af2 Quick Hits
Published on April 25, 2008 under arenafootball2 (af2) News Release
GAMES ON - af2/NiFTy PARTNERSHIP CREATES NEW FREE ONLINE NETWORK: The arenafootball2 league (af2) and Network Foundation Technologies (NFT) have developed a partnership that has created a new, FREE online network to provide the league's passionate fan base an opportunity to view the af2's 2008 season live over the Internet. Thanks to the power of NFT's patented online broadcasting technology, fans across the globe are now be able to bring all the action of af2 football right to their home computer or laptop on a "Free-for-View" basis. Broadcasts began in Week 1 to rave reviews and continue in Week 5 with a 14-game slate.
KENDRICK, NEWSOME, WOOLRIDGE, SPENCER EARN WEEK 4 HONORS: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton wide receiver/linebacker LARRY KENDRICK, Amarillo fullback/linebacker DONTE NEWSOME and South Georgia defensive lineman JOE WOOLRIDGE have been named the JLS Ironman, Schutt Offensive Player and ADT Defensive Player of the Week, respectively, for Week 4 of the 2008 season. In addition to these three awards, the af2 is also highlighting the player who makes the best catch of the week. The Cutters Catch of the Week Award for Week 4 goes to Lexington wide receiver CHAD SPENCER.
Kendrick (5-11, 215, Mississippi) showcased his all-around talents for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in the Pioneers' 74-26 victory on Saturday against Peoria. The second-year player from Mississippi made the biggest impact on defense with three fumble recovery touchdowns (35, 9, 14), one forced fumble and one tackle. Kendrick was also a factor on offense with two catches for 15 yards and a 5-yard touchdown reception. He also added one kick return for 11 yards on special teams. Kendrick is tied for the team lead in scoring with 36 points (6 TDs). Newsome (5-11, 245, Marshall) had an outstanding individual effort on Saturday night for Amarillo in the team's 53-45 win at Bossier-Shreveport. The rookie from Marshall helped the Dusters claim their third straight victory by rushing for five touchdowns, a total which tied an af2 single-game record. Newsome finished with 13 rushing attempts for 22 yards, both personal season-high totals. He also had 66 kickoff return yards, including a 56-yard runback in the third quarter that set up a 1-yard TD run, his third of the night. This is the first weekly league honor of Newsome's career. He currently leads the league in rushing touchdowns with nine and leads the Dusters in rushing attempts (20) and yards (44). Newsome is also tied for the team lead in scoring (54 points - 9 TDs) and ranks second in tackles (13.5). Woolridge (6-2, 285, Western Kentucky), in his third af2 season, was a menace on defense in Week 4 for South Georgia in the Wildcats' 55-48 home win against Green Bay. The veteran defensive lineman from Western Kentucky was a difference maker with 5.5 tackles, 3.0 sacks, one forced fumble and one interception. His third sack came in the game's final seconds to help clinch the victory for South Georgia. This is the first weekly af2 award of Woolridge's career. He currently leads the team in tackles for loss (4.5), sacks (4) and forced fumbles (2). Spencer (6-4, 270, Georgetown) earned the Cutters Catch of the Week Award for his leaping, 32-yard touchdown stab as time expired to propel the Horsemen to a 41-35 road win at Mahoning Valley. The rookie from Georgetown caught the ball two yards outside of the end zone and managed to corral the pass in play, pivot and fight through two defenders on his way into the end zone. Spencer's game-winning grab capped off a strong overall showing that included six catches for 88 yards and three touchdowns. This is the first Catch of the Week Award of Spencer's career. He currently leads the Horsemen in touchdown receptions (6) and ranks second in receptions (16) and receiving yards (215).
