Norfolk Nighthawks Game Notes
July 2, 2003 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Norfolk Nighthawks News Release
QUICK FACTS:
Richmond Speed (5-7) at Norfolk Nighthawks (6-6)
Date: Saturday, July 5, 2003
Kickoff: 7:00 p.m. EST
Site: Scope Arena (8,965)
National Anthem: TBA
Coin Toss: TBA
Officials: TBA
Series Record: Richmond leads 4-3
Streaks: NOR LOST 1,
Last Meeting: Richmond 39, Norfolk 33
Streaks: Richmond has lost five of its last seven while the WildCats have won three in a row.
Coaches: Norfolk Nighthawks Rick Fraizer (4-7, 4-7 overall, 1st) Richmond Speed Chad Davis, Brent Williams, Billy Jarvis, JC Harmon, Lenny Pritchard, and Steve Criswell (0-1, 0-1 overall, 1st);
THE STAKES: The Norfolk Nighthawks need to bounce back from their most recent loss, this time to the Greensboro Prowlers. The Nighthawks are looking to match the series for the season and avoid the season sweep by their I-64 rivals. THE SERIES: In the seven meetings between these two teams, the road team has only won once, that being Norfolks 28-25 win at Richmond on 4/15/00.
THE IFs:
If NORFOLK defeats the CONQUEST, it would
· Snap NORFOLKs 3-game losing streak
· Get the NIGHTHAWKS back into a competitive stance as they head into the playoffs
the NIGHTHAWKS slipped to behind the American Atlantic leading CAPE FEAR WILDCATS
HEAD COACHES: Rick Fraizer brings more than a quarter century worth of coaching experience to the Norfolk Nighthawks in his new capacity as the teams Head Coach. Frazier comes to Norfolk after spending the 2002 season with the Toronto Phantoms of the AFL. Frazier served the Phantoms as their Assistant Head Coach and Defensive Coordinator.
RIC: In their first game as head coaches, Chad Davis, Brent Williams, JC Harmon, Billy Jarvis, Lenny Pritchard, and Steve Criswell suffered a difficult loss to the Wilkes-Barre Pioneers after taking over for the recently dismissed coach Richard Davis.
LAST SERIES MEETING: he Norfolk Nighthawks had something. They were winning. They had a two-game streak going and they were sitting atop their American Atlantic division. That was a perch that they wanted to keep. But everything changed in the third quarter at the Richmond Coliseum on April 26, 2003. The Nighthawks (2-1) defense ran out of gas in front of 3,994 at the Richmond Coliseum versus the Speed (1-2). They were unable to score in the third quarter after heading into halftime with a 27-19 lead. The Nighthawks lost their momentum after halftime and watched their undefeated season vanish. And they have an old friend to thank. Roy Johnson, an ex-Nighthawk and graduate of Hampton University was an effective weapon of mass offensive destruction, as he threw for 21 of 27 for 210 yards and three touchdowns. He also ran for two scores. After a scoreless 3rd Quarter for the Nighthawks, the Speed secured the 4th Quarter with 14 more points (two more Johnson passes) to seal the deal for the Speed. The Nighthawks have yet to win in Richmond.
FORWARD MOTION: Next week, the Nighthawks host Macon Knights. PLAYERS TO WATCH:
NIGHTHAWKS: A shining star of the entire arenafootball2 league is truly Travis Burns. Last week against the Albany Conquest, Mr. Burns shared Game MVP honors in action against the Albany Conquest just two weeks ago. Burns caught five passes for 81 yards and a touchdown, while adding another 105 yards on returns. He is currently sixth in the league in receptions per game with 68 catches for 991 yards. Travis has also scored a whopping 19 touchdowns so far this season and he is averaging almost 100 yards each time he takes to the turf. He is the current arenafootball2 overall leader in total yardage, with 2,067 all-purpose yards.
SPEED: Quarterback Roy Johnson might be a familiar face for Nighthawks fans because the guy used to play for us! But now, Johnson has defected to the Norfolks arch rival the Richmond Speed. And in their first meeting of this season, Johnson (who played his college ball at Hampton University) tortured the Nighthawks. He completed 21 of 27 passes for 210 yards and three touchdowns. Johnson also ran for two scores. Last season, Johnson performed admirably for the Nighthawks. He threw for 629 yards in just four games. He completed 56 of 117 passes with just four interceptions. He also produced 9 touchdowns. Can Johnson bedevil his former team in the stadium where he used to play?
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