Max Meylor threw three touchdown passes and ran for two others as the Arizona Rattlers took a big lead in the second half and hung on to defeat the San Diego Strike Force to advance to the Indoor Football League championship game.
The Rattlers, with help from three Ron Brown Jr. touchdowns, including a kickoff return, held on for a 43-37 victory Sunday, Aug. 9, at Frontwave Arena in Oceanside, California, for the Western Conference championship.
It was the third time the Rattlers (13-5) defeated the No. 1-seeded Strike Force (14-4) this season. The Rattlers head to Tucson for an Aug. 16 showdown against the Eastern Conference champion Green Bay Blizzard for the Indoor Football League championship.
The game is set for 4:30 p.m. MST at the Tucson
Convention Center and can be seen on the Yahoo Sports Network, which is available on various streaming platforms.
Arizona's season is concluding on a similar path as 2024, when the Rattlers won the IFL title. They were the No. 3 seed with an 11-5 record and reeled off three playoff wins to capture their second IFL championship. This year, however, the Rattlers didn't have a home playoff game.
Tucson is the next-best thing to a home game for the Rattlers. After the win over the Strike Force, coach Kevin Guy appealed to "Rattler Nation" on the Yahoo Sports broadcast to show up in Tucson.
"We don't play for T-shirts and hats," Guy said during the post-game celebration on the broadcast.
Meylor will be facing the team he took to the 2025 IFL championship game, only to get stopped near the goal line by the Vegas Knight Hawks in the closing seconds of a loss. Meylor was the league MVP for the Blizzard last season.
This year, Meylor started the season for the Rattlers, lost his job to Drew Powell partway through the season, before regaining the starting job as the Rattlers pieced together a five-game winning streak, during which they've outscored their opponents by more than 20 points.
Meylor played through a sluggish first half, during which he was intercepted on a pass that slipped out of his hand and fluttered into the end zone.
But the Rattlers' defense was able to get to San Diego quarterback Nate Davis, who was sacked for a safety and had a pass intercepted by Yahsyn McKee Sr., his league-leading 12th interception of the season. Davis finished 18-of-34 passing for 255 yards and four touchdowns.
While the Rattlers went into a prevent zone defense and tried to work the clock, the Strike Force, with help from a successful onside kick, got within a touchdown with two seconds to go. The Rattlers then recovered the onside kick and began to celebrate, putting on the conference championship T-shirts and hats.
This was the Rattlers' 10th conference championship under Guy, who has led the program since 2008.
Richard Obert has been covering high school sports since the 1980s for The Arizona Republic. Catch the best high school sports coverage in the state. Sign up for Azcentral Preps Now. And be sure to subscribe to our daily sports newsletters so you don't miss a thing. To suggest human-interest story ideas and other news, reach Obert at richard.obert@arizonarepublic.com or 602-316-8827. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter:@azc_obert
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Rattlers reach IFL championship game with win over Strike Force
