators will start out with the ball, hoping to give his team their first win. Vad Lee would start out at quarterback with his mission in hand. Lee did his best, but Coach Shea was stuck in a predicament on 4th down.
Ultimately, they decided to go for it, knowing this was their last chance to get in the win column. Lee took the ball into his own hands, rushing it himself securing the 1st down. After another huge play, the Aviators were now at 1st & Goal. Although it was early in the 1st, the team had now gone through their first two timeouts.
The team couldn’t get it done on the first three tries. Looking for a win, they went for it on 4th down, but could not convert. This strategy ended up working in their favor. On the Conquerors first play, the Aviators defense forces a safety, giving two points and the ball.
GAME DAY ALERT: The #TSLAviators force a safety, giving them a 2-point lead and the ball back.#TSL #TSL2021 #TheSpringLeague
— USFL Newsroom (@USFLNewsroom) June 12, 2021
The Aviators wanted to keep this momentum going. Vad Lee, went long and got lucky with a pass interference call, bringing them within 10-yards of the end-zone. Now within striking distance, Lee found Dylon Stapleton to give them their first touchdown of the night. After a successful extra-point attempt they led the Conquerors 9-0 early.
GAME DAY ALERT: Vad Lee finds Dylon Stapleton in the end-zone to extend their lead.
With the extra-point, they now lead the #TSLConquerors 9-0 with 4:57 left in the 1st. #TSL #TSL2021 #TheSpringLeague
— USFL Newsroom (@USFLNewsroom) June 12, 2021
Brandon Silvers would come back out for the Conquerors, hoping to get his team on the boards for the first time tonight. On his first play, he almost threw it away, but got lucky in the end. Jordan Salima came out strong for the Conq’s moving the chains and keeping the drive going.
Salima continued to dominate, continuing to move the ball for his team. The Conquerors ultimately were face with 4th down. Coach Glanville opted for the field goal, but it was just a little off.
2nd Quarter
George Bowen now came in for the Aviators, returning after his success in 2020. This drive just didn’t go his way. Stuck on 3rd & 17, he over shot Devonte Davis to go three and out. The Conquerors will now have possession and have another chance to grab their first points of the night.
Silvers came out with a mission, secure some points. The closest he could being the Conquerors was mid-field, forcing the team to punt.
With Bowen back in for the Aviators, he couldn’t do much. He ended the drive with two huge sacks from the Conquerors defense, forcing them to give them the ball again. Due to bad field position and strong defense, the Conquerors got the ball back near mid-field.
Silvers was back in for the Conquerors and it was more of the same. When presented with 4th down, the team went for it but resulted in a dropped pass. The Aviators would take over at their own 35-yard line.
Bowen came back in for the Aviators, hoping to get his first points of the night and looking to extend their lead. Again, with Bowen at QB, the team was forced to punt away, giving the ball to the Conquerors with 17 seconds left at the half. With a huge punt and little time remaining the, the Conq’s were pinned at the 6.
The team decided to try a running play, before letting the time run out in the half.
FIRST HALF HIGHLIGHTS
⚔️ vs. 🛩️#TSL2021 | @FOXSports pic.twitter.com/zk4FxQWYfn
— The Spring League 🏈 (@TheSpringLeague) June 12, 2021
3rd Quarter
The Conquerors started out the half with the ball. Tavon Jacobs came out with an explosive return, bringing his team to the 15-yard line. It looks as if Jordan Salima was gonna grab a touchdown, but the officials called a holding call, pushing them back to 1st & 20.
After three more attempts, Silver couldn’t secure a 1st down. Carrisoza was well off the mark on a field goal attempt, wide to the left, keeping the Aviators up 9-0.
The Aviators couldn’t get much done on their next drive. Although they tried, the Conquerors ended up getting the ball back from a punt.
With the Conquerors back in control, their offense just couldn’t find their rhythm. It looked as if they may have fumbled the ball, but after further review they retained control. Kevin Anderson then went big, connecting with Jordan Salima to keep the drive alive.
Michael Bandy extended the drive again, after pulling in a pass from Anderson bringing them to 1st & Goal. Jordan Salima, then brought them near the goal-line on the next play, putting them in the best position of the night to score. It didn’t take long either. On the next play, Anderson handed it to Salima to grab the teams first points of the night.
GAME DAY ALERT: The #TSLConquerors get their first points after Kevin Anderson hands it off to Jordan Salima to find the end-zone.
The extra-point is wide, but they bring it to 9-6 with the #TSLAviators in the lead with 4:53 remaining in the 3rd.#TSL #TSL2021 #TheSpringLeague
— USFL Newsroom (@USFLNewsroom) June 12, 2021
Jerry Glanville gave the officials a piece of his mind after the blocking penalty, giving his team a penalty putting them in a tough kicking spot. The Aviators would now take the ball again, and now with a slim lead would hope to add some points.
The Comq’s defense would have something to say about this; and that’s exactly what they did. The team came out hard, pushing them back to 3rd & 28. The next play didn’t help, pushing them back 7; forcing them to punt on 4th & 35.