TALONS TOP WEEK 5 COACHES POLL: The defending ArenaCup Champion Tulsa Talons have maintained the No. 1 ranking in the Week 5 Coaches Poll, the arenafootball2 (af2) league office announced on Wednesday. Tulsa collected 445 of a possible 448 points and 26-of-29 first place votes in securing the top position for the fifth consecutive week. The Talons (4-0) continued their strong start to the 2008 season with a convincing 70-34 win on Saturday against Central Division and in-state rival Oklahoma City. The Spokane Shock (3-0, 408 points, 2 first place votes) maintained their hold on the No. 2 spot for the fourth straight week after resting through a bye week in Week 4. Florida (3-0, 392 points, 1 first place vote) stayed strong at No. 3 on the strength of a 55-26 road win over new South Division and in-state rival Daytona Beach. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton is a new addition to the Top-5. The Pioneers (3-1, 345 points) enter Week 5 tied at No. 4 overall with Lubbock. Bolstered by the return of QB Ryan Vena, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton looked impressive in a 74-26 road win at Peoria. The Renegades (3-0, 345 points) stayed unbeaten with a 48-46 victory over Texas. Heading into Week 5, the most anticipated matchup has to be Saturday night's Central Division showdown in Lubbock between the No.4-ranked Renegades and top-ranked Tulsa Talons.
JOHNSON STILL WAITING TO TURN 50: TOMMY JOHNSON, in his sixth season as head coach of the Louisville Fire, is just one victory away from joining the league's exclusive 50-career win club. After a 2-0 start, the Fire have cooled off a bit of late, dropping their last two contests. Johnson is currently 49-42 overall (including playoffs). He will get a third chance to hit the mark this Saturday when the Fire host new league rival Lexington at Freedom Hall. Danton Barto, a five-year af2 head coaching veteran in his first season with Manchester, joined the league's exclusive 50-career win club in Week 2 thanks to the Wolves' 45-39 victory at Mahoning Valley. Barto is currently 50-39 overall, including playoffs. W-B/Scranton Head Coach RICH INGOLD is the league's all-time leader in career coaching wins with 63. Below is a breakdown of the leaders in career af2 coaching victories.
TOP ALL-TIME COACHING VICTORIES
NAME WINS
1. Rich Ingold* 63
2. Chris Siegfried* 58
3. Ben Bennett* 57
4. Kevin Guy 52
5. Bobby Humphrey 51
6. Danton Barto* 50
7. Tommy Johnson* 49
* denotes active coaches
TOP QBS RETURN TO af2: Two of the top signal callers in league history made their return to af2 duty this past weekend, RYAN VENA with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and BRIAN JONES with Manchester. Vena is a four-year league veteran who helped lead the Pioneers to an American Conference Championship and an ArenaCup runner-up finish in 2007. He was named the league's Schutt Offensive Player of the Year and earned First Team All-af2 honors. Last year the 6-0, 220-pound Colgate product rewrote the Pioneers record books with 92 touchdown passes and 16 rushing touchdowns and a league-leading 124.2 passer rating. He also finished third in the league in total offense with 4,397 yards. Vena had a successful return to the lineup on Saturday with five touchdown passes in a runaway win at Peoria. Jones returns to the af2 to reunite with his former coach DANTON BARTO. Jones was with Barto in 2007 with the AFL's Las Vegas Gladiators and in Memphis with the af2's Xplorers from 2004-06. During his time in Memphis, Jones helped guide the Xplorers to three straight postseason appearances and an ArenaCup title in 2005. Jones showed little signs of rust in his Wolves debut last Friday in a 64-54 home loss to Albany, completing 24-of-34 passes for 394 yards with seven touchdowns with no interceptions. Before making his return to the af2 official, the former Toledo standout spent part of the 2008 AFL season with the Columbus Destroyers, New Orleans VooDoo and Arizona Rattlers.
NEWSOME IN A RUSH: Amarillo fullback/linebacker DONTE NEWSOME (5-11, 245, Marshall) had an outstanding individual effort on Saturday night for Amarillo in the team's 53-45 win at Bossier-Shreveport. The rookie from Marshall helped the Dusters claim their third straight victory by rushing for five touchdowns, a total which tied an af2 single-game record. Newsome finished with 13 rushing attempts for 22 yards, both personal season-high totals. He also had 66 kickoff return yards, including a 56-yard runback in the third quarter that set up a 1-yard TD run, his third of the night. He was named the af2 Schutt Offensive Player of the Week on Tuesday. Newsome currently leads the league in rushing touchdowns with nine and leads the Dusters in rushing attempts (20) and yards (44). Newsome is also tied for the team lead in scoring (54 points - 9 TDs) and ranks second in tackles (13.5).
