ORLANDO, Fl. — The Orlando Apollos remain undefeated after a 21-17 home victory against the Memphis Express.
The Apollos switched things up by getting a huge chunk of their offense on the ground instead of through the air. D'Ernest Johnson had 79 yards rushing and a touchdown on 13 carries. De'Veon Smith also contributed with 8 carries for 52 yards.
One of the highlights of the game came when quarterback Garrett Gilbert broke free from a tackle down the sideline for a score.
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"I thought he'd just get the first down there, but all of a sudden he puts on a spin move and goes the distance," said coach Steve Spurrier.
Although they were dealing with a stingy Memphis defense, things looked to be going the Apollos' way until Memphis coach Mike Singletary inserted Zach Mettenberger in at quarterback for a struggling Christian Hackenberg.
Mettenberger finished the game with 120 yards passing and two touchdowns. One of those scores came in the fourth quarter to make it a four-point game. Similiar to San Antonio, the Apollos responded by relying on the run game to run out the clock and secure the victory.
"We're going to knee it out and win this ballgame and be thankful and get ready for the next one after a day or so," said coach Spurrier.
That next one comes on the road against the Salt Lake Stallions who just secured their first win of the season. Like Memphis, Salt Lake has the ability to run the ball well and has a capable quarterback in Josh Woodrum back from injury.
Coach Spurrier will also have to find a way to stop Karter Schult on defense, who has been a menace for opposing offenses.
"Good, strong team," Spurrier said of the Stallions. "Going to (probably) be a close game again and we gotta make the plays necessary in the 3rd and 4th quarter to beat those guys."
The game was flexed to be shown on NFL Network at 8 p.m. on March 2.
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