Meylor shines in season opener

 By Hayley Brown

GLENDALE, Ariz. – Max Meylor, making his Arizona Rattlers debut, threw for three touchdowns and ran for two more as the Rattlers opened the 2026 Indoor Football League season Saturday with a 49-27 victory over the San Diego Strike Force in front of 8,727 fans at Desert Diamond Arena. 

"I went on my gut," Head Coach Kevin Guy said of choosing his new quarterback to start the opener. "It was about winning week one. But I just felt like Max, those last three, four days of camp really came out strong. I feel like I've got two quarterbacks that we can run with." 

Meylor completed 12 of 19 passes for 217 yards and the three touchdowns. He threw one interception. He also ran for 37 yards and two touchdowns. 

The Rattlers got to work right away offensively with a 32-yard touchdown pass from Meylor to wide receiver Arland Bruce with 12:09 to go in the first quarter. 

"It was a lot of one-on-one coverage, taking those shots, they're not always going to get completed but when they do, they're big plays," Meylor said. 

Bruce led the Rattlers with three catches for 69 yards and one touchdown. 

Defensive back Yahsyn McKee Sr. stopped the Strike Force on their first possession breaking up a fourth-down pass in the end zone to keep San Diego scoreless.

"Our whole secondary, we're fresh, we're brand new. We're all young, we're intelligent, smart and physical," McKee said. 

The Rattlers turned the ball back over to the Strike Force when Meylor was intercepted by defensive back Jalani Jefferson and they cashed in with a 1-yard touchdown run. 

"That's just indoor football," Meylor said of his interception. "You can score in one play and the next can be a disaster." 

The Rattlers responded with a touchdown on a shovel-pass from Meylor to Ron Brown Jr. with 11:05 left in the first half to take a 14-7 lead. Brown rushed for 22 yards and a touchdown along with the 12-yard touchdown reception. 

A 2-yard touchdown-run by Davis brought the Strike Force within one, but a missed extra point by kicker Ernesto Lacayo kept the score 14-13 Rattlers. 

Arizona put together back-to-back scores to end the half with a 28-13 lead.

After San Diego scored to open the second half the Rattlers responded with another drive into the red zone. After nearly mishandling the snap, Meylor kept the play alive, using his scrambling ability to find Trey Odoms-Dukes in the back of the end zone for a touchdown to extend the lead to 35-21. 

Arizona pulled away in the fourth quarter when Meylor connected with Corey Reed Jr. for a 31-yard touchdown and on a 36-yard pass to Odoms-Dukes which set up a 2-yard touchdown run by Meylor to give the Rattlers a 49-27 lead.

"You don't poke the bear," Guy said about the Rattlers' mentality heading into the season. "I'm back, I'm mentally dialed in, and I'm telling you right now it's going to be a hell of a year for us."

Arizona's defense sealed the win with an interception in the end zone by McKee with 1:47 left in the game. McKee finished the game with an interception, a pass breakup and a fumble recovery.

"We made sure this year we went out and got some DBs that have a history of making interceptions," Guy said. "It's a possession game, not a field possession game. So, you know, we want guys to go create turnovers. We want to be able to play as many possessions as possible."

The Rattlers, 1-0, will travel to Indiana for its road opener against Fishers Freight next Saturday at 4:30 p.m. MST. The game will be broadcasted on Yahoo Sports. San Diego falls to 1-1 with the loss.