Fast start lifts Las Vegas Locos in UFL opener

Maybe this whole training camp thing is overrated.

With eight days to prepare, the Locomotives appeared to be in midseason form Wednesday as they began their fourth United Football League season with an impressive 19-6 victory over the Virginia Destroyers at Sam Boyd Stadium.

The win helped coach Jim Fassel's team gain a measure of revenge against the Destroyers, who dominated Las Vegas 17-3 in the 2011 UFL championship game in October. More important for Fassel and his players was the fact that the UFL is alive and kicking, even if not many people were watching.

A paltry crowd of 2,500 showed up at Sam Boyd Stadium. (The team announced 5,277, but the Thomas & Mack Center, which runs Sam Boyd, said the actual count was 2,500.) Granted, there was no time to market the game given the league announced Sept. 17 it was going to play. Even the lure of $10 tickets wasn't enough to entice enough warm bodies to fill the middle sections of the 36,000-seat stadium.

"I was really impressed with the quality of play," Fassel said. "These are professional football players. This isn't their first rodeo. Our guys came in in shape and ready to perform."

The Locos wasted no time establishing control as DeDe Dorsey, one of several UFL veterans on Las Vegas' roster, broke free from the Virginia defense and ran 45 yards for a touchdown to cap an opening drive that took only 3:18 to cover 77 yards. Dorsey finished with 99 yards rushing.

Chase Clement, beginning his third year as Las Vegas' quarterback, played smart, low-risk football. And when he took his shots, they usually paid off. Like his 74-yard slant to Anthony Jackson for a touchdown that gave Las Vegas a 19-0 lead with 5:49 remaining in the first half.

"Our offensive line did a great job of giving me time and opening up holes for our running backs," said Clement, who was 5-for-9 for 134 yards. "We wanted to make sure we took care of the ball and didn't turn it over."

The Locos had one lost fumble. But Fassel said he did not want Clement chucking it all over the place.

"We were not going to rely on our passing to get us through," Fassel said. "We wanted to make it a physical game."

The Locos defense made sure Virginia quarterback Chris Greisen didn't dominate. They pressured him all night, sacked him four times and took away the Destroyers' running game, as Virginia had only 98 total yards. The Locos also got a stop on fourth-and-18 with 5:13 to play, as Greisen scrambled in an attempt to keep a drive alive but was tackled a yard short at the Las Vegas 22-yard line.

"We were going on pure motivation," said Locos defensive end Adrian Awasom, who helped sack Greisen once and had a second-quarter interception. "I'm amazed at how quick we were able to come together. I've never seen anything like that."

One of the few dim spots for the Locos was the debut of linebacker Brian Banks, who was playing his first professional football game after spending five years in prison and another five years on parole for a rape charge that was later overturned in court. The 26-year-old Banks injured his right hamstring while covering a kickoff in the first quarter and did not return.

Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow him on Twitter: @stevecarprj.