Thursday, May 19, 2005 | 10 a.m.
The cobwebs, thick and sticky as they were, are cleared.
That is how Gladiators coach Ron James feels about his team's mental makeup coming off Saturday's deflating 63-60 loss at Los Angeles.
"We always clear the decks the day after the game," James said.
While many Gladiators initially looked devastated by the defeat that removed control of their playoff fate from their hands, James said the team is responding well to its last-gasp chance Sunday against Arizona at the Thomas & Mack Center.
"We bounced back well," James said. "The guys understand that an opportunity still exists, however it has to play itself out."
Las Vegas (8-7) needs a win and a little bit of help to earn its third postseason berth in the past four years, dating back to the team's time in New Jersey. If the Gladiators can defeat streaking Arizona (6-9), they must also receive a loss from either Chicago (8-7) or San Jose (8-7) to make the playoffs. Las Vegas lost season series to both the Rush and SaberCats, making it the odd team out in a tiebreaking situation.
"We put ourselves in this position," James said. "We have nobody to blame but ourselves."
Chicago travels to expansion Nashville (6-8-1) to take on one of the league's hottest teams. San Jose hosts Georgia (11-4), the National Conference regular season champion. James spoke with Nashville coach Pat Sperduto and Georgia coach Doug Plank this week, both assuring him that their teams would not let up although neither has anything for which to play.
Had they defeated Los Angeles, the Gladiators would take the field this week needing only a win to claim the Western Division title and a first-round home playoff game. Instead, the Avengers are division champions and the Gladiators are desperate.
James said there is no time to worry about such things at the moment.
"Regrets are things that you have after the season is over with," James said.
If the Gladiators can squeeze into the playoffs, they will meet a familiar opponent. Las Vegas would travel to face either Colorado (10-5) or Los Angeles (10-5), depending upon which team finishes with the best record in the American Conference. The Gladiators cannot finish higher than the fourth and final playoff berth, assuring them of facing the best team in the conference in a potential first-round game.
Hill apparently caught the eye of league officials for a touchdown celebration in the Dallas game deemed to be "lewd" and inappropriate. James said he never noticed Hill's celebration until an official pointed it out to him during the game.
Hill chose not to appeal the suspension, a move that could have backfired if the Gladiators made the playoffs and he was forced to serve his time in the postseason. James was caught off guard by the league's decision.
"It was very surprising," James said. "T.J. is a class act and a good player. I don't know how you determine what's lewd or what's what. It wasn't profane."
Porter, who broke his arm early in the season at Nashville, returns to fill Hill's spot. Burch missed most of the year with a knee injury and had been supposedly close to returning for the better part of a month.
A game against Arizona, for which Burch played for six seasons, proved to be good medicine.
"A little extra motivation never hurts," James said.
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