Outlaws travel to L.A. to face their Arena ‘rivals’

Another week, another first for the expansion Las Vegas Outlaws.

Two weeks ago, the team played its first Arena Football League game — a 59-41 loss to San Jose. Last week was another first — the Outlaws secured their first win, 70-53, over the defending AFL champion Arizona Rattlers.

Today, it’s the first road game for the Outlaws, who lead the West Division and travel to Anaheim, Calif., to face the Los Angeles Kiss at 7 p.m. at the Honda Center.

If familiarity indeed breeds contempt, expect some bad blood. Outlaws coach Aaron Garcia was the Kiss’ starting quarterback last year, and J.J. Raterink replaced Garcia when he got hurt. Also, Outlaws fullback Joe Mortensen played for Los Angeles last season.

“There was some drama that strained our relationship,” Garcia said. “But I have a lot of respect for those guys. However, we don’t want this to be a rivalry. I want it to be where we’re dominating L.A.”

Raterink said he can see the teams developing a rivalry.

“There’s rivalries all across the league,” he said. “This one seems like a natural because of the proximity of the teams and given who the owners are.”

A couple of old-school rockers happen to own each team. Vince Neil, the frontman of Motley Crue, owns the Outlaws, and the Kiss is owned by Kiss band members Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley.

An ESPN commentator was hyping the game as a “Battle of the Bands,” but since neither Neil nor Simmons plans to suit up, they’ll have to settle for cheering on their team, and perhaps controlling the music coming over the loudspeakers.

In other words, don’t expect “Girls, Girls, Girls” to be coming out of the PA system at the Honda Center. That faux pas already took place at the Thomas &Mack Center on opening night when Neil told the Outlaws’ in-house DJ not to play Kiss’ anthem “Rock and Roll All Night” — only to hear it during the fourth quarter of the March 30 loss to the SaberCats.

Last week, there was a new DJ. But tonight’s not about music. It’s a chance for the Outlaws to build on the momentum from last week.

The Outlaws started rolling just before halftime against the Rattlers when Gerald Young ran back a missed field-goal attempt for a touchdown, then did so again in the fourth quarter as the Outlaws locked up their first win as a franchise. The two touchdown returns set an Arena League record.

“I think there’s a little extra energy anytime you win,” said Young, the AFL’s Playmaker of the Week. “But last week’s win won’t mean anything if we don’t go into L.A. and get a win.”

The Kiss are 0-2, so they don’t need to be reminded how important the game is. But as Garcia has said, it’s not about the other team. It’s about his.

“This game is a big deal for Vince, and we want to play for our owner and our fans,” Garcia said. “But for the players and the coaches, it’s about getting better. We’re just two games into this, and it’s a long season. You want to win every game, and we’re trying to compete at the highest level of the league.”

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