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Battle Wings Shock Florida, 28-22

May 15, 2005 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Bossier-Shreveport Battle Wings News Release


BOSSIER CITY, LA - If the Florida Firecats exhibited having nine lives in opening the season the five straight wins, the Bossier Battle Wings made sure they didn't have a tenth.

Bossier's much-maligned defense surrendered but 22 points to the top-ranked and undefeated Firecats en route to a stunning 28-22 Battle Wings victory at the Century Tel Center. The 'Wings (2-5) took a page from the Firecats playbook and beat the visitors at their own game, holding onto the ball for a whopping 35 minutes - almost 11 minutes more than the 'Cats - and churned up 53 rushing yards against the league's top-rated run defense.

Reggie Perkins sliding catch of a 7-yard Tim Hicks pass proved to be the game-winner with 3:26 remaining in the game, ending a monster 12-play, 32-yard drive that took 8:19 off the fourth quarter clock and gave the 'Wings their 28-22 advantage. Brian Hazelwood's PAT was blocked however, giving the 'Cats high hopes of a game-winning drive of their own.

Starting at their own five with 2:45 remaining, the Firecats (5-1) marched downfield with a couple of Chris Wallace-to-Javarus Dudley hitches to the Bossier 22. Wallace dropped back to pass again on first down and was hit hard by Kendel Shello, who forced a fumble recovered by Joe Wesley with only 52 seconds remaining.

Unable to run out the clock, the 'Wings missed a chance to ice the game with another score when Hazelwood's 33-yard FG attempt missed left, allowing Florida one last chance at the tying touchdown and game-winning PAT.

From the 'Cat five again, Wallace hit Magic Benton for 11 yards and then Dudley again for eight yards to the Florida 24. After a timeout to stop the clock with 12 seconds remaining, Wallace fired incomplete to Brent Burnside, the hit Dudley for 14 yards to the Battle Wing 12 with 00:01.7 left. Wallace fired once more to the end zone and hit nothing but air as time expired.

"That was the most inspired game of football I've seen our guys play in the two years I've been with the team and they deserved that victory," said head coach Keith Barefield. "The guys showed tremendous patience on offense and they executed extremely well the game plan of (defensive coordinator) Mike Green. It was a complete victory in every sense of the phrase."

Green's defensive unit held the Firecats to their lowest point production since a 34-16 Florida loss suffered at the hands of the Carolina Rhinos on July 20, 2001. The 'Cats entered Saturday's game not only averaging 48 points per game, but also leading the league in rushing offense with 48.4 steps per game. Bossier allowed Florida just 12 yards on seven carries, thwarting the 'Cats attempts to control the ball and the clock.

Bossier opened the game with a touchdown drive of 34 yards, ended on Bo Smith's leaping catch in the back of the end zone to snare Hicks' six-yard heave. Up 7-0 after Hazelwood's first PAT, Bossier's defense gave little indication it could hold the potent Firecats, who quickly drove down and scored on Benton's 27-yard touchdown reception from Wallace. Brandon Kornblue missed the PAT, however, leaving the 'Cats down 7-6 with 6:13 remaining in the first.

Bossier drove in the other direction, gaining a first-and-goal at the Firecat five. Florida withstood several rushing attempts, then stopped Shello on a two-yard pass to the two and took over on downs. The 'Cats drove the length of the field to the Bossier nine, then on third-and-goal from the 'Wings six, Wallace threw into the end zone where Bossier DS Ghana Joseph tipped the ball and got underneath it for a interception to end the threat.

The 'Wings narrowly averted disaster just one play later. Hicks was intercepted by Florida's Roy Stabler at the 14, who then appeared headed into the end zone for lead touchdown. But just before the goal line, Wesley slapped the ball loose and out of the back of the end zone for a Bossier touchback. Hicks quickly led the Battle Wings down field, and from 11 yards out, Wesley blasted through the defense for a touchdown and ultimately, a 14-6 Bossier lead.

Chris Wallace' two-yard dive with 50 seconds remaining made it a 14-12 game, but Kornblue missed again, leaving the 'Cats down by a pair at the half.

Florida took its only lead of the game on the first drive of the second half. From the 'Cats 10, Wallace drove his squad to the Bossier 10 before hitting Benton for a scoring strike that put the visitors up 18-14, allowing Kornblue's only successful PAT to make it a five-point game, 19-14 with 10:21 remaining in the period. Bossier drove right back however, and at the end of another time-consuming drive, Hicks found Smith open again from two yards out to change the lead again. Hazelwood then booted his third drop-kick PAT of the year to give the 'Wings a 22-19 advantage.

Kornblue's first field goal of the year, from 23 yards out, tied the game at 22-22 with 12:56 remaining. Tim Hicks hit Perkins for a 15-yard gain to start the next drive, then lost the handle on a snap that was recovered by Florida's Dudley at the Firecat 18. Bossier's defense stood tall again at the other end of the field, holding Florida to four-and-out from the 'Wings nine. That huge stand set up Perkins' game-winning grab more than eight minutes later.

"Our ability to be patient with the football on offense probably was a curveball to them," Barefield added. "But it was the players having confidence in what they were doing and having confidence in each other that got us this win. Our receiving corps made some big-time catches when we needed first downs and our offensive line gave Tim (Hicks) time to find his receivers. I can't say enough about all 21 of the guys that worked hard this week to prepare and I sure can't say enough about the work of Coach Green. The guys believe in him, can communicate with him....There's a camaraderie in the locker room we didn't have before."

Perkins, named the game's top offensive player, hauled in a game-high 13 passes for 94 yards and the one TD. Teammate Gana Joseph earned defensive honors while Florida's Xavier Patterson was named the game's ironman. Benton had the top yardage game among receivers, hauling in seven passes for 107 yards and two scores. Dudley matched his catch total and had 89 steps.

Tim Hicks completed 28-of-39 passes for 194 yards and three TD's for the Battle Wings while Florida's Wallace ended with 21-of-35 passing for 264 yards. Joe Wesley led the Battle Wing ground attack with five totes for 28 yards, including the 11-yard TD run. Bo Smith added 14 yards on three carries in his first rushes of the year.

Bossier heads out next week for a first-ever game at Oklahoma City, then gets a week off before playing back-to-back games in the Eastern Time Zone at Albany (June 4) and Macon (June 11). The Battle Wings next home game will be June 18 against Oklahoma City.

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