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Birmingham Steeldogs game notes

July 5, 2006 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Alabama Steeldogs News Release


QUICK FACTS:
Birmingham Steeldogs (6-6)
at Rio Grande Valley Dorados (6-7)
Date: Saturday, July 8, 2006
Kickoff: 7:00 p.m. CT
Site: Dodge Arena (5,600)
National Anthem:
Coin Toss:
Officials: Referee: Tony Maranto; Umpire: Allen Roulette;
Head Linesman: Marc Bovos; Line Judge: Less Ross; Back Judge: Derrick Rhone-Dunn
Radio: WAPI-1070 AM (Matt Coulter)
TV: None
Series Record: Tied 1-1
Last Meeting: RGV, 44-43, April 14, 2006 @ BIR
Streaks: Birmingham L1, Rio Grande W1
Coaches: Ron Selesky (25-19; 1-1 playoffs, 3rd Season
Overall; 6-6, 1st Season in Birmingham)
Marty Hammond (6-7, 1st Season)

THE STAKES: The Steeldogs are well rested on the heels of their first bye week since the season-opener. Birmingham will need to be at full strength for the final four weeks of the season, as they are locked in a dramatic playoff battle to determine the final seeds for the 2006 postseason. Rio Grande is coming off a win at Bossier City, and, perhaps more significant, they have a healthy Josh Kellett under center.
THE SERIES: The two teams have split their two game series, with Birmingham defeating the Dorados, 59-58, on June 26, 2004 in Birmingham and the Dorados returning the favor in overtime, 44-43, at the BJCC earlier this season.
THE IFs:
If Birmingham defeats Rio Grande, it would...
- Put the Steeldogs back above .500
- Keep the Steeldogs alive in the 2006 race for the postseason
- Give the Steeldogs their first win over HC Marty Hammond
- Give Birmingham a two-game winning streak on the road


BIRMINGHAM (6-6, Lost 1)
Date Opponent Result Score
4/8 EVERETT 7:00 W 41-36
4/14 RIO GRANDE 7:00 L 43-44 (OT)
4/21 @ Louisville 6:30 L 40-62
4/29 @ South Georgia 6:30 W 40-34
5/5 LOUISVILLE 7:00 W 63-60
5/13 @ Florida 6:30 L 44-62
5/20 @ Tennessee Valley 7:30 L 17-21
5/27 MACON 7:00 W 71-30
6/3 @ Everett 9:30 L 34-40
6/10 SOUTH GEORGIA 7:00 W 42-35
6/17 @ Memphis 7:00 W 43-42
6/24 FLORIDA 7:00 L 27-60
7/8 @ Rio Grande 7:00 --- Tied 1-1
Date Opponent Time Streak Series
7/15 @ Macon 7:00 BIR 5-4
7/22 MEMPHIS 7:00 BHM 4-2
7/29 TENNESSEE VALLEY 7:00 TV 10-2

RIO GRANDE VALLEY (6-7, Won 1)
Date Opponent Result Score
4/1 @ Central Valley L 65-34
4/8 TULSA W 75-40
4/14 @ Birmingham W 44-43 (OT)
4/22 ARKANSAS W 57-55
4/29 @ Tulsa L 38-57
5/6 BOSSIER CITY W 43-28
5/13 @ Bakersfield L 45-53
5/20 @ Amarillo L 28-35
6/3 @ Oklahoma City L 13-46
6/10 AMARILLO W 49-45
6/17 @ Arkansas L 38-41
6/24 OKLAHOMA CITY L 14-56
7/1 @ Bossier City W 61-48
7/8 BIRMINGHAM 7:00 --- Tied 1-1
Date Opponent Time Streak Series
7/22 SOUTH GEORGIA
7/29 SPOKANE


HEAD COACHES:
RON SELESKY, BIRMINGHAM STEELDOGS
Head Coach Ron Selesky is an Arena Football League and af2 coaching veteran. He served as the defensive coordinator for the Columbus Destroyers in 2005 under Head Coach Chris Spielman. Prior to that, Selesky spent the 2004 season on the sidelines for the Carolina Cobras, beginning the year as the team's defensive coordinator before finishing the season as the head coach.