LEXINGON/LOUISVILLE RIVALRY BEGINS: This Saturday night the Louisville Fire host the Lexington Horsemen in the first of three epic battles during the for the 2008 season. The two largest cities in Kentucky, separated by less than a hundred miles, fight for state supremacy once again - this time in Arena Football. The Lexington sports teams have dominated the Louisville teams over the past hundred years in both basketball and football. This is the first time these two cities will meet on an Arena Football field. Adding another sports rivalry should only add more fuel to the fire already burning beneath both proud cities. Lexington, in its first season in the af2, enters this week's contest at 3-1 overall and atop the Midwest Division. The Fire, now in their eighth af2 campaign, are a game behind Lexington at 2-2. Expect this new Arena Football rivalry to be intense right from the opening kickoff.
NO HANGOVER AFTER SIPPIN' FROM THE CUP: The defending ArenaCup Champion Tulsa Talons have picked up where they left off in 2007, winning their first four games. After a Week 3 test at Arkansas that saw Tulsa escape with a 64-60 win, the Talons rebounded in a big way with a convincing 70-34 home win against in-state and division rival Oklahoma City. Tulsa scored on seven straight possessions in the first half to build a 49-13 halftime advantage. WR Jeff Hughley caught three touchdowns in the opening half while Jamar Ransom scored twice (one TD run, interception return TD on a pass he batted to himself). The two teams played even in the second half with three scores apiece. For the third straight home game, Tulsa never trailed and won by a margin of 36 or more. The Talons have won sixth straight head-to-head meetings with the Yard Dawgz and lead the Turnpike Series 8-4. Ransom had an impressive all-around effort with two interceptions, one tackle for loss, one fumble recovery and 4.5 tackles to earn the U.S. Army Ironman of the Game Award. DB Oliver Fletcher stepped in for an injured Jon Holland and made the most of his first action of the season, logging five pass breakups and four tackles. QB Justin Allgood threw for 193 yards and six TDs for the Talons to earn Schutt Offensive Player of the Game honors.
The Talons face their toughest test of the young season when they travel to Lubbock to face the undefeated Renegades (3-0).
Below is a look at past ArenaCup winners and how they fared the year after their championship season.
Champion First Game Next Season Next Season Final Record
2000 Quad City Steamwheelers 2001: Won, 41-0 (5-0 first 5) 15-1
2001 Quad City Steamwheelers 2002: Won, 39-34 (4-1 first 5) 10-6
2002 Peoria Pirates 2003: Lost, 39-42 (1-4 first 5) 5-11
2003 Tulsa Talons 2004: Lost, 63-70 OT (3-2 first 5) 13-3
2004 Florida Firecats 2005: Won, 35-32 (5-0 first 5) 14-2
2005 Memphis Xplorers 2006: Won, 78-64 (4-1 first 5) 11-5
2006 Spokane Shock 2007: Won, 51-35 (3-2 first 5) 12-4
2007 Tulsa Talons 2008: Won, 70-34 (4-0 first 4) ?
TALONS EXTEND STREAKS: The Tulsa Talons set a new team record for consecutive wins over two seasons with their 70-34 home win last Saturday against Oklahoma City. The victory over the Yard Dawgz was Tulsa's 12th straight, counting eight in a row from last season. The Talons recent run is the longest active win steak and is the fifth longest win streak in af2 history. Tulsa will have an opportunity to extend their current win streak to 13 when the team tackles Lubbock (3-0) on Saturday at City Bank Coliseum.
The Talons have also won nine straight home games dating back to 2007 and need three more victories at home to set a new Tulsa record. The 2003 Talons set the current team standard with 11 consecutive home wins at the Tulsa Convention Center.
As impressive as Tulsa's current home streak is, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton has been even better at Wachovia Arena, winning 13 straight games dating back to 2006. The Pioneers current home win streak is the third longest in league history. The last time Wilkes-Barre/Scranton lost a home game was on July 8, 2006 when the Florida Firecats edged the Pioneers, 56-51. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton has an opportunity to extend the team's current streak to 14 on Saturday when the Pioneers host East Division rival Manchester.
