NFL, MLB, NHL, NBA, CFL stats



Bossier/Shreveport Battle Wings game notes

May 4, 2005 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Bossier-Shreveport Battle Wings News Release


QUICK FACTS:
Bossier/Shreveport Battle Wings (1-4)
vs. Bakersfield Blitz (1-3)
Date: Saturday, May 7, 2005
Kickoff: 7:00 p.m. CST
Site: Century Tel Center (12,500)
National Anthem: TBA
Coin Toss: Head Referee
Officials: Referee - Fred Wiedower; Umpire - Chad Walker; Head Linesman - Karl Lane; Line Judge - Mark Bailey;
Back Judge - Dax Hill
Radio: KWKH 1130 AM (Charlie Chitwood)
KGEO 1230 AM in Bakersfield
TV: None
Series Record: First meeting between the two franchises.
Last Meeting: None
Streaks: Battle Wings W 1, Bakersfield L2
Coaches: Battle Wings - Keith Barefield (6-15, 2nd season)
Blitz - Rick Van Horne (12-8, 2nd season)

THE STAKES: In the first-ever meeting between the two clubs, a race for early-season playoff positioning is already underway. Six teams from the 10-team National Conference will make the af2 playoffs and following Monday night's victory over Rio Grande, the 'Wings are only one game behind Oklahoma City's Yard Dawgz for a spot in the top six. Bakersfield, however, is but half a game behind OKC with a 1-3 record, tied with Rio Grande Valley and San Diego. With such a tight early race, it's easy to see that the winner of this game has a leg up on the other as the season nears the halfway mark.

THE SERIES: The Battle Wings and Bakersfield have never faced each other, but if the Blitz' record east of the Rocky Mountains is any indication, Bossier fans will have something to look forward to. The Blitz is 0-2 when playing across the Continental Divide and this week's game is its first trip out of California this season. This will be the second consecutive game for the Battle Wings against a second-year organization - the Blitz finished 11-5 in its inaugural season before losing in the first round of the playoffs, 38-36, to eventual ArenaCup finalist Peoria.

THE IFs:
If Bossier/Shreveport defeats Bakersfield, it would …
· give the Battle Wings back-to-back victories for the first time since June of last year;
· stop a six-game home losing streak dating to June 18, 2005 (BOS 66, RGV 59 - OT);
· make the 'Wings 2-1 this season against West Division teams;
· keep the 'Wings within one game or less of sixth place in the National Conference playoff rankings with more than half the season to go.

BOSSIER/SHREVEPORT (1-4) (Won 1)
Date Opponent Result Score
4/03 MEMPHIS* L 63-24
4/09 TULSA L 61-51
4/16 @ Quad City* L 36-29
4/23 AMARILLO* L 86-66
5/02 @ Rio Grande Val. W 77-69
5/07 BAKERSFIELD 7:00
5/14 FLORIDA 7:00
5/21 @ Oklahoma City* 7:30
6/04 @ Albany 6:30
6/11 @ Macon 6:30
6/18 OKLAHOMA CITY* 7:00
6/25 @ Amarillo* 7:00
7/09 RIO GRANDE VAL. 7:00
7/15 @ Bakersfield 9:00
7/23 QUAD CITY* 7:00
7/30 @ Memphis* 7:00

Bakersfield Blitz (1-3)(Lost 2)
Date Opponent Result Score
4/2 CENTRAL VALLEY L 33-20
4/15 SAN DIEGO W 57-30
4/22 RIO GRANDE VAL. L 40-32
4/30 @ Central Valley L 40-21
5/7 @ Bossier/SHV 7:00
5/13 TULSA 9:00
5/20 SAN DIEGO 9:00
5/28 @ Tulsa 7:00
6/4 @ San Diego 9:00
6/10 ARKANSAS 9:00
6/18 @ Amarillo 7:00
6/24 CENTRAL VALLEY 9:00
7/9 @ Central Valley 9:30
7/15 BOSSIER/SHV 9:00
7/23 @ San Diego 9:00
7/30 @ Rio Grande Val. 7:30
Date Opponent Result Score


HEAD COACHES: The 2005 season didn't start the way Battle Wings' head coach Keith Barefield envisioned, but some personnel changes prior to the Rio Grande Valley game paid immediate dividends. Barefield straightened out the offense by making a huge trade, acquiring all-af2 quarterback Tim Hicks from W-B/S. That move paid off with the 'Wings scoring their highest point totals of the year in back-to-back games. Defensively, Barefield went in-house to replace Richard Britt. Mike Green was promoted from his spot as secondary/receivers coach and made against Rio Grande Valley enough adjustments to earn a 77-69 victory........Rick Van Horne is in his fourth season in Bakersfield, working for the second franchise operating under the Blitz name. Bakersfield's original entry in the af2 was moved to Central Valley by the parent LA Avengers (AFL) after the 2003 season. Awarded an expansion team in 2004, Van Horne moved up from the ranks of the original Blitz assistant coaches to head coach and guided the new Bakersfield club to an 11-5 record in his first year at the helm. Van Horne, a highly successful high school coach in Central California, also serves as the Blitz offensive coordinator...

