Sports stats



AFL Arena Football League

AFL Matchups: Gladiators, Predators Face off for Postseason Positioning in Orlando

June 8, 2016 - Arena Football League (AFL) News Release


LAS VEGAS - The Cleveland Gladiators (5-5) will look to rebound from last week's loss, but face a tough Orlando Predators (8-2) squad that is looking to battle for top seed positioning this Saturday, June 11 at 7:30 p.m. at Amway Arena on WatchESPN. Cleveland QB Arvell Nelson (1,687 passing yards and 35 TDs in six starts) will look to keep the Gladiators climbing the standings, while Week 10 AFL Playmaker of the Week WR Brandon Thompkins (2,313 all-purpose yards and 32 total TDs) continues is quest for the single-season All-Purpose Yardage mark (P.J. Berry, 3,708 yards in 2011).

Elsewhere, the National Broadcast Game of the Week is an American Conference battle in Florida between the Jacksonville Sharks (4-5) and the Tampa Bay Storm (1-8) at Amalie Arena on Saturday, June 11 at 5 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network. QB Tommy Grady (2,659 passing yards and 52 TDs) guides the Shark offense with targets like: WR Joe Hills (96 receptions, 1,242 yards and 32 TDs), WR Tiger Jones (1,001 career receptions) and 2015 Receiver of the Year, Reggie Gray (8 catches for 66 yards and 3 total TDs in last week's season debut) to throw to. Storm QB Jason Boltus (1,452 passing yards and 25 TDs) has the Tampa Bay offense heading in the right direction since taking over as starter a few weeks ago.

Also, "Rock vs. Jock" is rekindled as 2015 AFL MVP Dan Raudabaugh and the American Conference-leading Philadelphia Soul (8-2) will host the Los Angeles KISS (4-5) at Sun National Bank Center in Trenton, NJ on Saturday, June 11 at 3 p.m. ET on WatchESPN. Raudabaugh has completed an AFL best 68.6 percent of his passes for 2,545 yards and 59 touchdowns in 2016. While on the LA KISS side, Rookie QB Pete Thomas is coming into his own by connecting on 52-of-96 passes for 696 yards, 16 touchdowns and only one interception with just two starts. LA's Donovan Morgan (56 receptions, 705 yards and 25 TDs) continues his hot streak as he has four touchdowns in each of his last two games.

The final game of the weekend, Portland QB Shane Austin (60.5 Completion % and 19 passing TDs in four starts) and the Portland Steel (1-8) travel to face QB Nick Davila (AFL-leading 2,709 passing yards and 68 TDs) and the Arizona Rattlers (7-3) at Talking Stick Resort Arena on Saturday, June 11 at 9 p.m. ET on WatchESPN. WR Tom Gilson (89 receptions for 819 yards and 10 TDs) helps lead the way, while Arizona WR Rod Windsor (98 receptions for 1,181 yards and 30 TDs) continues to put up All-Arena worthy numbers to lead the Rattlers.

For complete official statistics, game notes and media guides, go to: www.afldigital.com.

WEEK 11 MATCHUPS

LOS ANGELES KISS (4-5) AT PHILADELPHIA SOUL (8-2)

Saturday, June 11 at 3 p.m. ET (WatchESPN)

WHAT TO LOOK FOR: KISS: QB Pete Thomas was the starter under center for the second straight game... The rookie completed 21-of-39 passes for 237 yards, six TDs, and one INT in last week's 43-41 loss to the Orlando Predators... Since taking over quarterback duties in Week 8, Thomas has completed 50-of-92 passes for 674 yards, 15 TDs and one INT... WR Donovan "Captain" Morgan continues to be the KISS' go-to receiving weapon...Morgan hauled in eight receptions for 81 yards and four TD's in his last outing... The 2008 Rookie of the Year has at least one TD reception in the last 21 straight regular-season games and is tied for No. 3 in the League in reception TDs on the season with 25... Morgan currently has 850 receptions in his career, putting him No. 10 in career reception leaders...In his first game as a member of the KISS, DL Mike Lewis recorded one sack against his former team, Orlando... The seventh-year veteran is now only three sacks behind all-time AFL sacks leader DL Sam Hernandez (57.5)... WR Justin Wilson appeared in his first two AFL games, and got his first two starts, after being assigned to the team on Thursday, May 26th. Wilson recorded eight receptions for 106 yards and a TD, while also returning seven kicks for 152 yards... SOUL: QB Dan Raudabaugh continues to be a leader for the Soul by helping them get to an 8-2 record on the season... The 2015 AFL MVP has completed 210-of-306 passes for 2,545 yards, 59 TDs, and eight TDs this season... Raudabaugh leads all quarterbacks this season in pass completion percentage (68.6%) and is No. 3 in total offense yards (2,542) and total offense TDs (59)... WR Darius "Money" Reynolds continues to be a go-to receiver for Raudabaugh... Reynolds has caught 73 passes for 896 yards, 23 receiving TDs and one rushing TD in nine games... The four-year veteran has caught two or more TDs in eight of the nine games he has played this season... DL Jake Metz is a rising star on the Soul defensive line...In his second season in the AFL, Metz has recorded 16.5 total tackles, 5.0 tackles for a loss, 4.0 sacks, and two forced fumbles... DB Dwayne Hollis is tied for No. 1 in the League in INTs so far this season. Hollis has recorded six INTs for 109 yards and two defensive TDs, 39.0 tackles, eight pass breakups and 14 passes defended... WR Ryan McDaniel has back-to-back three-TD games and has at least one TD in five straight games... McDaniel currently is No. 2 on the team in receptions (62) and receiving yards (792) and No. 3 in TDs (15).

