Alabama Aims for First Road Win

May 24, 2007 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Alabama Steeldogs News Release


Birmingham, Ala. - The Alabama Steeldogs head north again this weekend to face the Cincinnati Jungle Kats, one week after dropping their third away game of the season to the Louisville Fire.

The Steeldogs (4-3) are hoping a matchup with the struggling Jungle Kats (1-6) will help the team earn its first win of 2007 away from the BJCC.

"We've been very inconsistent on the road," Steeldogs Head Coach Ron Selesky said. "We made a lot of mistakes in Louisville that we're working to correct this week before we face Cincinnati."

Pass protection continues to be the Steeldogs' Achilles heel, with Alabama giving up four sacks of quarterback Mitch Tanney and two hurries to the Fire in their 35-53 loss. The Steeldogs coaching staff has already begun working to correct the offensive line problems with the release of lineman Kevin Inge. Selesky said he is looking to ad another big man to help out with pass protection.

"We have to give Mitch better protection in the pocket," Selesky said.

Cincinnati defensive lineman Jamar Neely, who currently leads the Jungle Kats in sacks this season with four solo takedowns, is the biggest threat to the Steeldogs offensive line. The Jungle Kats rank 22nd overall in the league with seven total sacks.

Defensively the Steeldogs will look for a big night from lineman Eric Scott, who finished the loss to Louisville with three sacks and now has five in his last three games.

"Eric has been working hard for us this year and is continuing to improve," Selesky said. "He's getting good pressure right now."

Another key matchup in Saturday's game could be the play of both teams in the offensive red zone. Alabama is currently ranked second in the af2 for red zone offense, having scored on 26-of-29 trips (89.7%) inside their opponents' five-yard line. The Jungle Kats are ranked 28th in the league, converting on 10-of-17 trips (58.8%).

"We've done a good job on punching the ball in from the red zone," Selesky said. "We must continue to convert when we get in that close."

A win for Alabama would move their record to 5-3 on the season while the Jungle Kats are searching for the second win of their 2007 inaugural campaign.

The Steeldogs kick off against Cincinnati at 6:30 p.m. (CST) this Saturday at the U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati, Ohio. The game can be heard live on the Alabama Steeldogs' Flagship radio station WSPZ 690 "The Animal" with veteran broadcaster Matt Coulter calling the action. Fans can also tune in online to the mightyx.com to listen to the broadcast.

Af2 partner B2 Networks will be broadcasting the game, with live video and audio, through their website, www.b2livetv.com. Fans can pay a $6 fee to watch the video broadcast.



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