OFFICIAL SITE OF THE
NASHVILLE KATS
PROFESSIONAL ARENA FOOTBALL TEAM LOCATED IN NASHVILLE, TN
ALBANY FIREBIRDS WIN ARENA CROWN, OUTLAST NASHVILLE 60-57
The Arena Crown concluded the 2025 Arena Football One season as the Nashville Kats hit the road to play the Albany Firebirds. The Firebirds defeated the Salina Liberty last week in the playoffs to get to The Arena Crown. The Kats beat the Southwest Kansas Storm. The championship game was everything fans could have hoped for, going down to the wire. In the end, the Albany Firebirds defeated the Nashville Kats, 60-57, winning The Arena Crown.
Unfortunately for the Kats, it was not successful, and the Firebirds started with excellent field position. On the very first play, Arena Football One’s MVP Sam Castronova ran four yards for a touchdown to take the lead. Henry Nell did a drop-kick on the extra point try, which is worth two points, giving them a 10-7 lead.
The Kats answered quickly again, moving the ball easily on the Firebirds’ defense in the first quarter. It wasn’t long before Kulka was throwing a touchdown pass to Jordan Gandy, who went over the boards to catch the touchdown. The extra point was missed, keeping the Kats at a three-point lead, 13-10.
In a back-and-forth first quarter, the Firebirds also answered quickly. Sam Castronova hit Darien Townsend for a 21-yard touchdown. Townsend proceeded to jump up on the wall border around the turf to do his signature dance, The Dirty Bird. After an extra point, the Firebirds were up 17-13.
Going into the second quarter, the Kats wasted no time answering with a score as Tyler Kulka threw his third touchdown pass to Nih-Jer Jackson. Jackson taunted the crowd with his own version of The Dirty Bird in celebration. As the Kats went for two, Tre Wortham intercepted the pass and returned it all the way for a score. With the two points gained, the game was tied 19-19.
The Firebirds drove down as Castronova found Townsend, Duane Brown, and Isaiah Scott, moving the ball down the field. From the two-yard line, Desmond Maxwell caught a pass from Castronova for a touchdown to give the Firebirds a 26-19 lead with just ten minutes left in the second half. At this point in the game, the quarterbacks were on fire. Both had only missed one pass. Kulka was 12 of 13, and Castronova was 7 of 8.
However, the Firebirds’ feared defense picked it up on the next drive, causing two incompletions in a row to start the Kats' drive. Kulka and the Kats answered by gaining a first down and then completing a big pass to Gandy down to the two-yard line. The Firebirds held the Kats on all four downs and made a huge goal-line stand. It was the first drive in the game by both teams that hadn’t gone for a score.
On the next play, a little bit of chaos ensued. Castronova threw the ball to Isaiah Scott, who made a really difficult contested catch. After the catch, Scott was stripped by the Kats. The ball bounced onto the turf and right into Duane Browns hands. He scooped it up and ran the ball in for a touchdown, giving the Firebirds a 32-19 lead after a failed two-point conversion.
With four minutes left in the first half, the Kats matriculated the ball down the field, pulling within the ten-yard line with a minute left. On 4th and two, Prince Umanmielen sacked Tyler Kulka for a turnover on downs. With just seconds left, Castronova dropped back and was taken down in the end zone for a safety. The Kats pulled within 11 and gained some momentum with the safety, going into half 32-21.
Albany started the second half with the ball and kept their foot on the gas. Castronova completed two passes in a row to Isaiah Scott before he hit Duane Brown for a touchdown. Nell added the extra point, giving Albany a 39-21 lead.
Return man Amos Coleman for the Kats received the kickoff after touchdown and returned it to Albany’s side of the field, giving Nashville some momentum to answer back. The offense rewarded his efforts as Robert Jones Jr. took a handoff in for a touchdown to cut into the lead. The drop-kick extra point was blocked, keeping it at 39-27.
It only took the Firebirds one play to answer as Castronova threw his fourth touchdown pass to Isaiah Scott for a touchdown, bringing their lead back to three scores, 46-27, with 8:32 left in the third quarter.
The back-and-forth championship game continued as Tyler Kulka threw another touchdown. The Kats went for two and converted, cutting the lead down to 11 points, 46-35. The Arena Crown continued the intensity with 4:43 left in the third quarter. While the Kats hadn’t stopped the Firebirds yet, their offense continued to keep it close. Kats kicker Gunner Rayborn hit a deuce after the touchdown, cutting the lead down to 9 points, 46-37.
The Kats' defense was fired up. Roderick Perry sacked Sam Castronova on the first play of the drive, backing the Kats up to their own one-yard line. They held the Firebirds to fourth down. On fourth-and-five, Firebirds went for it and fumbled the snap. The Kats took over, trailing by just 9 points, inside their own 10-yard line.
The Kats answered their defense's big stop with Tyler Kulka throwing a touchdown pass to offensive linemen Payton Muljo, putting Nashville within three. The Kats went for a two-point conversion but did not get it, pulling within three, 46-43, heading into the fourth quarter.
After being held to fourth and fifteen, the Firebirds got back on track, doing for it on fourth and getting the first. Castronova capped the drive off with a seven-yard touchdown pass to Isaiah Scott. Scott was playing a huge role in the Firebirds’ offense. With just under ten minutes left in the game, he was sitting at eight catches for 155 receiving yards and two touchdowns. The Firebirds were up 53-43 with 8:33 left in the game.
The Kats wouldn’t call it quits yet, though. They drove down the field and down to the three-yard line, threatening to score again. On third and goal, Kulka hit Antwane Grant for a touchdown, cutting the lead down to just four points. The Kats went for two but were unsuccessful with 1:18 left in the game, trailing 53-49.
Albany started their next drive at the Nashville 23-yard line. A touchdown would likely put the game away. They started the drive by drawing Nashville offsides, moving to a 1st and five from the 18-yard line with just a minute to go in the game. After a couple of plays, Castronova called his own number and ran around the end for a touchdown.
A scuffle broke out after the touchdown, leading to Colby Byrd and Trevon Shorts being ejected from the game. Nell put the extra point up through the uprights to give Albany a 60-49 lead with just 39 seconds left in the game.
Again, the Kats weren’t done yet, as they drove down the field and scored another touchdown as Tyler Kulka hit Robert Jones with five seconds left. They completed the two-point conversion to cut the game down to just three points, 60-57, with just two seconds to go.
Both teams played an incredible game. They left everything out on the field to finish their seasons with a bang. The Firebirds were able to outlast the Kats, never giving up the lead after going ahead 8-7 in the first. Though the Kats tied it at one point and rallied from behind at another, the Firebirds stayed one step ahead of them.
Sam Castronova finished with seven total touchdowns and 251 total yards. He was given the Real American Beer MVP award of the Championship. His top receiver for the Arena Crown was Isaiah Scott, who finished with 8 catches for 155 yards and two touchdowns. Tyler Kulka of the Kats threw for 347 yards and 8 touchdowns. His top target was Nih-jer Jackson, who caught 13 passes for 133 yards and two touchdowns.
When I spoke with head coach Damon Ware before the season started he talked about unfinished business carrying over from last year. After a perfect season through the 2025 Arena Football One season and winning The Arena Crown to top it off, Coach Ware can consider the business finished. Congratulations to the Albany Firebirds, your 2025 Arena Crown Champions!