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af2 week six quick hitters

May 4, 2006 - arenafootball2 (af2) News Release


DOWN TO TWO: Entering Week 6 of the season, there are only two teams that remain undefeated. They are the Spokane Shock (4-0) and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers (4-0). The Pioneers are currently ranked No. 1 in the Weekly Coaches Poll. This is Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's second straight week atop the chart. The expansion Shock are ranked No. 3 overall. Below is a chart detailing the best starts in af2 history.

TEAM START SEASON
Quad City 16-0 2000
Tennessee Valley 14-0 2003
Augusta 7-0 2002
Richmond 7-0 2002

SOUTHWEST SACK ATTACK: The Arkansas Twisters can point to a few different factors as to why they are off to their best start in team history. One huge factor is their defense, and more specifically, their defensive front. The Twisters currently boast a league-leading team sack total of 21, averaging 4.2 per game. Arkansas is on pace to post 67 sacks this season. The current league record is 52, set by the now-defunct Carolina Rhinos in 2001. The Twisters have four players at or near the top of the league leaders in the sack standings - Steve Watson, CJ McLain, Shakorr Bryant and Kimani Jones. Watson leads the af2 with seven sacks. McLain is tied for second at 4.5. Another team to fear up front on defense is the Tulsa Talons. The Talons, who have played just four games so far, currently rank second in the league in sacks with 17 (4.25 per game). Both teams (Arkansas and Tulsa) have recorded eight-sack games in 2006.

BENT-ON BREAKING LEAGUE RECEIVING RECORDS IN 2006: Florida OS MAGIC BENTON is now the most prolific pass catcher in af2 history in terms of career receiving yards. He set the new standard this past week at Bossier-Shreveport on a 28-yard catch in the first half. Benton, the only member of the Firecats to have played with the team since their inaugural game, now has 4,882 career receiving yards, 53 more than the previous record holder James Scott (4,829). Benton has a number of other career receiving records within his grasp as well. In Florida's most recent 47-26 win at Bossier-Shreveport, the former Miami Hurricane caught five passes for 59 yards and one touchdown. His receiving score improved his career total to 108, just five behind Mitch Allner's league record of 113. And that's not it. Benton, who has 389 career catches, is also 12 receptions away from Corey Hill's all-time top mark of 401. The five-year veteran is showing no signs of slowing down in 2006. He leads the Firecats in receiving and ranks among the league leaders in scoring (3rd - 76 points), receiving yards (5th - 454) and receptions (T7th - 33).

STRICKLAND SET TO PASS 20,000: Oklahoma City quarterback CRAIG STRICKLAND is poised to become the first af2 quarterback to ever throw for 20,000 yards. The veteran signal caller, who came into the season alone in first place in all-time passing yards with 18,659, currently has 19,773. Strickland should pass the 20,000-yard plateau this Saturday night when the Yard Dawgz host division rival Tulsa in the battle of Oklahoma.

700 CLUB: Arkansas WR/DB Kevin Williams is the only active player in the af2 with over 700 career points scored. He upped his current total to 760 with a three-touchdown performance this past Saturday in the Twisters, 62-56, win against Tennessee Valley. His recent effort vaulted him past Cainon Lamb into second place on the all-time scoring list. Former Tulsa star Mitch Allner owns the all-time top mark with 780 points. At this time, Williams is well on pace to catch Allner and break the record. Other active af2 players looking to join Williams in the 700 club are Florida's Magic Benton (670), Stockton's George Williams (656), Williams' teammate LENNIE JOHNSON (612) and Bakersfield's Nian Taylor (600).

MOST POINTS SCORED, NON-KICKING, CAREER
PTS PLAYER YEARS PLAYED
780 Mitch Allner 2000-04
760 Kevin Williams 2001-present
756 Cainon Lamb 2002-05
670 Magic Benton 2001-present
656 George Williams 2001, 2003-present
642 Kevin Prentiss 2003-05
638 Wayne Thomas 2000-02, 2004, 2006 TOUCHDOWN MAKERS: Arkansas WR/DB Kevin Williams also leads a familiar cast of characters in the race for the af2 career touchdown record. Williams has 124 for his career, just two behind Mitch Allner's all-time mark of 126. Current league standouts like Florida's MAGIC BENTON (110) and Stockton's GEORGE WILLIAMS (108) are also on their way up the all-time list.

MOST TOUCHDOWNS SCORED, CAREER
TDS PLAYER YEARS PLAYED
126 Mitch Allner 2000-04
124 Kevin Williams 2001-present
118 Cainon Lamb 2002-05
110 Magic Benton 2001-present
108 George Williams 2001, 2003-present
107 Kevin Prentiss 2003-05
106 Wayne Thomas 2000-02, 2004, 2006

TURNIN' 40 ISN'T SO BAD: Memphis Head Coach Danton Barto became the newest member of the 40-career win club (includes playoffs) on April 15 with a 56-21 home win against Tennessee Valley. His career record currently stands at 41-32 overall (.562). Manchester's Ben Bennett (38) and W-B/Scranton's Rich Ingold (38) should also hit the 40-career win plateau this year. Only six other coaches in league history have reached the mark in their careers. The only active members are Spokane's Chris Siegfried (44) and Stockton's Richard Davis (42). Former Rio Grande Valley and Tennessee Valley head coach Kevin Guy is the af2 career leader in overall coaching victories with 52 (52-19). Louisville's Tommy Johnson (31) is the only other current coach within reach of the 40-win club.

af2 IN THE AFL: The af2 has had hundreds of former players move up to the AFL over the years. A number of those players, such as Orlando OL/DL E.J. BURT or Tampa Bay QB SHANE STAFFORD, have become bonafide AFL stars. In 2006, a new group of AFL players with af2 roots are starting to shine. This week we highlight former Oklahoma City and Tulsa WR/DB B.J. BARRE and former Louisville OL/DL ANDREW TIPPINS. Barre is in his first AFL season after two years of standout play in the af2 (Oklahoma City in 2005, Tulsa in 2004). This year Barre has been a productive part of the Columbus Destroyers. This week he received his first-ever AFL honor by being named the ADT Defensive Player of the Week for Week 14. Barre was an impact player for Columbus in their recent come-from-behind, 40-33, victory over the Austin Wranglers. In addition to his 6.5 stops, he also forced a key fumble to start the second half and intercepted a pass in the endzone as time expired to preserve the Destroyers win. In 12 games this season, Barre has been a strong all-around performer for Columbus. On offense, he leads the team in all-purpose yards (1,193) and kick return yards (801). He's also accumulated 331 yards receiving on 33 catches to go along with three receiving touchdowns and three rushing touchdowns. Defensively, Barre ranks fourth on the squad in tackles (46.5) and interceptions (3) and has also recorded four pass breakups, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries. Tippins is also in his rookie AFL campaign as a member of the New York Dragons. Tippins was a standout lineman for the Louisville Fire in 2004 and 2005. His best af2 season was in 2005 when he earned American Conference All-af2 honors and helped lead the Fire to the American Conference Championship. This year he's been a valuable player for the Dragons on their offensive and defensive lines. One of his best games came this past week in the team's 65-58 victory over the Philadelphia Soul in which he recorded one of the biggest tackles of his Arena Football career. With Philadelphia at the 2-yard line looking to tie the game with just seconds remaining, Soul QB Connell Maynor headed for the goal line, only to be stopped in his tracks by Tippins. Time expired before another play could be run. In four games played with the playoff-bound Dragons, Tippins has recorded 4.0 total tackles, one forced fumble and one 48-yard fumble return for a touchdown.



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