Below is a chart detailing the most impressive win streaks in league history.
Most Consecutive Games Won, Regular Season & Playoffs
24 Quad City, 19 games in 2000; 5 games in 2001
17 Quad City, 13 games in 2001; 4 games in 2002
14 Rio Grande Valley, 14 games in 2007
14 Quad City, 14 games in 2003
14 Tennessee Valley, 14 games in 2003
13 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, 13 games in 2007
12 Tulsa, 8 games in 2007, 4 games in 2008*
10 Manchester, 10 games in 2005
10 Tulsa, 10 games in 2004
10 Cape Fear, 10 games in 2002
* Still active
Most Consecutive Home Games Won, Regular Season & Playoffs
25 Quad City, 11 games in 2000; 11 games in 2001; 3 games in 2002
16 Richmond, 3 games in 2000; 9 games in 2001; 4 games in 2002
13 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, 1 game in 2006, 11 games in 2007, 1 game in 2008*
11 Tulsa, 11 games in 2003
11 Birmingham, 6 games in 2001; 5 games in 2002
11 Albany, 3 games in 20002, 8 games in 2003
11 Green Bay, 2 games in 2006, 9 games in 2007
10 Tulsa, 2 games in 2000; 8 games in 2001
9 Tulsa, 6 games in 2007, 3 games in 2008*
9 Tennessee Valley, 9 games in 2003
9 Tulsa, 9 games in 2002
9 Augusta, 9 games in 2000
9 Norfolk, 9 games in 2000
* Still active
WILLIAMS CLOSING IN ON MAGIC: MAGIC BENTON, the af2's all-time leading scorer, became the first player in af2 history to record 1,000 career points in 2007. With Benton likely retired, a number of veterans looked poised to hit the 1,000-point plateau and surpass the former Florida standout's all-time high mark of 1,020 points. The one player who looks to have the best chance through the first four weeks is Boise WR GEORGE WILLIAMS. Williams scored three touchdowns in the Burn's Week 4 home win against Tri-Cities to up his all-time total to 980 career points. Iowa WR/LB KEVIN WILLIAMS (958 points), JARRAIL JACKSON (908 points) and Oklahoma City WR/DB AL HUNT (882 points) round out the Top-5 on the all-time scoring chart. Below is a breakdown of the leading scorers in af2 history:
MOST POINTS SCORED, NON-KICKING, CAREER
PTS PLAYER YEARS PLAYED
1,020 Magic Benton 2001-2007
980 George Williams* 2001, 2003-present
958 Kevin Williams* 2001-2007
908 Jarrail Jackson 2000-01, 2005-present
882 Al Hunt* 2003-present
870 Jack Walker, Jr. 2002-03, 2005-2007
780 Mitch Allner 2000-04
756 Cainon Lamb 2002-05
738 Kevin Prentiss 2003-2006
732 J.R. Thomas* 2004-present
696 Robert Garth* 2002-present
* denotes active players
VETERAN PASSERS TAKE AIM AT ALL-TIME MARKS: When Craig Strickland retired after the 2006 season, many of his league passing records seemed unattainable. This season, however, Florida's CHRIS WALLACE is on pace to potentially move into the top spot of three all-time passing categories: yards, touchdowns and completions. Below is a breakdown of the leaders in each category.
Most Passing Yards, Career
22688 Craig Strickland
19243 Chris Wallace*
17633 Chad Elliot*
16473 Ryan Vena*
14913 Matt Sauk
* Active in 2008
Most Touchdown Passes, Career
481 Craig Strickland
428 Chris Wallace*
360 Matt Sauk
325 Chad Elliot*
310 Ryan Vena*
* Active in 2008
Most Passes Completed, Career
1736 Craig Strickland
1553 Chad Elliot*
1516 Chris Wallace*
1494 Matt Sauk
1349 Ryan Vena*
* Active in 2008
arenafootball2 Stories from April 25, 2008
- Wildcats Clash with Firecats On "Healthcare Team Night" Saturday - South Georgia Wildcats
- Dusters partner with Goodwill Industries to 'Go Green' - Amarillo Venom
- af2 Friday Night Matchups - af2
- af2 Quick Hits - af2
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