af2 Amarillo Venom

Amarillo Dusters game notes

Published on May 12, 2005 under arenafootball2 (af2)
Amarillo Venom News Release


QUICK FACTS:
Amarillo Dusters (4-1) at Memphis Xplorers (5-1)
Date: Saturday, May 14, 2005
Kickoff: 7:00 p.m. CST
Site: DeSoto Civic Center (8,444)
Officials:
Referee: Drew Myers
Umpire: Chad Walker
Head Linesman:Dick Wittenburg
Line Judge: Chris Jamison
Back Judge: Brad Freeman

Radio: KPUR 1440 AM & internet broadcast at
www.dustersfootball.com
Donny Hooper Play by Play
Warren McCarty Color Commentary
Ray Boring Sideline Reporter
Tyler Hooper Field Mic

Series Record: 2nd Meeting, Memphis leads 1-0
Streaks: Dusters W3, Xplorers W1
Coaches: Danton Barto, Memphis Xplorers
Steve Perdue, Amarillo Dusters

THE STAKES: 1st place in the Midwest Division is on the line. Both teams are coming off of wins over division opponents. The Dusters are riding a three-game winning streak, having won every contest since suffering the franchise's first-ever home loss at the hands of the Memphis Xplorers in week 2. Memphis defeated Oklahoma City 43-38 last week. Both teams are ranked in the Top 10 in the Af2 Coaches Poll.

12 VS 12:
Memphis OS Kevin Prentiss (jersey #12) had the night of his life against the Dusters in Week 2, scoring 9 touchdowns. He'll be matched up with Dusters DS Jimmy Gaston (jersey #12), as Gaston hopes to redeem himself in the DeSoto Civic Center.


COACH PERDUE'S THOUGHTS ON MEMPHIS:
"We must slow down their pass rush for one thing. They bring it for four quarters. Khreem Smith has been unstoppable thus far. Somehow we have to contain him. We put zero heat on Brian Jones, and he stood back in the pocket the entire night and picked us apart. Not only do we have to put pressure on him, but we've also got to contain him once he gets outside of the pocket. He's slick. We also have to be physical with Kevin Prentiss. He murdered us in week 2, but we never made him earn it off of the line of scrimmage. He ran around all night, they went 5-step a lot, and he beat us on double moves. Jimmy Gaston has to step up and not let Prentiss intimidate him. Our kick coverage was much better last week, and I expect it to improve again this week. Prentiss returned two kicks against us, and that can just burst the bubble in terms of momentum. We've got a bad taste in our mouths, and we need to return the favor on their home turf."


McCOLLISTER & HUMPHRIES PROVIDE UPGRADE:
Since taking over as the team's starting offensive specialist, Chavis McCollister has had three outstanding performances offensively. In 3 games, McCollister has 27 catches for 375 yards and 7 TD's, averaging 13.9 yards per catch. Former Carolina Cobras and Columbus Destroyers WR/LB D.J. Humphries has made an immediate impact as well, grabbing 14 passes for 202 yards and 3 TD's over the past three games. Defensively, he is already the team's second leading tackler with 12.5 tackles along with 2 pass deflections and 1 fumble recovery.

DUSTERS INTERNET RADIO BROADCAST A HUGE SUCCESS
The Amarillo Dusters are developing a huge fan base nationwide, as the number of listeners for the game broadcast over the website has doubled since the season opener. "We have lots of players' families listening in across the country, and we've received dozens of e-mails from fans nationwide who are just interested in the Dusters and curious about us as an expansion team, " said Dusters play by play broadcaster Donny Hooper. "We have a unique broadcast for this level of football, in that we have a 15-year veteran football official as our sideline reporter (Ray Boring). He offers tremendous insight as to what is actually happening on the field. Tyler Hooper runs the parabolic field mic, so much like an NFL radio broadcast, our listeners can actually hear the quarterback bark the snap count, and try to draw the opponent off-sides. Warren McCarty brings so much knowledge of the arena game to the broadcast, and helps the listener ‘see' the routes and visualize the play itself. And mixed in with all of that, we have a great time and cut-up as much as we can. We have so much fun, and I think it makes our broadcast fun to listen to." The broadcast can be heard locally on 1440 AM The Score, Amarillo's ESPN Radio affiliate. Fans can also tune in via the Dusters website at www.dustersfootball.com.

KEY MATCHUP: LINE PLAY
The Memphis Xplorers lead Af2 in sacks with 17 in 6 games, and have allowed 9. The Amarillo Dusters are ranked 10th in Af2 with 7 sacks, while allowing 6. In week 2, the Xplorers dominated the game up front, as they consistently pressured Dusters QB Julian Reese. Meanwhile, the Xplorers protected Brian Jones all night, allowing him to consistently run passing plays with a 5-step drop.


DUSTERS INJURY REPORT
The Dusters suffered two key injuries in Saturday night's victory over the Quad City Steamwheelers, losing Ray Gates for at least 4 weeks to a knee injury, and losing Jesse Hunnicutt for at least 4 weeks to a broken hand. Replacing Gates and Hunnicutt on the roster will be Brett Jones and Nala Saluni.

OL/DL Sione Ohuafi Knee Long-Term IR (4-5 weeks with knee scope)
FB/LB Gil Hernandez Knee Long-Term IR (out for season, ACL tear)
WR/LB Anton Paige Knee Long-Term IR (out for season, ACL tear)
FB/LB Ray Gates Knee Long-Term IR (out for season, PCL tear
FB/LB Jesse Hunnicutt Hand Long-Term IR (out for 4 weeks, broken hand)
WR/LB Anthony Dingle Hamstring Short-Term IR
OL/DL Barrett Allen Ankle Short-Term IR


RECENT DUSTERS ROSTER MOVES
Activated from Practice Squad OL/DL Brett Jones 6'2 280 Missouri Western
Activated from Practice Squad FB/LB Tony Dancy 6'1 250 Ferrum
Activated from International Squad OL/DL Nala Saluni 6'2 290 West Texas A&M

Placed on Re-assignment OL/DL Mike Thomas 6'2 310 Utah

Placed on Long-Term IR FB/LB Ray Gates 6'2 270 Tarleton State
Placed on Long-Term IR FB/LB Jesse Hunnicutt 6'3 250 Texas A&M

Placed on Re-assignment WR/DB Michael Johnson 6'1 185 Sacramento State

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