AFL I Arizona Rattlers

Arizona Rattlers game notes

Published on January 31, 2006 under Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Arizona Rattlers News Release


QUICK FACTS:
Game: Austin Wranglers at Arizona Rattlers
Date: Friday, February 3, 2006
Kickoff: 7:00 p.m. (Mountain)
Site: Phoenix, Ariz.
Arena: U.S. Airways Center (16,321)
Television: FSN Arizona (Kent Derdivanis, Dale Hellestrae, Kevin McCabe)
Radio: ESPN Radio 860 (Dan Manucci, Craig Grialou)
Series Record: Arizona leads 1-0
Last Meeting: Arizona 52, Austin 26 - April 22, 2005 at America West Arena
Officials: Bill McCabe (R), Jeff Carr (U), Kelly Saalfeld (HL), Gary Cavaletto (LJ), Jimmy Buchanan (BJ)
Head Coaches: Arizona - Gene Nudo (first season, 0-1) Austin - Skip Foster (second season, 9-8)

2006 RATTLERS: The Rattlers enter their second game of their 15th season in the 20-year-old AFL hoping to recover from an opening day loss at Los Angeles. Trying to avoid their fourth 0-2 start in franchise history, Arizona looks to rebound against the Austin Wranglers, who opened their season with a home victory over Las Vegas . This year's campaign is guided by head coach Gene Nudo, who will make his debut at US Airways Center. Nudo, who is on the Rattler sidelines for the first time since 1995 when he was an assistant, is no stranger to the game as he has been in their front office for the past 12 seasons. The rookie head coach brought back 12 returnees, including QB Sherdrick Bonner, who is one of the league's most prolific passers. Returning for his 13th season, Bonner needs just 35 touchdown passes to become the third player in AFL history to throw for 700. Another veteran returnee, WR/LB Randy Gatewood hopes to become a prime candidate for "Ironman of the Year", an honor he took two seasons ago. The team also brought back FB/LB Bo Kelly, who enters his tenth season with the team. New faces include WR/DB Jeremiah Pope, a promising rookie that has already recorded an interception. The Rattlers bring back eight players to their front line, including linemen Wendall Gaines, Kelvin Ingram, and Mark Tucker. Defensively, the team will count on veteran DS Clarence Lawson to lead a backfield that includes four-year veteran Joe Todd, who was a free agent acquisition. Lawson is also a dangerous return man. Kicker Gary Kral, who joined the team late last season, returns as well.
THE SERIES: This will be the second-ever meeting between the two clubs. Last season, the Wranglers traveled to Phoenix to take on the Rattlers for the first time in franchise history on April 22, 2005 in front of a crowd of 10,962. Arizona took the contest 52-26, giving up their lowest point total of the season. It was the Rattlers second-straight victory before losing the following week and finishing the season with three straight wins.

ARIZONA RATTLERS (0-1)
Date Opponent Time(M) TV
Jan. 29 @ Los Angeles Loss 40-31
Feb. 3 Austin 7:00 FSAZ
Feb. 12 San Jose 6:00 None
Feb. 18 Utah 7:00 None
Feb. 24 @ Columbus 5:00 FSAZ
Mar. 6 Nashville 7:00 None
Mar. 10 Orlando 7:00 None
Mar. 17 @ Las Vegas 8:30 FSAZ
Mar. 24 Los Angeles 7:00 FSAZ
April 2 @ San Jose 3:00 NBC
April 7 @ Utah 7:00 FSAZ(delay)
April 15 Chicago 7:00 None
April 23 @ G. Rapids 11:00a None
April 29 @ Dallas 5:00 None
May 6 Las Vegas 7:00 None
May 12 @ Colorado 6:00 FSAZ(delay)