Selesky earned af2 Coach of the Year honors in 2002, guiding the expansion Albany Conquest to a regular-season mark of 13-3 and a Northeast Division title. He spent the 2001 season as the head coach of the Louisville Fire, leading the team to a 6-10 mark.

Selesky spent the 2003 season as head coach and director of football operations for the Buffalo Destroyers, prior to the team relocating to Columbus, Ohio. He also served as the director of player personnel and assistant coach for the Tampa Bay Storm from 1997 to 1999. With the Storm, his teams compiled a 31-11 regular season record and earned a berth in the 1998 ArenaBowl.

MARTY HAMMOND, RIO GRANDE VALLEY DORADOS
Hammond comes to the team after serving as the associate head coach/offensive coordinator/receivers coach for Tennessee Valley from 2002-04. He played wide receiver at the University of West Alabama from 1992-95 and was a teammate of Guys. Hammond graduated in 1996 with a degree in computer science. As a freshman, he was named the Gulf Coast Conference Rookie of the Year after catching 39 passes for 339 and two touchdowns. A native of Lexington, Ala., he was an All-State pick and MVP for Lexington High School.
Hammond is familiar with the organization, having served as a training camp coach for the Dorados during the 2005 preseason. Guy, meanwhile, becomes the second Dorados head coach in as many seasons to move up to the AFL. His predecessor, Gary Gussman, took an assistant coaching position with Las Vegas.

LAST SERIES MEETING: April 14, 2006: Rio Grande Valley defeated Birmingham, 44-43 in overtime, at the BJCC Arena.

SERIES HISTORY:

STEELDOGS 59 Dorados 58 June 26, 2004
Dorados 44 STEELDOGS 43 (O) April 14, 2006

LEAGUE TOP 10s: Steeldogs players who rank among af2's statistical leaders:
STEELDOGS
Player Rank Category Stat
Theo Sanders t-8th Rushing 34-126
Theo Sanders 9th Rush Yards 126
Kerry Wright 10th Yards Per Catch 15.1
Kerry Wright 7th Missed FG Rtrns 4-63
Alex Walls t-3rd Field Goals 9-25
Alex Walls 5th Field Goals Attpt 25
Alex Walls 7th Field Goal Pct. .360
Alex Walls t-2nd Field Goals Made 9
Bobby Keyes 7th Interceptions 7-11
Bobby Keyes t-2nd INT Returns 7-11

TALE OF THE TAPE: Here's how the Steeldogs and Dorados stack up:
Statistical BIRMINGHAM RIO GRANDE
Category Rank Stat Rank Stat
Scoring Offense 18th 41.8 19th 41.5
Scoring Defense 6th 43.8 10th 47.1
Total Offense 11th 264.0 16th 247.8
Total Defense 6th 245.8 2nd 216.2
Pass Offense 13th 233.0 16th 230.7
Pass Defense 6th 224.9 2nd 197.1
Rushing Offense 3rd 31.0 16th 17.1
Rushing Defense 12th 20.8 6th 19.1
Pass Rating 17th 89.0 18th 87.3
Pass Def. Rating 12th 100.3 13th 100.6
Kickoff Returns 23rd 12.5 18th 16.6
MFG Returns 19th 11.4 15th 16.5
Turnover Margin t-5th +7 18th -11
Field Goals 10th 9-25 (.360) 18th 4-17 (.235)
PAT Kicking 13th 45-60 (.750) 7th 59-73 (.808)
Sacks By 10th 19-98 3rd 27-104
Sacks Against t-12th 17-90 t-20th 32-153
First Downs 18th 205 9th 221
Opp. First Downs t-3rd 192 5th 198
Penalties 8th 90-625 13th 120-767
Opp. Penalties 14th 100-675 13th 112-734

STEELDOGS INJURY REPORT:
Pos. Name Injury Status
WR/DB Donald Amaker Torn ACL Out (Season)
OL/DL Myron Powe Knee Long-term IR (4 weeks rem.)
OS Kerry Wright Hamstring Short-term IR (2 weeks rem.)

