Philadelphia Claims Arena Bowl Title

PHILADELPHIA 59, SAN JOSE 56

NEW ORLEANS (Ticker) -- Matt D'Orazio and the Philadelphia Soul made sure history did not repeat itself in ArenaBowl XXIII. D'Orazio threw seven touchdown passes and ran for another score as the Soul secured their first league title with a 59-56 victory over the defending champion San Jose SaberCats on Sunday afternoon.

Chris Jackson caught three scoring passes for the Soul (14-3), who booked their trip to the Big Easy with a 70-35 demolition of the Cleveland Gladiators at the Wachovia Center two weeks ago. To claim its first title, Philadelphia had to go through powerful San Jose, which made its second consecutive appearance in the ArenaBowl and fourth in seven seasons.

Last season, the SaberCats won their third league title by defeating the Columbus Destroyers. They could not repeat the feat Sunday thanks to D'Orazio, who also led the Chicago Rush to the title in 2006. This season, he paced the AFL in passer rating (131.3) and completion percentage (72.4) en route to winning the league's Quarterback of the Year Award. D'Orazio completed 26-of-43 passes for 302 yards in this one, connecting with Jackson - the AFL Offensive Player of the Year - once in each of the first three quarters. The final one was a 32-yard score to give Philadelphia an insurmountable 44-27 advantage with 7:56 left. Jackson, who led the league in touchdowns with 49, caught 11 passes for 146 yards for the Soul, whose owner, rocker Bon Jovi, led the raucous celebration as time wound down.

Mark Grieb tossed six touchdown passes for San Jose (11-6), which failed to become the first team since the Tampa Bay Storm (1995-96) and only the third club to win four ArenaBowls, joining Tampa Bay (five) and Detroit (four). The SaberCats made it interesting in the final seconds, scoring 14 points in 11 ticks to fall just short of a remarkable comeback within the final minute.