AUSTIN WRANGLERS (1-0)
Date Opponent Time(M) TV
Jan. 27 Las Vegas Win 64-46
Feb. 3 @ Arizona 7:00 FSNSW
Feb. 12 @ Kansas City Noon WB
Feb. 17 @ Dallas 6:30 FSNSW
Feb. 25 @ Tampa Bay 5:30 None
Mar. 4 @ Georgia 10:00a None
Mar. 12 New York 1:00 FSNSW
Mar. 18 Kansas City 6:00 WB
Mar. 25 Orlando 6:00 FSNSW
Mar. 31 @ Philadelphia 5:00 FSNSW
April 9 Georgia Noon None
April 15 Tampa Bay 5:00 None
April 22 @ San Jose 7:30 None
April 29 Columbus 5:00 None
May 7 Grand Rapids Noon None
May 12 @ Orlando 4:30 None


RATTLER HEAD COACH: Gene Nudo enters his first season as head coach to become the third head coach in franchise history. Nudo joined the Rattlers coaching staff in 1995 as an assistant head coach before becoming a part of the team's front office in 1996. A true pioneer in the AFL, Nudo coached the first-ever Arena Football games in Rockford, Ill. (1986) as well as its "Showcase Game" in Rosemont, Ill. (1987). He would later serve as the Director of Player Personnel and assistant coach for the Chicago Bruisers (1987-88), helping guide them to a berth in ArenaBowl II.

THIS WEEKS QUOTES:

Rattler head coach Gene Nudo on last week's loss: "We played some competitive football in the first half but followed it up with a horrible second half. The better team won the game, no question. We had too many penalties and too many drops. We didn't make the proper adjustments, but I think there are a lot of things that we can learn from this loss."

Nudo on Austin: "They had a big win last week, plus they will have a couple of more days of rest on us being that they played on Friday. They bring in a very experienced quarterback that seemed to be meshing well with his new receivers. They also bring in a good rushing game, so our defense will have to come out with the same intensity they did early last week. I expect them to try to establish the rush."

Nudo on the keys to the game: "I am expecting a hard fought game. The last time they cam here they did not fair to well, so you have to expect them to come in here looking for redemption. We are going to have to keep our mistakes down and get our offense going early."

ARIZONA RATTLERS
2005 Results (7-9)
Date Opponent Result Score
Jan. 28 @ G. Rapids Win 58-38
Feb. 3 Orlando Loss 51-40
Feb.12 @ Georgia Loss 61-47
Feb. 19 Colorado Loss 69-74
Feb. 27 @ New York Loss 61-37
Mar. 6 Los Angeles Loss 33-29
Mar. 13 @ Tampa Bay Loss 59-56
Mar. 19 Las Vegas Loss 66-63
Mar. 26 @ Nashville Win 48-35 (OT)
April 3 @ San Jose Loss 48-27
April 8 Columbus Win 70-53
April 22 Austin Win 52-26
April 30 @ Los Angeles Loss 59-56
May 6 Chicago Win 61-43
May 14 San Jose Win 54-44
May 22 @ Las Vegas Win 49-42

NEXT GAME: The Rattlers will remain at US Airways Center for their second of a three straight home games as the division-rival San Jose SaberCats come to town on Sunday, February 12. It will first of two meetings between the two clubs. The game will kick off at 7:00 p.m. and can be heard on ESPN Radio 860 AM.

THE "IF" SECTION
If the Rattlers defeat Austin it would:
- be their fifth-straight home victory
- be their sixth win in their last eight games
- give them their first February win since 2/21/04
- give them a 2-0 record versus Austin
- give them a 1-1 start for the second-straight season


Rattlers Coaching HistorySeason - Head Coach Record
1992-2004 Danny White 141-57 (playoffs 20-10)
2005 Todd Shell 7-9
2006 Gene Nudo 0-1

DIVISION ADDITION: The league's Western division took new shape this year with the addition of the expansion Utah Blaze. The Blaze are coached by former Rattler head coach Danny White, who is the team's head coach while former Rattler WR/LB Hunkie Cooper is an assistant.

SLOW STARTERS: The Rattlers have hardly been known for breaking out of the gates quickly in recent years. In their last four seasons, Arizona has a combined 8-17 record during the first half of the season. Despite the slow starts, the Rattlers were still able to make championship runs in 2003 and 2004.

