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AFL I Arizona Rattlers

Arizona Rattlers game notes

April 6, 2004 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Arizona Rattlers News Release


The Stakes: Arizona tries to make it two in a row when they host the Las Vegas Gladiators. Arizona ended their three game losing streak with a 51-41 win over Grand Rapids last Sunday.

The Series: This is the fifth meeting between these teams. Arizona is 3-1 all-time against the Gladiators. Las Vegas earned the victory in the first meeting this season, 65-64 in overtime.

TV: Tonight's game is on Fox Sports Arizona. Kent Derdivanis and Gene Nudo will provide the commentary on the broadcast.

Radio: All Rattler games are broadcast on KMVP 860 AM. All games are also simulcast over the internet at www.AZRattlers.com. Craig Grialou and Ron Wolfley will call all the action.

ARIZONA RATTLERS (4-5)
Date Opponent Time TV
2/8 Los Angeles Loss 32-51
2/13 Detroit Loss 31-48
2/21 @ Carolina Win 45-38
2/29 New York Win 53-41
3/5 Columbus Win 65-42
3/14 @ Las Vegas Loss 64-65 OT
3/18 New Orleans Loss 45-49
3/27 @ Colorado Loss 46-54
4/4 @ Grand Rapids Win 51-41
4/10 Las Vegas 7:00 FSAZ
4/18 Dallas 12:00 NBC
4/25 @ Indiana 12:00 NBC
5/1 @ Los Angeles 7:30 FSAZ
5/9 San Jose 12:00 NBC
5/15 @ Detroit 4:30
5/30 @ San Jose 1:00 NBC

LAS VEGAS GLADIATORS (3-6)
Date Opponent Time TV
2/6 @ Colorado Loss 42-43
2/14 Los Angeles Loss 55-62
2/22 @ Grand Rapids Win 51-14
2/29 New Orleans Win 50-30
3/7 @ Georgia Loss 40-55
3/14 Arizona Win 65-64 OT
3/20 @ San Jose Loss 62-79
3/27 @ Orlando Loss 43-60
4/4 Chicago Loss 55-57
4/10 @ Arizona 7:00 FSAZ
4/25 Detroit 12:00 NBC
5/2 Indiana 12:00 NBC
5/8 @ Philadelphia 4:30
5/16 San Jose 12:00 NBC
5/22 @ Los Angeles 7:30
5/30 Columbus 1:00 NBC

Head Coaches: Head Coach and General Manager Danny White (132-64 overall, 114-55 regular season) is in his 13th season with the Arizona Rattlers. The 2002 Arena Football Hall of Fame inductee is second all-time in coaching victories, with 131 wins. White is only the second coach in AFL history to notch 100 wins. White's career-winning percentage of .673 ranks fifth all-time in AFL history. He is a two-time ArenaBowl Champion (1994, 1997).

The AFL has suspended Gladiators Head Coach Frank Haege for tonight's game. Haege was suspended for throwing his headset in the crowd and taking his shirt off during the first meeting of these teams on March 14. Assistant Coach Ron James will be in charge this evening.

Closing in on 20K: WR/LB Hunkie Cooper is in his 12th season in Arizona. In the AFL record book, Cooper ranks first all-time in kickoff returns, second all-time in all-purpose yards, third in kickoff return touchdowns, and third in pass receptions. Cooper was named the US Army Ironman of the Week for his performance against the Dragons on 2/29.

All-Purpose Yards:
1. George LaFrance 20,480
2. # Hunkie Cooper 19,979
3. # Barry Wagner 19,304
Kickoff Returns
1. # Hunkie Cooper 485
2. George LaFrance 460
Kickoff Return Touchdowns
1. Lamont Cooper 24
2. Steve Papin 23
3. # Hunkie Cooper 19
Pass Receptions:
1. Eddie Brown 949
2. # Barry Wagner 911
3. # Hunkie Cooper 744
4. # Gary Compton 736
# denotes Active Player

Adding On: Rattlers Quarterback Sherdrick Bonner is third all-time in Arena Football history with 570 touchdown passes. He ranks second in passing yards (28, 881) and second in pass completions (2, 313). Bonner also ranks second for pass attempts (3, 720).

Most Passing Touchdowns
1. # Aaron Garcia 588
2. # Andy Kelly 587
3. # Sherdrick Bonner 570
Most Passing Yards
1. # Andy Kelly 30,120
2. # Sherdrick Bonner 28,881
3. # Aaron Garcia 28,467
Most Pass Completions
1. # Andy Kelly 2,694
2. # Sherdrick Bonner 2,313
3. # Clint Dolezel 2,281
4. # Aaron Garcia 2,219
Most Pass Attempts:
1. # Andy Kelly 4,410
2. # Sherdrick Bonner 3,720
3. # Aaron Garcia 3,553
# denotes Active Player

Count Down: Hunkie Cooper needs only 21 yards to reach 20, 000 all-purpose yards for his career. Only George LaFrance has reached that milestone. Sherdrick Bonner needs 1, 119 passing yards to reach 30, 000 for his career.

