About four and a half minutes into the first game in the history of the Alliance of American Football, San Diego Fleet quarterback Mike Bercovici tried to deliver a deep pass. Before he could get the pass off he was detonated by San Antonio Commanders linebacker Shaan Washington.
Bercovici lost the ball and his helmet (which might have been airborne longer than the ball was) on a hit that personified the return of professional football to San Diego.
The Fleet failed to score a touchdown in a 15-6 loss at the Alamodome. Bercovici was sacked six times and threw a pair of interceptions before being benched … in the3rd quarter. Backup Philip Nelson replaced him and threw one more interception.
This was certainly not the debut the Fleet had in mind, especially since they were planning on USD alum Josh Johnson to be their starting QB before he was scooped up by the Washington Redskins of the NFL.
The Fleet defense played well enough to win. They allowed just one touchdown and that came after Bercovici’s final pick that gave the Commanders a short field. Safety Ryan Moeller and cornerback Ron Brooks both had interceptions. One of the few bright spots on offense was former Aztecs tight end Gavin Escobar’s four catches for 66 yards.
After the game Fleet head coach Mike Martz said Nelson will be the starter for next week’s home opener on Sunday night at 5:00 p.m. against the Atlanta Legends at SDCCU Stadium. If there’s good news it’s that Atlanta also only scored six points in its first game, a 40-6 blowout loss to the Orlando Apollos.