Record to start seasonYear - season result First 8 (final overall record)
2003 lost ArenaBowl XVII 4-4 (13-7)
2004 lost ArenaBowl XVIII 3-5 (13-6)
2005 did not qualify for playoffs 1-7 (7-9)
2006 ??? 0-1

25 PERCENT OF THE TOP 20: The league's historical committee announced the top 20 players in AFL history on January 18, 2006. A total of five players with Rattler ties made the list, including current Rattler QB Sherdrick Bonner and WR/DB Randy Gatewood. Former Rattlers included Hunkie Cooper, Aaron Garcia, and Bob McMillen.

Top 20 Players of All-time
1. Eddie Brown - Albany, Indiana
2. Barry Wagner - Orlando, San Jose
3. George LaFrance - Detroit, Tampa Bay, New Jersey
4. Jay Gruden - Tampa Bay, Orlando
5. Hunkie Cooper - Arizona
6. James Baron - Chicago, Nashville
7. Sylvester Bembery - New England, Albany, Tampa
8. Sherdrick Bonner - Arizona
9. Stevie Thomas - Tampa Bay, Orlando, New Jersey
10. Dwayne Dixon - Washington, Detroit
11. Aaron Garcia - Arizona, Iowa, New York
12. Kurt Warner - Iowa
13 Sam Hernandez - Las Vegas, Anaheim, San Jose
14. Cory Fleming - Carolina, Orlando, Nashville
14. Greg Hopkins - Albany, Indiana, Los Angeles
16. Alvin Rettig - Detroit
17. Randy Gatewood - Arizona
17. Gary Mullen - Denver, Detroit, Cincinnati
19. John Corker - Detroit, Miami
20. Bob McMillen - Arizona, Chicago

13 = 8 = GREAT: Arizona quarterback Sherdrick Bonner is one of the league's best all-time field generals as he was honored as eighth greatest on the league's top 20 of all-time. In addition to owning every Rattler passing record, he is steadily working his way up the league charts. Currently, Bonner ranks in the top four in four different all-time passing stats with 33,119 passing yards (No. 3 on the AFL career chart), 665 touchdowns (No. 3), 4,288 pass attempts (No. 3), and 2,663 completions (No. 4). Bonner has also won more games than any other quarterback in AFL history with 94 regular season victories and 17 playoff wins.

Career Passing
1. Andy Kelly - Kansas City Brigade 36,879
2. Aaron Garcia - New York Dragons 34,964
3. Sherdrick Bonner - Arizona Ratters 33,119

Career Touchdowns
1. Aaron Garcia - New York Dragons 729
2. Andy Kelly - Kansas City Brigade 721
3. Sherdrick Bonner - Arizona Ratters 665

Career Attempts
1. Andy Kelly - Kansas City Brigade 5,403
2. Aaron Garcia - New York Dragons 4,356
3. Sherdrick Bonner - Arizona Ratters 4,288

Career Completions
1. Andy Kelly - Kansas City Brigade 3,373
2. Clint Dolezel - Dallas Desperados 2,767
3. Aaron Garcia - New York Dragons 2,691
4. Sherdrick Bonner - Arizona Ratters 2,663

SCORING MACHINE: WR/DB Randy Gatewood scored a touchdown in 13 of his 16 games last season. He scored in every game this season (1) and has a total of 170 touchdowns in his career as a Rattler.

PLAYERS TO WATCH THIS WEEK:

Austin FB/LB Dane Krager: Krager, a three-year veteran who is known for barreling through opposing offensive lines, hopes to bank on last week's performance where he rushed for 34 yards on eight carries and a touchdown. The Rattlers front line that held Los Angeles to 25 rushing yards last week will have to key on Krager while containing the Austin passing game. The last time these two teams played, Arizona held the Wranglers to 12 rushing yards in a lopsided victory. The challenge will be much tougher this time around as Kragen expects to make an impact especially in short yardage situations.