NOTES:

DROPBACK: BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Chris Wallace finished 20 of 32 for 255 yards and seven touchdowns as the Florida Firecats defeated the Birmingham Steeldogs, 60-27, in front of 5,121 fans at the BJCC Arena.

With the win, Florida secured their hold on the South Division, improving their record to 9-2. Birmingham falls back to .500 with the loss, at 6-6.

The Firecats scored touchdowns on each of their first nine drives, with Ethenic Sands pulling down two quick Wallace touchdown passes in the first quarter to give Florida a 14-0 lead. Birmingham never could catch up.

Florida's Brittney Tellis caught nine passes for 103 yards and two touchdowns while Sands caught six passes for 48 yards and four scores. Lawrence Story led the Steeldogs' receiving corps, catching five passes for 84 yards, including a 45-yard touchdown pass from Ryan Hawk.

Hawk struggled under center, completing six of 11 passes for 76 yards, one touchdown and one interception. He was spelled by Robert Kent in the second half, who completed nine of 19 passes for 119 yards and a touchdown. He threw an interception on the last play of the game.

The Steeldogs get a bye next week before traveling to Rio Grande Valley on July 8.

FORWARD MOTION: Birmingham hits the road for the second straight week, traveling to Macon, Ga., to play the Knights.

KEY DATES IN TEAM/LEAGUE HISTORY:
JULY 5, 2003: Rhett Gallego nailed a 37-yard field goal with no time remaining to give the Steeldogs a 55-54 win over the Arkansas Twisters in Little Rock. Birmingham trailed by 10 with just over four minutes left, when all three phases of the game came together to score 17 points. The Steeldogs scored touchdowns via the offense and defense, before pulling off the victory in the final seconds via the special teams.

JULY 5, 2002: Montressa Kirby completed 25 of 29 passes for 257 yards and six touchdowns as the Steeldogs pounded the Mobile Wizards, 53-24, at the Mobile Civic Center. Kirby's 86.2 percent completion percentage still stands as a record for pass efficiency (minimum 10 attempts).

*The Steeldogs are 3-1 lifetime when playing during the first week in July.

SCHUTT OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME AWARD
(selected by media)
Week Opp. Player
1 Everett Kerry Wright (BIR)
2 RGV Dwight Counter (RGV)
3 Louisville Brett Deitz (LOU)
4 SGA Mareno Philyaw (BIR)
5 Louisville Kerry Wright (BIR)
6 Florida Magic Benton (FLA)
7 Tn. Vally Chris Gunn (TVV)
8 Macon Bradly Chavez (BIR)
9 Everett Brian Baker (EVE)
10 SGA Steve Sills (BIR)
11 Memphis Alex Walls (BIR)
12 Florida Chris Wallace (FLA)

U.S. ARMY IRONMAN OF THE GAME AWARD
(selected by media)
Week Opp. Player
1 Everett Bradly Chavez (BIR)
2 RGV Terrell Browden (BIR)
3 Louisville Terrell Browden (BIR)
4 SGA Chris McKinney (SGA)
5 Louisville Lance Taylor (LOU)
6 Florida Brittney Tellis (FLA)
7 Tn. Vally Johnny Anderson (TVV)
8 Macon Mareno Philyaw (BIR)
9 Everett Milton Myers (EVE)
10 SGA Allyn Sheffield (BIR)
11 Memphis Bradly Chavez (BIR)
12 Florida Ethenic Sands (FLA)

ADT DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME AWARD
(selected by media)
Week Opp. Player
1 Everett Jordan Brumbaugh (BIR)
2 RGV Bobby Keyes (BIR)
3 Louisville Dwayne Lefall (LOU)
4 SGA Jordan Brumbaugh (BIR)
5 LOU Michael Gholar (BIR)
6 Florida Cory Bailey (FLA)
7 Tn. Vally Bobby Keyes (BIR)
8 Macon Deon Deboise (BIR)
9 Everett John Fields (EVE)
10 SGA Deon Deboise (BIR)
11 Memphis Bradly Chavez (BIR)
12 Florida Levy Brown (FLA)



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