2012 Utah Blaze season

The 2012 Utah Blaze season was the sixth season for the franchise in the Arena Football League. The team was coached by Ron James and played its home games at EnergySolutions Arena for the second straight year. The Blaze finished the regular season 12–6 and qualified for the playoffs. They made it to the National Conference championship game where they played the Arizona Rattlers, but were on the losing end of a 75–69 score.

2012 Utah Blaze season
Head coachRon James
Home fieldEnergySolutions Arena
Results
Record12–6
Division place3rd NC West
Playoff finishWon Conference Semifinals (Talons) 35–34
Lost Conference Championship (Rattlers) 69–75
Team MVPTommy Grady
Team OPYTommy Grady

Standings

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Team W L PCT PF PA DIV CON Home Away
y-Arizona Rattlers 13 5 .722 1118 880 3–3 8–5 7–2 6–3
x-San Jose SaberCats 12 6 .667 1143 1027 4–2 10–4 8–1 4–5
x-Utah Blaze 12 6 .667 1128 1051 4–2 8–4 6–3 6–3
Spokane Shock 10 8 .556 1063 1048 1–5 5–7 5–4 5–4

y - Clinched division
x - Clinched playoff berth

Schedule

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Regular season

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The Blaze began the season in San Antonio against the San Antonio Talons on March 10. Their home opener was on March 24 against the San Jose SaberCats. They played the Philadelphia Soul in their final regular season game on July 22.[1]

Week Day Date Kickoff Opponent Results Location Report
Score Record
1 Saturday March 10 2:00 p.m. MST at San Antonio Talons L 48–54 0–1 Alamodome [2]
2 Saturday March 17 6:05 p.m. MDT at Iowa Barnstormers W 69–49 1–1 Wells Fargo Arena [3]
3 Saturday March 24 7:00 p.m. MDT San Jose SaberCats W 60–59 2–1 EnergySolutions Arena [4]
4 Saturday March 31 8:00 p.m. MDT New Orleans VooDoo L 57–72 2–2 EnergySolutions Arena [5]
5 Bye
6 Saturday April 14 6:00 p.m. MDT at Jacksonville Sharks W 75–67 3–2 Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena [6]
7 Friday April 20 7:00 p.m. MDT Iowa Barnstormers W 63–62 4–2 EnergySolutions Arena [7]
8 Saturday April 28 6:00 p.m. MDT at Milwaukee Mustangs W 61–58 5–2 Bradley Center [8]
9 Saturday May 5 7:00 p.m. MDT Spokane Shock W 84–63 6–2 EnergySolutions Arena [9]
10 Friday May 11 8:30 p.m. MDT San Jose SaberCats L 59–70 6–3 HP Pavilion at San Jose [10]
11 Saturday May 19 7:00 p.m. MDT Arizona Rattlers L 70–86 6–4 EnergySolutions Arena [11]
12 Saturday May 26 7:00 p.m. MDT San Antonio Talons L 61–64 6–5 EnergySolutions Arena [12]
13 Saturday June 2 6:00 p.m. MDT at Kansas City Command W 55–45 7–5 Sprint Center [13]
14 Saturday June 9 7:00 p.m. MDT Chicago Rush W 68–28 8–5 EnergySolutions Arena [14]
15 Saturday June 16 8:00 p.m. MDT Spokane Shock W 58–55 9–5 Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena [15]
16 Saturday June 23 7:00 p.m. MDT Georgia Force W 61–38 10–5 EnergySolutions Arena [16]
17 Bye
18 Friday July 6 8:00 p.m. MDT at Arizona Rattlers W 62–49 11–5 US Airways Center [17]
19 Friday July 13 6:00 p.m. MDT Cleveland Gladiators W 83–63 12–5 EnergySolutions Arena [18]
20 Monday July 22 4:05 p.m. MDT at Philadelphia Soul L 34–69 12–6 Wells Fargo Center [19]

Playoffs

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Round Day Date Kickoff Opponent Results Location Report
NC Semifinals Friday July 27 6:05 p.m. MST at San Antonio Talons W 35–34 Alamodome [20]
NC Championship Saturday August 4 7:00 p.m. MST at Arizona Rattlers L 69–75 US Airways Center [21]

Final roster

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2012 Utah Blaze roster
Quarterbacks

Fullbacks

Wide receivers

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers
  • 11 Antwan Marsh
  • 42 Joe Mortensen