LAST SERIES MEETING: This is the first meeting ever between the two franchises.

SERIES NOTABLES: This is the first-ever meeting between Bossier and Bakersfield, but the two B's will be familiar with one another by the end of the season. The Battle Wings make their first-ever West Coast swing when they face the Blitz in Bakersfield on July 15.

FAMILIAR FACES: The Bakersfield Blitz are strong on West Coast players, but Louisiana football fans will remember two members of the visiting squad quite well. OL/DL Shawn King (UL-M) and OL/DL Jerome King (LaTech) are both graduates of West Monroe HS. Shawn, the elder of the two by five years, played five years in the NFL with Carolina and Indianapolis. The two played together for the first time last season with the Tampa Bay Storm of the AFL...LaTech fans may also remember WR/LB Eric Mahanke, who played at Fresno State. His quarterback there was David Carr, now of the Houston Texans...Blitz kicker Dan Burnett likely saw 'Wings lineman Kareem Marshall across the field in college when his Georgia Tech 'Jackets played Marshall's Georgia Bulldogs...DS Kharee Shorter will know a little something about Bossier QB Tim Hicks since the two practiced together last season at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Shorter did not, however, make a game-day roster with the Pioneers...

TOP PERFORMERS:
BATTLE WINGS
Player Rank Category Stat
Bo Smith T2T72T32T1T12 ScoringReceptionsRec. YardsRec. TD'sKO Return YdsKO ReturnsKO Return TDAll-Purpose/Gm 102 pts.3150315451192190.8 yds
Joe WesleyQuincy MylesKendal ShelloBrian HazelwoodTim Hicks T4T1T326T4T14T41T3 SacksFumbles Rec.SacksKick ScoringFG Pct.FG'sFG AttemptsPAT's MadeYards per PlayYards per RushRushing TD's 2.523.541 pts.36.4411277.66.6/carry5
BLITZ
Player Rank Category Stat



TALE OF THE TAPE: Here’s how BOSSIER and BAKERSFIELD stack up so far in 2005:
Statistical 'WINGS BLITZ
Category Rank Stat Rank Stat
Scoring Offense 6 49.4 ppg 20 32.5 ppg
Scoring Defense 19 63.0 ppg 4 35.8 ppg
Total Offense 17 223.4 ypg 20 193.8 ypg
Total Defense 20 329.6 ypg 3 202.8 ypg
Pass Offense 16 206.0 ypg 20 150.5 ypg
Pass Defense 20 307.4 ypg 1 171.5 ypg
Rushing Offense 10 17.4 ypg 2 43.2 ypg
Rushing Defense T13 22.2 ypg 16 31.2 ypg
Scoring (TD's) 6 34 TD's 20 18 TD's
Scoring (Kicking) 2 39 pts. 19 18 pts.
Pass Rating 16 93.3 19 80.7
Pass Def. Rating T19 124.2 3 83.0
Kickoff Returns T16 16.2 ypr 15 17.6 ypr
MFG Returns 7 43 yards T16 0 yards
Turnover Margin 20 -9 T14 -3
Field Goals T6 4 T12 2
PAT Kicking 4 .844 15 .706
Sacks By T8 7 T16 3
Sacks Against T19 11 T19 11
First Downs 12 70 T19 54
Opp. First Downs 20 108 T6 64
Penalties 15 277 yards 9 246 yards
Opp. Penalties 14 211 yards 18 182 yards

BATTLE WINGS INJURY REPORT:
Pos. Name Injury Status

OL/DL Phillips Left Knee LT-IR



BAREFIELD BITES:

Battle Wings head coach Keith Barefield on 77-69 win at Rio Grande Valley: "A win is a win, and we sure needed to get one. I thought the guys played with more intensity for the entire game than they have all season. Our offense was clicking pretty good again with Tim Hicks and we finally got some stops out of our defense. It was a draining game, but it was a sweet victory."
Barefield on OS Bo Smith: "We've certainly seen Bo put up those kind of numbers before, but what we hadn't seen before Monday night was the maturity level he displayed out there. He never was rattled, and he didn't get caught up in trying to rattle the other team. That was a very professional Bo Smith out there and it has to be scary for other teams to think he can keep getting better."
Barefield talks about the 2005 season: "Needless to say we had no expectations of starting 0-4, but we're right back in the thick of things after that win. We've made some changes on the field and no the sideline that were for the betterment of the team and we've gotten the results we expected. Now it looks like we can go about refining what we have here to make this team even better."
Barefield on the Bakersfield Blitz: "They've had some trouble putting up a lot of points, but then they don't give up many points either. We're going to have continue to click on offense and our defense is going to have to get better than it was Monday. Thankfully, we're coming off a win and that's always easier to build from, even in a short week of preparation."