Next Week: Arizona welcomes the Dallas Desperados to the Snake Pit for an NBC game. Sunday's game kicks off at Noon.

Last Meeting: When last we saw the Gladiators and the Rattlers battle, Las Vegas emerged with a 65-64 victory in overtime. Sherdrick Bonner threw for 239 yards and five scores, but he was out-dueled by Clint Dolezel, who had 334 yards and eight TDs on March 14th.

Officials: Officials for tonight's game are: Dennis Lipski (Referee), Rick Nelson (Umpire), Rusty Spindel (Head Linesman), Gary Cavaletto (Line Judge), and Rich Wilborn (Back Judge).

Injury Report: The Rattlers have six players currently on Injured Reserve. OL/DL Lindsay Hassell and OL/DL Jason Andersen , QB Travis Cole, WR/LB Terence Davis, and OL/DL Pete Tramontanas are all on IR. K Jason Witczak is out for the season with a torn right ACL.

Last Week: The Rattlers ended their three game losing streak, handing Grand Rapids their 14th straight defeat, 51-41. Sherdrick Bonner had three touchdown passes, and Tom Pace returned a kick off for a score to lead Arizona to the victory.

Did You See That?: When kicker Jason Witczak went down with a knee injury late in the game against New Orleans, Danny White needed a kicker. White called upon the multi-faceted Hunkie Cooper to handle the place kicking duties. Amazingly enough, it wasn't the first time Cooper had kicked off. During the 1993 season, Cooper kicked due to an injury to Luis Zendejas. Just for good measure, Cooper also threw a touchdown pass against the VooDoo.

Leader of the Sack: Bryan Henderson is tied for first in the AFL with five QB sacks. Henderson has now sacked his way to the second highest total for sacks in a season in franchise history. With one more, Henderson will tie Stacey Evans and Andy Coviello for the Rattlers single season record. He is also three sacks away from the Rattlers career record, held by Stacey Evans.

First Timers: There were a few firsts for the Rattlers against the Rampage. Tom Pace returned a kickoff 52-yards for his first career KO Return touchdown. Not only that, but Pace ran almost the entire way with only one shoe, after losing his other one at the beginning of the return. Randy Gatewood didn't want to feel left out, so he returned an onside kick attempt 17-yards for the score, his first KO return touchdown.

Roster Moves: Arizona made several moves before the Grand Rapids game. The Rattlers signed WR/DB Justin Taplin and OL/DL Vince Amey from the Practice Squad, activated FB/LB Frank Trentadue from IR, and placed OL/DL Lindsay Hassell on IR. The team also signed OL/DL Jerome Evans to the Practice Squad. Evans walked on to the Arizona Cardinals camp looking for a roster spot, and now is a member of the Rattlers.

Doing it All: Hunkie Cooper continues to reach into his bag of tricks every week. Cooper threw a nine-yard TD pass to Wendall Gaines on Sunday, his second TD pass of the season. It was the third TD catch of the season for Gaines. Cooper now has nine career TD passes, only 561 behind teammate Sherdrick Bonner for the franchise record.

New Number: OL/DL Tony Plantin will wear #94 for the remainder of the season.
Sun Devil Connection: Arizona State was strongly represented by the Rattlers on Sunday. In addition to Danny White and Tom Pace, ASU alums Justin Taplin (1998-2002) and Vince Amey (1994-1997) made their Rattler debuts. Taplin had one catch and one tackle in his AFL debut, while Amey recorded one tackle in his first game in black an copper.

Children's Hospital: Every week during the 2004 season, Arizona Rattler players will visit the Phoenix Children's Hospital to brighten the day of the kids. The players will visit a different floor each week, and hand out posters and sign autographs. The team has also donated 50 tickets to each home game to the Hospital, so the children and their families can enjoy Rattlers football in person

Other Games This Week:
New Orleans (7-1) @ Orlando (3-5)
Grand Rapids (0-8) @ Detroit (4-4)
New York (5-3) @ Columbus (2-6)
Colorado (6-3) @ Los Angeles (5-3)
San Jose (7-1) @ Dallas (5-3)
Tampa Bay (3-6) @ Chicago (6-2)
Carolina 3-6) @ Indiana (4-5)
Georgia (4-5) @ Austin (5-3)
BYE: Philadelphia (4-5)

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Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from April 6, 2004


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