CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. — The Nashville Kats completed the Arena Football One regular season with the league’s best record, the defending champion Albany Firebirds secured the other first-round bye and the Minnesota Monsters guaranteed themselves a home playoff game.
Only one question remains entering the final weekend: Will Washington or Beaumont claim the sixth and final playoff berth?
Nashville secured the No. 1 seed by defeating Albany 57-54 on Saturday night at MVP Arena in a game featuring brothers Tyler and Joshua Kulka at quarterback. Tyler Kulka led the Kats by completing 22 of 32 passes for 232 yards and six touchdowns with one interception, while Joshua Kulka completed 28 of 41 passes for 311 yards, six touchdowns and one interception for the Firebirds.
Nashville finished 11-1 with nine consecutive victories and a league-leading 735 points. The Kats earned home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, including the Arena Crown championship if they advance that far.
Jordan Gandy caught seven passes for 44 yards and three touchdowns for Nashville. Charles Hall IV had five receptions for 64 yards and two scores, while B.K. Smith Jr. caught four passes for 62 yards and a touchdown. Desmond Maxwell added a rushing touchdown.
Kicker Kyle Kaplan provided the difference for Nashville by converting all seven of his extra-point attempts and four deuces, accounting for 15 points. The Kats overcame an Albany offense that produced more passing yards and eight total touchdowns.
Joshua Kulka also rushed for a touchdown for the Firebirds. Tyrese Chambers caught 10 passes for 114 yards and three touchdowns, Agiye Hall had five receptions for 89 yards and a score, Isiah Scott caught four passes for 33 yards and a touchdown, and Darien Townsend finished with eight receptions for 68 yards and a score. Offensive lineman Joshua Zacher added 17 rushing yards and a touchdown.
Albany finished 9-3 and will be seeded second. The Firebirds opened the season with eight consecutive victories but lost three of their final four games. They scored 652 points, second only to Nashville, but lost both regular-season meetings with the Kats.
Nashville and Albany will be idle during the opening round of the playoffs before meeting the quarterfinal winners in the semifinals the following week.
Minnesota secured the No. 3 seed by defeating Washington 56-42 on Saturday night at Amsoil Arena in Duluth. The Monsters improved to 7-4, won their second consecutive game and guaranteed themselves a first-round playoff game at home.
Minnesota will close the regular season against Beaumont at 6 p.m. Saturday at Amsoil Arena. The result will determine which team returns to Duluth for the opening round of the playoffs.
A Minnesota victory would eliminate Beaumont and give Washington the sixth seed. The Wolfpack then would return to Amsoil Arena during the weekend of July 24-26 for a rematch with the Monsters.
A Beaumont victory would give the Renegades the final playoff berth and create back-to-back games between Beaumont and Minnesota in Duluth.
Washington completed its regular season at 5-7 after losing its final three games. Beaumont improved to 4-7 and kept its playoff hopes alive with a 50-20 victory over Kentucky on Saturday.
If Beaumont defeats Minnesota, the Renegades and Wolfpack would finish with identical 5-7 records. Beaumont would advance because it owns the head-to-head tiebreaker after defeating Washington 42-35 on May 23.
Minnesota cannot fall below third place. Even with a loss to Beaumont, the Monsters would finish 7-5 and remain ahead of Kentucky through the head-to-head tiebreaker. Minnesota dominated both regular-season meetings, defeating the Barrels 69-32 on May 30 and 60-8 on July 5.
Kentucky completed its regular season at 7-5 after losing three consecutive games. The Barrels, once positioned to challenge for a first-round bye, instead will be seeded fourth and host fifth-seeded Michigan in the opening round.
Michigan continued its late-season surge Friday night with an 86-74 road victory over Oceanside. The Arsenal have won four consecutive games to reach 6-6 and will host Oceanside in the other game on the final regular-season weekend.
The Arsenal have scored 574 points, third most in the league behind Nashville and Albany. Regardless of the result against Oceanside, Michigan cannot overtake Kentucky and will open the playoffs on the road against the Barrels.
Oceanside fell to 1-10 with its 10th consecutive loss and has been eliminated from playoff contention.
The six-team playoff format gives Nashville and Albany first-round byes. Minnesota will host Washington or Beaumont in the No. 3-versus-No. 6 quarterfinal, while Kentucky will host Michigan in the No. 4-versus-No. 5 matchup.
The quarterfinal winners will advance to face Nashville and Albany in the semifinals the following week. The Arena Crown championship will be played at the home of the highest remaining seed.
For Minnesota, the regular-season finale offers an opportunity to carry a three-game winning streak into the playoffs and secure another meeting with Washington, a team it defeated by 14 points Saturday. A loss would not cost the Monsters the third seed, but it would keep Beaumont alive and bring the Renegades back to Duluth one week later.
The final weekend includes only two games: Beaumont at Minnesota and Oceanside at Michigan. The Minnesota-Beaumont result will settle the last remaining position in the AF1 playoff field.