JACKSONVILLE SHARKS (4-5) AT TAMPA BAY STORM (1-8)

Saturday, June 11 at 5 p.m. ET (CBS Sports Network)

Play-by-play: Dave Ryan; Color: Sherdrick Bonner; Sideline: Tina Cervasio

WHAT TO LOOK FOR: SHARKS: WR Tiger Jones became the fifth player in AFL history to record 1,000 receptions in his career... Jones hauled in five catches for 71 yards against the Soul to bring his total to 1,001 receptions and is on pace to pass No. 4 Chris Jackson (1,004) and No. 3 Tampa Bay Storm coach Lawrence Samuels (1,035) before the end of the season... QB Tommy Grady also made history last week, by becoming the ninth player in AFL history to record 30,000 or more career passing yards... The 2012 MVP has completed 229-of-341 passes for 2,659 yards, 52 TDs, and four INTs this season... WR Joe Hills leads the Sharks with 96 receptions for 1,242 yards, and an AFL-leading 32 receiving TDs...Hills carries a streak of 61 consecutive regular-season appearances with at least one TD reception...In his first game with Jacksonville, WR Reggie Gray made an immediate impact... The 2015 Cutters Receiver of the Year caught eight passes for 66 yards and two TDs, while also fielding four kick returns for 83 yards and a TD... STORM: WR TT Toliver only needs 13 receptions to pass AFL Hall of Famer, Damian Harrell (1,164) to become the all-time receptions leader and 27 receiving yards to pass Harrell (15,134) as the all-time leader in receiving yards... Toliver caught nine passes for 148 yards and two TDs against the Sharks in May... QB Jason Boltus has started five games this season under center...So far on the season, Boltus has completed 119-of-213 passes for 1,452 yards, 25 TDs, six INTs, and scored one rushing TD in four of the five games he's started... WR Phillip Barnett enters his second season with the Storm... Barnett is second on the team with 55 catches for 539 yards and 11 TDs, to help give Boltus another target to throw to...DB Cortez Stubbs leads the team with 47.0 total tackles and three INTs, while contributing five pass breakups, two fumble recoveries, and a forced fumble.

CLEVELAND GLADIATORS (5-5) AT ORLANDO PREDATORS (8-2)

Saturday, June 11 at 7:30 p.m. ET (WatchESPN)