Rattler DS Clarence Lawson: Lawson, who had three tackles and a pass breakup last week against Los Angeles, was a constant anchor in the Arizona back field. The eight-year veteran is also a threat on special teams as he returned s 57-yard touchdown for a score in last week's loss. Lawson will be expected to have another big defensive outing against an Austin offense that only scored two touchdowns through the air despite putting up 64 points. The speedster also looks to continue to be a threat on special teams as his quick burst and shifty moves can give the Rattlers great field position any time the Wranglers kick it deep.

RATTLERS LAST GAME:

RATTLERS DROP OPENER, 40-31

Los Angeles, Calif. (Jan. 29, 2006) -- In a seesaw battle that saw eight lead changes, eight field goal attempts and four different quarterbacks, the Arizona Rattlers dropped their season opener to the Los Angeles Avengers, 40-31, in front of 11,731 at the STAPLES Center.

The Avenger defense was able to hold Arizona without an offensive touchdown in the second half, including a scoreless fourth quarter, to preserve the victory in front of their home crowd.

Rattler quarterback Sherdrick Bonner, who left the game for part of a series due to a knee injury, finished with 13 completions on 26 attempts for 167 yards and two touchdowns.

Bonner was forced to leave after a sack by lineman Bernard Riley that was negated by a penalty early in the fourth quarter. He re-entered the game five plays later while the Rattlers were trailing 37-31, facing a fourth-and-goal at the Avenger nine-yard line.

The Rattlers were put in scoring position after backup Travis Cole completed a 24-yard pass to Wendall Gaines to put the Rattlers in scoring position.

On the fourth down attempt, Bonner was unable to find wide receiver Randy Gatewood in the endzone, forcing Arizona to turn it over on downs.

The Rattlers would have another chance to regain the lead after forcing a four-and-out on the next Avenger possession to take over on the Avenger 13-yard line with 8:57 left.

Despite the good field position, the Rattlers were unable to capitalize as a 42-yard Gary Kral field goal attempt sailed wide left with 6:37 to go.

Avenger kicker Remy Hamilton, who was three-for-three on field goals in the first half, connected on a 42-yarder that bounced in after hitting the right upright to give the Avengers a nine point advantage, 40-31.

Arizona's only touchdown in the second half came after a Clarence Lawson 57-yard kickoff return that gave the Rattlers a 28-23 lead with 10:42 left in the third quarter.

The Avengers regained the lead, 30-28, after Josh Jefferies barreled in on a fourth-and-goal attempt at the one while the Rattlers answered with a 21-yard Kral field goal to give them their last lead, 31-30.

Avenger quarterback Brian Mann, who played all but two offensive series, finished 10-of-27 for 193 yards and three touchdowns.

ARIZONA (0-1) 7 14 10 0 -- 31
LOS ANGELES (1-0) 10 6 21 3 -- 40

RECENT ROSTER MOVES:
Date Action Player
1/26 Placed on practice squad OL/DL Ricky GasparQB Dennis GileOS Darrell JonesOL/DL Zach Rupp
1/21 Placed on IR OL/DL Sebastian BarrieDS Wendell DavisWR/LB Curtis FaganFB/LB Asi FaoaOL/DL Anthony HutchOL/DL Steve MascorroFB/LB Steve Warren
Placed on Recallable Waivers OL/DL Ricky GasparQB Dennis GileOS Darrell JonesOL/DL Zach Rupp
Waived QB Nick RolovichOL/DL Doug GoodwinDS Kenneth StanfordWR/DB Justin Taplin
Released OS Damien GroceFB/LB Sunungura RusunungukoFB/LB Kelron Sykes
1/20 Signed FB/LB Sunungura Rusununguko
Waived FB/LB Vincent Brown
1/13 Signed OL/DL Sebastian Barrie
Activated from Refused to Report K Gary Kral
1/12 Signed OL/DL Ethan Bann ingDS Joseph Todd
1/11 Signed OL/DL Ricky GasparFB/LB Kelron Sykes
1/10 Signed QB Nick Rolovich

