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AFL I Arizona Rattlers

Arizona Rattlers game notes

April 26, 2005 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Arizona Rattlers News Release


The Stakes: Arizona looks for their third straight victory as they travel to Los Angeles for a meeting with the Avengers. The Rattlers hammered Austin 52-26 to win their second straight last week, while LA outlasted Chicago 52-49.

The Series: This is meeting number 14 between these Western Division foes. Arizona leads the series 9-4, but the Avengers won the earlier match-up this season, knocking off the Rattlers 33-29 at AWA on March 6.

Who To Watch: Former Avenger Siaha Burley hopes to keep up his scoring pace. Burley leads the AFL in TDs with 35.

Radio: All Rattler games are broadcast on KMVP 860 AM. Kent Derdivanis and Ron Wolfley will provide the commentary.

ARIZONA RATTLERS (4-8)
Date Opponent Time TV
1/28 @ Grand Rapids Win 58-38
2/3 ORLANDO Loss 40-51
2/12 @ Georgia Loss 47-61
2/19 COLORADO Loss 69-74
2/27 @ New York Loss 37-61
3/6 LOS ANGELES Loss 29-33
3/13 @ Tampa Bay Loss 56-59
3/19 LAS VEGAS Loss 63-66
3/28 @ Nashville Win 48-35
4/3 @ San Jose Loss 27-48
4/8 COLUMBUS Win 70-53
4/22 AUSTIN Win 52-26
4/30 @ Los Angeles 7:30 -
5/6 CHICAGO 7:00 FSNAZ
5/14 SAN JOSE 7:00 -
5/22 @ Las Vegas 12:00 NBC

LOS ANGELES AVENGERS (7-5)
Date Opponent Time TV
1/30 @ Las Vegas Loss 37-46
2/4 GEORGIA Win 46-41
2/11 @ Austin Win 64-51
2/20 SAN JOSE Win 71-69
2/27 @ Colorado Loss 40-58
3/6 @ Arizona Win 33-29
3/18 DALLAS Loss 50-72
3/26 TAMPA BAY Win 59-28
4/3 @ Orlando Loss 54-55
4/10 NEW YORK Win 66-35
4/17 @ Nashville Loss 48-51
4/23 CHICAGO Win 52-49
4/30 ARIZONA 7:30 -
5/7 @ San Jose 7:30 FSN
5/14 LAS VEGAS 7:30 FSN
5/21 @ Grand Rapids 4:30 FSN

Head Coaches: Todd Shell is in his first season as Head Coach of the Rattlers. The 2003 AFL Coach of the Year has a regular season record of 50-44 (.532), with stints in San Jose and New York. Shell has won three division titles, including back-to-back Eastern Divisions with New York in 2003 and 2004. Shell was Arizona's original Defensive Coordinator, helping lead the team to the 1994 ArenaBowl Title.

Ed Hodgkiss is in his fourth season as Head Coach of the Avengers. He owns a career record of 35-26, and has led the Avengers to the playoffs in each of his three seasons as the coach. Prior to joining LA, Hodgkiss was with the Firebirds organization, serving first as the Receivers Coach, and then the Offensive Coordinator.

Next Week: The Rattlers will honor Hunkie Cooper, as they take on the Chicago Rush on Hunkie Cooper Appreciation Night. The game kicks off at 7:00 PM with FSN providing TV coverage.

Officials: Officials for today's game are: Riley Johnson (Referee), Rick Podraza (Umpire), Jullian Mapp (Head Linesman), Paul Engleberts (Line Judge), and Bud McCleskey. (Back Judge).

Last Game: The Rattlers had no problems dispatching the Wranglers, throttling them 52-26. Sherdrick Bonner returned from a three game absence to toss five touchdowns, four to Siaha Burley, to lead Arizona to the victory.

Records in Sight: With four games remaining, Siaha Burley has his sights set on some Rattlers single season records. Burley has 35 TD receptions so far, 8 short of the team record held by Calvin Schexnayder in 1998. The AFL record is 46 in a single season, held by four players. Burley also has 98 receptions, 38 shy of Schexnayder's mark. He needs to average almost ten receptions a game to break the record.

