Soul clinch top seed in conference with win

It only took one play.

Soul defensive lineman Teddy Jennings broke into the Cleveland backfield and lunged at quarterback Shane Austin, throwing both hands around his right bicep.

While Austin was starting his motion to throw, his arm stopped. The ball didn't, however, and defensive back Kent Richardson scooped up the fumble.

It was only one play, but represented what eventually unfolded Saturday afternoon. Cleveland was stopped and the Soul, like the ball, kept moving forward, rolling to a franchise-best 13-2 start and clinching the top seed in the American Conference with a 72-56 win at the Wells Fargo Center.

The Soul took advantage of the early turnover and scored on its first six possession and on 10 of 11 overall. Quarterback Dan Raudabaugh completed 20-of-27 passes for 306 yards and seven touchdowns. He leads the Arena Football League with 4,291 yards and 101 touchdowns.

"They played a lot of zone," Raudabaugh said. "They've had a lot of turnover in the secondary. They've had a lot of guys back there. When you're rotating other guys in, you're going to have to play zone. Man's tough when you don't know the other guys back there with you. They tried to get in zones and take some things away, and we just capitalized."

Harvey Binford, starting in place of injured wide receiver Shaun Kauleinamoku, caught seven passes for 145 yards and four touchdowns.

"He's got something that very few people on this planet have – he's got world-class speed," Raudabaugh said. "We have five or six guys who can go out there and make big-time plays at any given moment on the field."

LaRico Stevenson had an interception, James Romain returned a blocked extra-point for a two-point conversion, and the Soul defense forced two turnovers on downs.

Austin, who came into the league second to Raudabaugh in yards and touchdowns, completed 19-of-39 passes for 228 yards. He threw six touchdowns, though two of which came in the last 25 seconds, and an interception for Cleveland (7-8).

"They're beat up," Soul coach Clint Dolezel said. "Their offensive line isn't what it was last year. They have some receivers who aren't blazers. They're efficient and they run good routes. But it's not a great combination to not have speed out there at receiver and you're not protecting well."

Philadelphia will play in Jacksonville (7-6) next Saturday. While the Soul clinched the top seed in its conference, Philadelphia trails San Jose (14-1) by a game. If the two top seeds meet in the Arena Bowl, the team with the better record will host.

"We know we'll have our hands full, but it'll be nice to be here," Dolezel said. "It's nice, no question. But we're still pushing for the Arena Bowl here."