THE RATTLERS ARE ...
- 0-0 at US Airways Center
- 0-1 on the road
- 0-0 when they score more than 50 points
- 0-0 when they score 60 or more points
- 0-1 when they allow less than 60 points
- 0-1 when they allow less than 50 points
- 0-1 when they allow less than 40 points
- 0-0 when they score first
- 0-0 when they commit fewer turnovers
- 0-0 when they commit more turnovers
- 0-0 when a player scores three or more touchdowns
- 0-0 when they score two or more TDs on the ground
- 0-0 when Sherdrick Bonner throws five or more TDs
- 0-0 when Randy Gatewood scores two or more TDs
- 0-0 when Randy Gatewood catches six or more passes
- 0-0 when Bo Kelly scores two or more TDs
- 0-0 when they commit fewer penalties
- 0-0 when they record at least one sack
- 0-1 when they go scoreless for at least one quarter
- 0-0 when they pitch a shutout in a quarter
- 0-0 when the game is decided by 7 or fewer points
- 0-1 when leading at halftime
- 0-0 when trailing at halftime

LAST MEETING WITH AUSTIN:

RATTLERS THROTTLE WRANGLERS, 52-26

Phoenix, Ariz. (April 22, 2005) -- Siaha Burley continued his assault on the Rattlers record books, while Sherdrick Bonner threw five TD passes in his first action in four weeks as the Arizona Rattlers won their second straight game, 52-26 over the Austin Wranglers. Burley had six catches for 47 yards and four touchdowns, giving him 35 on the season. Calvin Schexnayder holds the team record with 44, a record he set in 1998. The Rattlers defense held Austin to a season low 26 points, making four stops along the way.

The Wranglers came out firing in the game's opening possession, as John Fitzgerald led Austin on a seven play, 45 yard drive, cultivating in an Angel Rubio six yard TD pass. Arizona tied it up when Sherdrick Bonner found Siaha Burley from 14-yards out for the score. From that point on it was total domination on both sides of the ball by Arizona.

Austin's next drive stalled, and kicker Todd Sievers missed a field goal, giving Arizona the ball and a chance to take the lead. Bonner took the ball in from one yard out for a 14-7 lead, and the Rattlers never looked back. The lead stretched to 21-7 when Bonner found Randy Gatewood for a nine yard scoring strike with 1:06 left in the first half. Austin answered back with a Darrin Chiaverini TD reception, but kicker Gary Kral, who was signed as the emergency kicker earlier in the afternoon, nailed a 47 yard field goal as the half ended to give Arizona a 24-13 lead at intermission.

The Rattlers started the second half just as hot as they were in the first, as Bonner and Burley hooked up again for the touchdown, giving Arizona a 31-13 edge. Austin could not answer however, as Fitzgerald was intercepted by Orshawante Bryant. Arizona capitalized on the turnover, as Bonner found Burley again for the score. That put the Rattlers up 38-13, and from there Arizona cruised to the 52-26 win.

Bonner was 20-31 for 224 yards and five scores in his return to action, while his counterpart Fitzgerald ended up 27-43 for 235 yards, four touchdowns and a pick. Bryant caught four passes for 71 yards for Arizona, while Kevin Nickerson hauled in eight receptions for 69 yards.

AUSTIN (4-9) 7 6 7 6 -- 26
ARIZONA (4-8) 7 17 14 14 -- 52


ARENA FOOTBALL LEAGUE STANDINGS:

AMERICAN CONFERENCE
Western Division
W L T Pct. Pts. OP
Utah 1 0 0 1.000 48 35
Los Angeles 1 0 0 1.000 40 31
Arizona 0 1 0 .000 31 40
Las Vegas 0 1 0 .000 46 64
San Jose 0 1 0 .000 35 48

Central Division
W L T Pct. Pts. OP
Colorado 1 0 0 1.000 65 56
Nashville 1 0 0 1.000 57 28
Chicago 0 1 0 .000 56 65
Grand Rapids 0 1 0 .000 30 53