Defensive backs

  •  1 Carlton Brown
  •  9 David Hyland
  •  7 Will Mulder
  •  4 Alfred Phillips

Kickers

Injured reserve
  • 48 Lionel Bibbins DL
  • 89 Dan DeMaster OL
  • -- Delric Ellington WR
  • 73 Darryl Hicks OL
  •  5 Josh Jones DB
  • 99 Alex Michael OL
  • 17 Ernest Pierce WR
  •  8 Sha'reff Rashad DB
  • 90 T. J. Raymond OL
  •  8 Chad Rusinkovich WR
  • 54 Dain Taylor LB

Other league exempt

  • Currently vacant

Refuse to report

Inactive reserve

  • Currently vacant

League suspension

  • Currently vacant

Team suspension

Recallable reassignment

  • Currently vacant

Rookies in italics
Roster updated August 4, 2012
23 Active, 14 Inactive

References

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  1. ^ "Utah Blaze 2012 Regular Season Schedule". Utah Blaze. Archived from the original on September 5, 2011. Retrieved March 1, 2012.
  2. ^ "Blaze Drop Close Game to Talons, 54–48". Utah Blaze. March 10, 2012. Archived from the original on March 22, 2012. Retrieved March 11, 2012.
  3. ^ "Defense Ignites in Win over Barnstormers". Utah Blaze. March 17, 2012. Archived from the original on May 8, 2012. Retrieved March 18, 2012.
  4. ^ "Blaze Knock Off Top-Ranked SaberCats in Last-Moment Thriller". Utah Blaze. March 25, 2012. Archived from the original on July 15, 2012. Retrieved March 25, 2012.
  5. ^ "Blaze Turnovers Prove Costly in Loss to VooDoo". Utah Blaze. March 31, 2012. Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved April 1, 2012.
  6. ^ "Utah Defeats ArenaBowl Champs in Offensive Shootout". Utah Blaze. April 13, 2012. Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved April 14, 2012.
  7. ^ "Blaze Emerge Victorious in Rematch with Barnstormers". Utah Blaze. April 21, 2012. Archived from the original on March 22, 2012. Retrieved April 21, 2012.
  8. ^ "Blaze Off to Best Start in Franchise History with Win over Mustangs". Utah Blaze. April 21, 2012. Archived from the original on March 22, 2012. Retrieved April 29, 2012.
  9. ^ "Blaze Rolls to Fourth-Straight Victory". Utah Blaze. May 5, 2012. Archived from the original on July 17, 2012. Retrieved May 5, 2012.
  10. ^ "Blaze Splits Season Series with SaberCats". Utah Blaze. May 12, 2012. Archived from the original on July 15, 2012. Retrieved May 12, 2012.
  11. ^ "Rattlers Defeat Blaze Despite Explosive Offensive Output". Utah Blaze. May 19, 2012. Archived from the original on June 27, 2012. Retrieved May 21, 2012.
  12. ^ "Talons Edge Blaze in Back and Forth Battle". Utah Blaze. May 26, 2012. Archived from the original on June 27, 2012. Retrieved May 27, 2012.
  13. ^ "Utah Burns Through Kansas City Behind Record-Setting Night by Grady". Utah Blaze. June 2, 2012. Archived from the original on June 27, 2012. Retrieved June 3, 2012.
  14. ^ "Utah Dismantles Chicago in Blowout Victory". Utah Blaze. June 9, 2012. Archived from the original on June 27, 2012. Retrieved June 10, 2012.
  15. ^ "Utah Shocks Spokane in Last-Minute Thriller". Utah Blaze. June 17, 2012. Archived from the original on June 27, 2012. Retrieved June 17, 2012.
  16. ^ "Utah Surges Past Georgia Force". Utah Blaze. June 23, 2012. Archived from the original on June 27, 2012. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  17. ^ "Utah Blasts Top-Ranked Rattlers". Utah Blaze. July 7, 2012. Archived from the original on July 11, 2012. Retrieved July 7, 2012.
  18. ^ "Utah Conquers Cleveland Gladiators". Utah Blaze. July 13, 2012. Archived from the original on June 27, 2012. Retrieved July 15, 2012.
  19. ^ "Blaze Drop Regular-Season Finale to Soul". Utah Blaze. July 22, 2012. Archived from the original on June 27, 2012. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
  20. ^ "Blaze Drop Heartbreaker to Rattlers,". Utah Blaze. July 27, 2012. Archived from the original on June 27, 2012. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  21. ^ "Blaze Clip Talons, Advance to Conference Championship, 75–69". Utah Blaze. August 5, 2012. Archived from the original on June 27, 2012. Retrieved August 5, 2012.