A BO-DACIOUS THREAT WITH THE FOOTBALL: OS Bo Smith, aka "The BOssier Bullet," has already taken over the top spot in Bossier history for career touchdown receptions with 51. Monday against Rio Grande Valley, he had six KO returns, giving him 53 for his career and by-passing Kevin Stevenson (50) for the second-most KO returns in 'Wings' history. His 116 receiving yards pushed his career totals across the 2,000-yard mark (2,021). Bo's 162 kick return yards were the most he's piled up in a game in his three-year career and the 278 all-purpose yards racked up against the Dorados just missed his career high (283 against RGV last year at CTC). Monday's game was also his second-consecutive 200+ all-purpose yards game and the fifth of his career. Some more milestones are within reach tonight - Bo needs:
· 46 all-purpose yards to cross the 1,000-yard mark for the season.
· 272 receiving yards to take over the #1 spot from Stevenson. Bo cracked the 2,000 yard mark Monday night with 116 receiving yards and now has 2,021 receiving steps in his career.
· 20 more receptions to pass Val Morris for the #2 spot all-time in Battle Wings history. Bo has 131 career receptions and is only 44 catches from passing Stevenson for the top spot all-time.
· 199 all-purpose yards to take over 2nd place from Stevenson in Battle Wings history. Smith enters Saturday's game with 3,385 all-purpose steps and is on pace to catch Bossier's all-time leader, Shadrick McAfee (4,542 yards) in the final month of the 2005 regular season.

DROPBACK: The Battle Wings chalked up their first "W" of the year with a 77-69 victory at Rio Grande Valley. Tim Hicks threw eight TD passes - five to Bo Smith - and ran for another pair of his own. New defensive coordinator Mike Green tweaked his defense unit just enough to make a couple of key stops and force a +1 in the turnover department. New DS Gana Joseph led the way with 11.5 tackles on the night - a season high for a Battle Wing this year and only one-half stop behind the team single-game record of 12. Kendal Shello was a monster on the defensive line, swatting away two passes while hurrying Dorado QB Josh Kellett three times. Shello added a pair of sacks and another tackle behind the line of scrimmage for good measure.

FORWARD MOTION: Bossier will face its toughest test of the young season when the defending ArenaCup champion Florida Firecats come to the Century Tel Center. The 'Cats (5-0 through 5/2) have picked up in 2005 right where they left off last season and remain the #1 ranked team in the league.

PLAYERS/MATCHUPS TO WATCH: Bo Smith vs. the Blitz defensive secondary - Bakersfield's defenders have allowed only 171.5 yards passing per game and a total of just 12 TD's. Smith already has 15 TD receptions for the year and averages over 100 yards receiving per game....Tim Hicks vs. Bakersfield defense - In two games, the 'Wings' Hicks-led offense has posted 143 points (71.5 per game). Bakersfield's "D" has allowed half that (35.8 ppg) and gives up only 202 yards per game, second-best so far in the af2...

SOMETHING HAS TO GIVE: Two maligned units will square off Saturday night - the Bossier defense and Bakersfield's offensive unit. The Battle Wings are last in the league defensively, allowing a league-high 329 yards per game. Bakersfield's offensive unit has racked up just 193.8 yards total offense per game - also last in the league. Clearly, one of the two is going to get better against the other...

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAMES:
Week Opp. Player
12345 MEMTULQCAMARGV Brian Jones, MEMDonovan Morgan, TULBo Smith, BOSJulian Reese, AMADwight Counter, RGV

ADT DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAMES:
Week Opp. Player
12345 MEMTULQCAMARGV Joe Wesley, BOSKendal Shello, BOSMatt Forbes, QCCharles DavisKendal Shello, BOS

U.S. ARMY IRONMAN AWARDS
Week Opp. Player
12345 MEMTULQCAMARGV Terrence Quattlebaum, MEMAleric Clark, TULJack Walter, Jr., QCD.J. Humphries, AMABo Smith, BOS

• Discuss this story on the arenafootball2 message board...

arenafootball2 Stories from May 4, 2005


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

Other Recent Bossier-Shreveport Battle Wings Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central