DENVER -- Andy McCullough's leaping, 22-yard touchdown grab in double coverage 9:44 into overtime sent the Colorado Crush to ArenaBowl XIX via a 49-43 win over the Chicago Rush and capped one of the wildest, emotional games in Arena Football League history.

McCullough's score came after both the Crush and Rush had gone scoreless on their opening overtime possessions, sending the already memorable contest into sudden death. It marked the first time that an AFL semifinal game had ever gone to that point; only two semifinals before had ever gone into overtime, but both ended on the opening exchange of drives, when each team is required to have at least one possession.

Colorado's initial overtime chance had gone astray when Chicago's Todd Howard intercepted a John Dutton pass in the end zone. Five plays later, Chicago's Bob McMillen rambled around left end for a 15-yard touchdown that could have ended the game, but an offsides penalty on the Rush nullified the score. Two plays later, Rush kicker Keith Gispert was wide right on a 36-yard field-goal attempt, sending the contest into sudden death and setting the stage for McCullough's heroics.

The events in the final moments of regulation that set up the overtime bordered on the bizarre. The Crush thought it had the game won when Rashad Floyd intercepted a pass on the last play of regulation. But a flag flew, signaling pass interference against Floyd that nullified the play.

As the flag sailed to the turf, so too did a blizzard of confetti, as the workers who handled the celebratory paper dousing were not aware of the flag amidst the celebratory ruckus among the 13,719 on hand at Pepsi Center. The game paused as Rush players brushed the confetti aside as if it was snow to give Gispert space with which to attempt a 17-yard field goal, which he nailed to force overtime.

The extra session was subsequently delayed approximately 10 minutes as dozens of workers armed with vacuums, brushes, brooms and garbage bags frantically tried to clear the field to make it playable for the extra session. Removing all the confettie proved to be an impossible task, and overtime began with the field playable, but still littered with paper.

Even without the rare sudden-death overtime and the premature dispensing of celebratory paper, the game was one of the most memorable in Arena Football history. Colorado sprinted to a 20-0 second-quarter lead and had possession of the football with a chance to push the lead to four scores midway through the period, but John Moyer sacked Dutton, forcing a fumble that Rush wide receiver/linebacker Etu Molden recovered. Two plays later, the Rush scored its first touchdown of the game, and the rally was on.

Colorado managed to work its lead back to 20 points in the final seconds of the half, but Chicago narrowed the Crush edge to 33-20 at inermission after Philyaw found Molden for a 26-yard, "Hail Mary" completion off the right rebound net as time expired before halftime. The score sent the Rush on a 27-3 run that eventually gave them a 40-36 lead midway through the fourth quarter.

Four plays later, the Rush had Colorado backed up in fourth-and-11 at its own 4-yard-line. But Dutton found McCullough for an 18-yard gain, keeping the drive alive. Two plays later, McCullough made a leaping, 8-yard reception in the back of the end zone to put the Crush back in front 43-40 with 2:52 remaining.

Chicago got possession once again and drove to the brink of the end zone before the wild confluence of circumstances at the end of regulation.

Colorado (12-6) moves on to ArenaBowl XIX, where it will make its first title-game appearance against the Georgia Force, also in its first ArenaBowl. Chicago's season ends at 10-8.