Due to a face mask penalty, the Conquerors will start in Aviators territory. Ending the 3rd quarter, Anderson would attempt to connect with Taevon Salter. Unfortunately, he couldn’t pull it in for the Conquerors.
4th Quarter
Starting out the 4th quarter, the Conquerors would start at 3rd & 11. The Aviators drew a flag, bringing them 5-yards closer to begin. It wasn’t enough though, the team was forced to go for a field goal. Once again, the special team unit could not produce, keeping them game 9-6 in the Aviators favor.
GAME DAY ALERT: The #TSLConquerors are unable to tie it up after another missed field goal.
The #TSLAviators remain on top 9-6 with 14:08 left.#TSL #TSL2021 #TheSpringLeague
— USFL Newsroom (@USFLNewsroom) June 12, 2021
If the Aviators could score here, it put them in a great spot to pull out the win. With Vad Lee back in, after a couple failed plays, ran it in himself for the 1st down. Now in enemy territory, they were looking to strike. The Conquerors defense was also looking to block.
The Aviators tried their best to add to their lead, but the Conquerors defense made forced them to decide which option to go for on 4th down. They decided to go for six, but they couldn’t make it happen. The Conquerors now had the ball, with a chance to take the lead.
GAME DAY ALERT: The #TSLAviators sacked on 4th down, giving the #TSLConquerors the ball back with 7:26 left down 9-6.#TSL #TSL2021 #TheSpringLeague
— USFL Newsroom (@USFLNewsroom) June 12, 2021
Although the Conquerors had the ball, they weren’t able to do much with the possession. Now that the Aviators had the ball, they would be looking to run out the clock as much as possible. Rather than run the time, Forrest took the ball and brought the Aviators to the goal-line.
They Aviators tried to challenge the play thinking they got a touchdown, but had no timeouts remaining; resulting in a penalty pushing them back 15 yards.
Still at 1st & Goal, just further back, the Aviators were determined. They put up a good fight, but on 4th down they knew they had to attempt a field goal. The offense did well drawing time off the clock, but they could not secure the field goal. This now gave the Conquerors a chance with the ball and enough time left to take the lead.
GAME DAY ALERT: The #TSLAviators fail to extend their lead after Tadhg Leader is wide on a 35-yard field goal attempt.
They still lead the #TSLConquerors 9-6 with 2:48 remaining.#TSL #TSL2021 #TheSpringLeague
— USFL Newsroom (@USFLNewsroom) June 12, 2021
The Conquerors had one last chance to sneak in a victory. Kevin Anderson came out hot, moving the chains and the receivers continuously getting out of bounds to stop the clock. The Conquerors were now within the 20 with less than 2 minutes remaining. They only needed a field goal to tie, but wanted a touchdown to secure the win.
Ultimately, they had to settle for three, going successful and tying the game near the end of the 4th.
GAME DAY ALERT: The #TSLConquerors tie the game with 36 seconds to go after a successful 37-yard field goal. #TSL #TSL2021 #TheSpringLeague
— USFL Newsroom (@USFLNewsroom) June 12, 2021
The Aviators would have the ball, and there wasn’t much time left. They would look to do their best to bring them within field goal position. Due to a foul from the Conquerors, the Aviators had on last chance to throw a Hail Mary to take the lead. They tried, but could not secure; leading to the second overtime game of The Spring League season.
For just the second time this season, we get to see the innovative #TSL2021 Overtime procedures!
Tune into @FS1 now to see what the future of OT in football could look like. pic.twitter.com/wxFLHX67ro
— The Spring League 🏈 (@TheSpringLeague) June 12, 2021
Overtime
The Aviators would take control to start out the extended game, hoping to get some point and run the time down. The overtime rules were proposed by the NFL’s Baltimore Ravins, and The Spring League is showcasing the rules in this season. The Conquerors defense forced the Aviators to for three and out, giving them excellent field position.
Kevin Anderson was determined to secure the win for his Conquerors. He continued to find his receiver to keep the chains moving. The team would also be looking to draw out the clock, due to The Spring League’s overtime rules. Even if they score, the Aviators will get the ball again, giving them a chance to tie or take the lead.
One 3rd down, Anderson went long, finding Tavon Salter for the touchdown. With the extra-point they have a seven pint lead with a little under three and a half to go in overtime.
GAME DAY ALERT: The #TSLConquerors take the lead with Kevin Anderson finding Tavon Salter in the end-zone.
The extra-point puts them up 16-9 over the #TSLAviators with 3:25 remaining in OT.#TSL #TSL2021 #TheSpringLeague
— USFL Newsroom (@USFLNewsroom) June 12, 2021
The Aviators took the field knowing that no options were off the table. At the end of the drive, they were stuck at 4th & 43, but were forced to go for it with less than 2 minutes remaining in overtime. As many would expect, it didn’t go well. The Conquerors would take possession, looking to close out the season with a win. They didn’t grab any more points, but they were able to end the match; and effectively the season.
With the Linemen headed to the Mega Bowl from the North Division, who do you think they’ll face from the South? Let us know your thoughts down below or join the conversation on Discord.