Dream come true?

Adam Candee

Monday, May 17, 2004 | 8:51 a.m.

The Gladiators turned the ball over four times in the first half Sunday, falling behind by 21 points and generally playing their worst football in more than a month when they could least afford to do so.

Clint Dolezel looked little like a franchise quarterback, tossing three interceptions before his team scored and getting roped into emergency kicking duties. Forget winning and staying in the playoff race -- Las Vegas just wanted to avoid a horrific embarrassment in front of 7,491 fans at the Thomas & Mack Center.

So it stands to reason that in a year marked by bad breaks, freak injuries and stunning losses, the Gladiators defied convention and saved their season by taking the giant egg they laid before halftime and cracking it right over San Jose's helmet in the final 35 minutes of their 44-35 victory.

The Gladiators (7-7) won their fourth consecutive game by shocking the league's best team with the kind of comeback that others have pulled on them so often. The win sets up a Saturday night showdown at Los Angeles (8-6), with only the winner staying in the hunt for one of the league's four remaining playoff berths.

"Making the playoffs is realistic now," Gladiators coach Frank Haege said. "Before, it was almost a pipe dream. But now, it's right there."

Also just a dream was the idea that Las Vegas could spot San Jose (10-4) a three-touchdown lead and still win, but stellar defense that forced four SaberCats turnovers and brilliant play from offensive specialist Marcus Nash made it possible. Nash caught 11 passes for 117 yards and three touchdowns, including a number of leaping and one-handed efforts that left his team in awe.

"What can you say?" Haege said. "The guy's unbelievable."

Nash received a game ball from Haege, partly in recognition for breaking Eddie Brown's Arena Football League single-season record of 136 receptions. Nash, whose teammates chanted his name as he arrived in the locker room after the game, now has 139 with two games left.

"This was our championship week," Nash said. "We had to win. Best team in the league -- we had to come out and win."

Yet early on, Nash and Dolezel simply could not connect. All three of San Jose's early picks came in the end zone, with Barry Wagner returning the final one 50 yards for the score that put the Gladiators in a 21-0 hole.

But Dennison Robinson caught a 9-yard scoring pass from Dolezel with 2:30 left in the first half to get Las Vegas on the board and provide a starting point. The teams then traded three turnovers, with the Gladiators eventually scoring on a Nash touchdown catch to close the half down nine points, 21-12.

"The key was scoring at the end of the half," Haege said.

It allowed Las Vegas to pull within 21-20 on the first possession of the second half and then tie the game nine minutes later. The Gladiators then pulled off what likely ranks as their most improbable play of the season to ultimately turn the game.

Calling on a man who once was an all-state kicker in high school, Haege asked Dolezel to perform an onside kick after regular kicker Brian Gowins was injured in the second quarter. Dolezel's boot went just about seven yards -- too short to recover -- but a SaberCat touched it and Thaddeus Bullard fell on it.

"Let's hope we never have to do that again," Dolezel said.

On the ensuing drive, Nash cashed in on a 21-yard deep corner route from Dolezel to give Las Vegas a lead it would not give back. Dolezel finished with 289 passing yards and six touchdowns (five passing, one rushing).

"We needed to show that we could win a close one," Dolezel said. "And we won a close one against, right now, the best team in arena football."

No Gladiator offered a clear-cut explanation for how the team overcame its biggest obstacle of the year. In the end, Nash believes it just came down to little bounces like that onside kick.

"This time, we just happened to get the breaks," Nash said. "Early in the season, we never got any of the breaks."