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CIFL Firehawks Even Record at 3-3

by Randy Snow
May 10, 2010 - Continental Indoor Football League (CIFL)
Fort Wayne FireHawks


On a sunny Mother's day afternoon in Indiana, the Fort Wayne Firehawks of the Continental Indoor Football League defeated the Miami Valley Silverbacks 26-8. A crowd of 1,353 was on hand to see Fort Wayne's record improve to 3-3 while Miami Valley's record fell to 1-6.

The Firehawks got on the scoreboard first when quarterback Kota Colors connected with wide receiver Zach Rainey on a 25-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter. Fort Wayne took a 14-0 lead in the second quarter when linebacker/safety Tramaine Billie, who was playing on offense for the first time this season, ran for a three-yard touchdown.

After being shut out 49-0 by the Wisconsin Wolfpack on April 16, the Firehawks looked to be pitching a shutout of their own against the Silverbacks. The defense had a tremendous goal line stand in the final minute of the first half. They managed to keep Miami Valley out of the end zone on four straight plays after the Silverbacks had a first and goal at the two and a half yard line to preserve the 14-0 halftime advantage.

Fort Wayne increased its lead to 20-0 in the third quarter when Billie scored again, this time on a six-yard TD run. The extra point was no good. The shut out came to an end, however, when Silverbacks wide receiver Aric Evans caught a 16-yards touchdown pass late in the third quarter, finally putting Miami Valley on the scoreboard. The two-point conversion was good, making the score 20-8 at the end of three quarters of play.

The game turned into a sloppy affair after that with both teams turning the ball over twice on fumbles in the fourth quarter. A field goal attempt by the Silverbacks from their own end zone was blocked and the ball was recovered in the end zone for a touchdown by Tramaine Billie, giving him his third score of the game. The point after was no good, but Fort Wayne increased its lead to 26-8, which proved to be the final score of the game. Billie was named the Player of the Game.

Firehawks head coach Willie Davis was cautiously optimistic after the game. "The defense played great. Offensively, we've got to improve. If we're going to be a championship team of any nature, we've got to play a lot better and not turn the ball over in the red zone."

For Fort Wayne, quarterback Kota Colors completed 10 of 15 passes for 99 yards, one touchdown and one interception in the game. Zach Rainey led the Fort Wayne receiving corps with five receptions for 54 yards and a touchdown. Justin Wynn had four catches for 36 yards and Brandon Williams had 4 catches for 27 yards.

For Miami Valley, quarterback Kyenes Mincy completed 10 of 25 passes for 118 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions. Melvin Bryant caught 5 passes for 44 yards and Isaiah Cheatham caught four passes for 73 yards.

With four games left to go in the regular season for the Firehawks (three of them are on the road) the team will have to tighten their chinstraps and produce more points each week than the 26 they scored at home this week. Adding Tramaine Billie to the offensive side of the ball will certainly help.

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Randy Snow is a freelance football writer from Kalamazoo, Michigan. Since 2003, he has covered the Arena Football League, arenafootball2, United Indoor Football, the Continental Indoor Football League, the Indoor Football League, the All American Football League and the Canadian Football League. He is a member of the Arena Football League Writer's Association as well as the Professional Football Researchers Association. Randy runs a web site called www.theworldoffootball.com and is also the coordinator for Operation Gridiron Airlift, which collects footballs and sends them to U.S. troops serving overseas. He can be reached at randysnow22@yahoo.com.



Continental Indoor Football League Stories from May 10, 2010


The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer(s), and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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