WHAT TO LOOK FOR: GLADIATORS: QB Arvell Nelson has thrown for 1,687 yards, 35 TDs, and seven INTs since taking over the starting QB role on April 29th... This week Nelson gets a second shot at the Predators, this time in Orlando. In the previous meeting on April 29th Nelson passed for 332 yards, six TDs and two INTs in the 76-56 loss... WR Quentin Sims continues to impress as a solid No. 2 receiver, catching 14 TDs in only seven games since joining the receiving corps April 23rd... On the defensive side of the ball, DB Marvin Ross continues to own the middle, as he ranks No. 1 on the team in pass breakups (17) and INTs (4) while ranking No. 2 in tackles (52)... WR Collin Taylor caught two more TDs last Friday night in the loss to Arizona, finishing the night with six catches for 96 yards and extending his consecutive regular-season games streak with a TD to 25... 'CT' has continued his ascent in 2016 to being one of the elite wide receivers in the AFL. To date, Taylor has hauled in 72 passes for 884 yards and 22 TDs... For the season, WR/KR Larry Beavers has made 23 catches for 326 yards and three touchdowns. Beavers has also picked up a passing TD, two rushing TDs, and a kick return for a TD this season... PREDATORS: QB Randy Hippeard has thrown for 2,471 yards, 57 TDs, and just seven INTs this season... WR Brandon Thompkins has been the Predators biggest playmaker this season, catching 79 passes for 953 yards, and 25 TDs... Through nine games this season, Thompkins is on pace to challenge the single-season record for all-purpose yards, held by P.J. Berry (3,708 in 2011). He has recorded 2,313 all-purpose yards this season and is currently on pace to finish with 3,701 yards. Thompkins would have to achieve the feat in 16 games, whereas Berry set his record in 18 contests... Thompkins also tied a single-game franchise record by scoring seven total TDs against the Cleveland Gladiators in Week 5. AFL Hall of Famer, Barry Wagner previously found the end zone seven times against Connecticut during the 1995 season. The performance marked the second time in Thompkins' career that he scored seven TDs in a single game, as he also accomplished the feat against the Utah Blaze while playing for the Spokane Shock in 2012. DB Varmah Sonie leads the team with 63 tackles, six INTs, and 14 pass break-ups... The Predators rebuilt their offensive line this offseason with the additions identical twin brothers in Justin and Jordan McCray. The McCray twins are local products from the University of Central Florida and both were starters on UCF's 2013-14 Fiesta Bowl winning team.

PORTLAND STEEL (1-8) AT ARIZONA RATTLERS (7-3)

Saturday, June 11 at 9 p.m. ET (WatchESPN)

WHAT TO LOOK FOR: STEEL: The Steel weathered the Storm, 68-35, in front of 5,136 at Moda Center last Friday night. A game that saw Portland set a team-high for margin of victory (33 points)... QB Shane Austin completed 19-of-26 passes for 139 yards, five TDs and ran for two scores against the Storm last week. Behind a pair of TDs to WRs Jared Perry and Tyrone Goard and a one-handed effort by James Shaw, the Steel offense scored their highest point total of the season, 68... Defensive back Shaine Boyle (5-10, 190, Faulkner) now in his third season in the AFL, led the team with 9.5 tackles and recovered two fumbles one while on kickoff coverage for a TD against the Storm last week... WR Tom Gilson enters Week 11 in the Top 10 of nearly every AFL receiving category, No. 2 in the AFL with 9.9 receptions per game, tied for No. 3 with 89 receptions and No. 6 in receiving yards per game with 91. He leads the team in receptions (89), receiving yards (819) and is No. 2 on the team in receiving TDs (10). All are career season highs... The stout Steel defensive front is really making it hard for opposing quarterbacks as of late, as they have wrangled opposing quarterbacks for a total of 4.5 sacks in the last three weeks. Dexter Davis Jr. (2.0), Robert Hayes (1.5) and Brandon Sesay (1.5) have all been able to get to the QB in the last three games. The Steel defense has garnered 11.5 sacks total in 2016 good for No. 3 in the AFL... RATTLERS: Since 2012, the Rattlers are 42-4 at home (including the postseason)... In that time, the Snake Pit has been the most difficult place to play for other teams, only able to win there just over 9% of the time... Last season, the Rattlers went 9-1, and so far this season, Arizona is 3-0 this season at home... The Rattlers have the most sacks in the league this season with 20... In the seven regular season games against Portland, QB Nick Davila has thrown 53 TDs to just 2 INTs... The Rattlers have the top scoring offense in the league averaging 65 points per game... The average margin of victory for Arizona against Portland is 25 points... The Rattlers average 68 points per regular season game against Portland... DB Allen "Bubba" Chapman played for Portland in 2015 and had 3 pass breakups... Portland WR Jared Perry played for the Rat-tlers in 2013 and 2015 and had 21 TDs during his time in Arizona... FB Mykel Benson this season, is No. 2 in rushing TDs (12) and is No. 3 in rushing yards (116)... WR Rod Windsor is No. 2 in the League for receiving yards and No. 2 for receiving TDs this season. He has a total of 1,181 yards and 30 TDs for the Rattlers... The Rattlers have two players in the Top 3 for total sacks this season. Dimetrio Tyson lead-ing the way with 5 sacks... DB Jeremy Kellem returned to the Rattlers on Wednesday. This will be his fifth season with the Rattlers and sixth in the AFL. Last season with the Rattlers, Kellem led the League with 16 INTs, earning First Team All-Arena honors and was named the Go RVing Defensive Back of the Year.

Check out the Arena Football League Statistics



Arena Football League Stories from June 8, 2016


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.


Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central