Sed Returns: Rattlers Quarterback Sherdrick Bonner returned to action against Austin after having missed the previous 3 games with a knee injury. He ranks third in touchdown passes (636), passing yards (31,904) and fourth in pass completions (2,561). Bonner also ranks third for pass attempts (4,137). Bonner is the all-time leader in wins by a starting QB. He has 91 regular season wins and 108 total victories as a starter.
Most Passing Touchdowns
1. # Aaron Garcia 699
2. # Andy Kelly 692
3. # Sherdrick Bonner 636
4. # Clint Dolezel 632
Most Passing Yards
1. # Andy Kelly 35,586
2. # Aaron Garcia 33,631
3. # Sherdrick Bonner 31,904
4. # Clint Dolezel 31,473
Most Pass Completions
1. # Andy Kelly 3,214
2. # Clint Dolezel 2,638
3. # Aaron Garcia 2,615
4. # Sherdrick Bonner 2,561
Most Pass Attempts:
1. # Andy Kelly 5,198
2. # Aaron Garcia 4,180
3. # Sherdrick Bonner 4,137
Regular Season Wins as a Starting QB:
1. # Sherdrick Bonner 91
2. # Andy Kelly 81
3. # Aaron Garcia 69
4. # Clint Dolezel 60
# denotes Active Player

Penalty Marker Down: The Rattlers have committed 116 penalties so far this season, after being flagged 119 times last season. Those flags have translated into 704 yards, or 58.7 yards a game. They have given opponents 34 first downs via the penalty, and have had five touchdowns and five takeaways overturned by the flags.

Slippery Fingers: The Rattlers have turned the ball over 23 times already this season, equaling last season's total. The Rattlers have not forced many turnovers this season, as their -7 turnover ratio proves.

The Kicker: K Gary Kral was signed as an Emergency Kicker before the Austin game, filling in for the injured Anthony Brenner. Brenner was placed on IR Monday. Kral is the sixth kicker since camp began. The previous five were Brenner, Jason Witczak, Chris Sailer, Steve McLaughlin, and Danny Kight.

Helpful Returns: The Rattlers got a few players back in action against Austin. Linemen Anthony Hutch and John Frank, along with Sherdrick Bonner all saw time against the Wranglers. Hutch had missed two games after being injured in Nashville on 3/26, while Frank had been out since hurting his toe against Las Vegas on 3/19.

Hunkie Night: The Rattlers will host "Hunkie Cooper Appreciation Night" on May 6th when they take on the Chicago Rush. Cooper will be honored at halftime, featuring his jersey being retired and several special guests. Former Rattler greats will be in attendance, including Cedric Tillman and Luis Zendejas.

Milestones: The win over the Austin was the 50th career victory for Head Coach Todd Shell...The triumph over the Wranglers also marked the 91st regular season win for Sherdrick Bonner. Bonner is first all-time for wins by a starting QB. He has 108 career wins, including 17 playoff victories.

In Honor of Al: Every AFL team will wear #76 stickers on their helmets in memory of Avengers Lineman Al Lucas.

Burley Stats: Siaha Burley leads the AFL in scoring with 212 points. San Jose's Rashied Davis trails him by 20...Siaha is third in All-Purpose yards, 3696 yards behind the leader, Steve Smith...Burley trails only Aaron Bailey in receptions. Bailey has 105, while Burley has 98. He also trails Marcus Nash in receiving yards by 63...Burley's 35 touchdown receptions this season is second all-time in team history.

This Week's Games:
April 29
New York Dragons at Dallas Desperados
Nashville Kats at San Jose SaberCats
April 30
Austin Wranglers at Columbus Destroyers
New Orleans VooDoo at Tampa Bay Storm
Colorado Crush at Grand Rapids Rampage
May 1
Las Vegas Gladiators at Chicago Rush
Orlando Predators at Philadelphia Soul
Bye
Georgia Force

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Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from April 26, 2005


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