PHOENIX -- Virgil Gray, the heart of the secondary, was knocked out of the game with a knee injury to start the second quarter. Play-making receiver Maurice Purify had no catches and one interception in the first half.
The Rattlers looked lost Saturday night, but they weren't beat.
With Nick Davila back in the rhythm that made him the Arena Football League's MVP last season, with
Maurice Purify scoring three touchdowns in the final 9:15, with Arkeith Brown and Kevin McCullough making clutch interceptions, the Rattlers rallied for a 75-69 victory over the Utah Blaze before 9,644 screaming fans at US Airways Center for their second consecutive National Conference championship.