NATIONAL CONFERENCE
Eastern Division
W L T Pct. Pts. OP
Columbus 1 0 0 1.000 53 30
Dallas 1 0 0 1.000 58 44
Philadelphia 1 0 0 1.000 52 34
New York 0 1 0 .000 28 57

Southern Division
W L T Pct. Pts. OP
Austin 1 0 0 1.000 64 46
Georgia 1 0 0 1.000 48 31
Kansas City 0 1 0 .000 44 58
Orlando 0 1 0 .000 31 48
Tampa Bay 0 1 0 .000 34 52

THIS WEEK IN THE AFL (all times EST):
Friday, February 3
Tampa Bay at Grand Rapids 7:30 p.m.
Kansas City at Orlando 7:30 p.m.
Columbus at Nashville 8:00 p.m.
New York at Chicago 8:30 p.m.
Austin at Arizona 9:00 p.m.

Saturday, February 4
Dallas at Utah 9:00 p.m.

Sunday, February 5
Los Angeles at Philadelphia 1:00 p.m.
Colorado at Georgia 1:00 p.m.
San Jose at Las Vegas 10:30 p.m.

LAST WEEKS RESULTS

Friday, July 27
Las Vegas 46, Austin 64

Saturday, January 28
Orlando 31, Georgia 48
Nashville 57, New York 28
Utah 48, San Jose 35

Sunday, January 29, 2006
Tampa Bay 34, Philadelphia 52
Arizona 30, Los Angeles 41
Chicago 56, Colorado 65
Kansas City, 44 Dallas 58
Grand Rapids 30, Columbus 53

ARIZONA CONNECTIONS: The Rattlers have three players with local connections: OL/DL Vince Amey (Arizona State alum), OL/DL Ethan Banning (coaches at Scottsdale Community College), and QB Dennis Gile (prepped at Cortez High in Phoenix). Two Rattlers - OL/DL Wendall Gaines and OL/DL Mark Tucker - played for the Arizona Cardinals.

NFL RATTLERS: Twelve Rattlers have spent time on NFL rosters - OL/DL Vince Amey (1998 Oakland), OL/DL Sebastian Barrie (1992 Green Bay, 1994 San Francisco and Arizona), QB Sherdrick Bonner (1998 Atlanta), DS Wendell Davis (1996-99 Dallas, 1999 Washington), WR/DB Curtis Fagan (2005 Tampa Bay), OL/DL Wendall Gaines (1993-96 Arizona, 1997 Kansas City, 1998-99 Philadelphia), WR/DB Randy Gatewood (1995 Miami), OL/DL Kelvin Ingram (1995-96 New Orleans, 1996-97 Seattle), WR/DB Jeremiah Pope (2004 Philadelphia), WR/DB Wilson Thomas (2003 Kansas City, 2004), OL/DL Mark Tucker (1991 Atlanta, 1992 Indianapolis, 1993-94 Arizona, 1995 Jacksonville), and WR/DB Talib Wise (2005 Chicago). Three Ratters -- Amey (7th round), Davis (6th round), and Tucker (7th round) -- were NFL Draft picks. Davis is the most experienced, having played in 34 NFL games.

INDIVIDUAL GAME-BY-GAME AWARDS

"BABY RUTH OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME": Voted on by the media, the award goes to the player who was the most valuable to his team's offensive success in the game, win or lose.
W Opp. Offensive Player of the Game
1 @ Los Angeles K Remy Hamilton (L.A.)4-for-4 on FG's, 3-of-3 on XP's, 15 pts

"ADT DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME": Voted on by the media, the award goes to the player who was the
most valuable to his team's defensive success in the game, win or lose.

W Opp. Defensive Player of the Game
1 @ Los Angeles WR/DB Kevin Ingram (L.A.)2 tackles, 1 interception

"U.S. ARMY IRONMAN OF THE GAME": Voted on by the media, the award goes to the two-way player who best demonstrated the ideals of the AFL's style of ironman football

W Opp. Ironman of the Game
1 @ Los Angeles WR/DB Kevin Ingram (L.A.)7 catches, 126 yards, 1TD, 1 INT

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