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| Date | August 1, 1987 | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Stadium | Civic Arena Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | ||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | Gary Mullen, WR/DB, Denver
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| Attendance | 13,232 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Winning coach | Tim Marcum | ||||||||||||||||||
| Losing coach | Joe Haering | ||||||||||||||||||
| TV in the United States | |||||||||||||||||||
| Network | ESPN | ||||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Bob Rathbun,Lee Corso | ||||||||||||||||||
Arena Bowl '87 (orArena Bowl I) was theArena Football League's first Championship Game. It was played on August 1, 1987, at theCivic Arena inPittsburgh,Pennsylvania. In the game, the #2Denver Dynamite defeated the #1 Pittsburgh Gladiators by a score of 45–16.
Coming into the game, with both teams finishing their seasons at 4–2, the Gladiators hosted the ArenaBowl due to their high attendance during the regular season.[1] During the regular season the team split their games, with the Gladiators winning in Denver 49–32, but lost at home by a score of 32–31.[2]
The first half of ArenaBowl I was not a competitive game, as the Dynamite came out leading at the half by a score of 18–0. The Dynamite scored the first 32 points and shut out the Gladiators for 3 quarters before Gladiators quarterbackMike Hohensee foundRussell Hairston on an 11-yard pass. The Dynamite were paced on offense by wide receiverGary Mullen, who had nine receptions for 123 yards and 3 touchdowns, earning him MVP honors.
The Dynamite got off to an early start with a fumble recovery for a touchdown by OL/DL Phil Forte, along with a two-yard touchdown run by FB/LB Richard Prather (with a failed two-point conversion) in the first quarter.
In the second quarter, Denver's domination continued with QuarterbackWhit Taylor completing a 26-yard touchdown pass to WR/DBGary Mullen (with another failed two-point conversion) for the only score of the period.[3][4]
In the third quarter, the Dynamite continued their destruction with Taylor completing a 32-yard touchdown pass to WR/LB Richard Rodgers, along with WR/DBSteve Trimble returning an interception 47 yards for a touchdown.
In the fourth quarter, the Gladiators finally managed to score as QuarterbackMike Hohensee completed an 11-yard touchdown pass to WR/LBRussell Hairston (with a successful two-point conversion). Denver would wrap up the game with Taylor and Mullen hooking up with each other on a five-yard touchdown pass and even a 19-yard touchdown pass (failed PAT). Pittsburgh's final strike came from Quarterback Brendan Folmar to WR/DB Rodney Richmond.
Mullen was named the game's MVP for his performance.[3][5]