Cobras Game Notes
February 26, 2003 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Carolina Cobras News Release
QUICK FACTS:
Carolina Cobras (0-4) vs. Grand Rapids Rampage (3-1)
Date: February 28, 2003
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m.
Site: Van Andel Arena (10,594)
Officials: Perry Havener (Referee), Roy Ellison (Umpire), Derrick Bowers (Head Linesman), David Meslow (Line Judge), Greg Steed (Back Judge)
Series Record: Grand Rapids leads all-time 2-1
Coaches: Carolina: Mike Hold (1st Season, 0-4) GR: Michael Trigg (10th Season, 68-65)
THE SERIES: Grand Rapids leads all-time 2-1
@ Grand Rapids 41, Carolina 38 â May 4, 2001
Grand Rapids 64, @ Carolina 45 â May 17, 2002
Carolina 72, @ Grand Rapids 64 âJuly 28, 2002 (playoffs)
COBRAS LAST WEEK: Former Cobras quarteback Connell Maynor stepped in for an injured Jay Gruden and led the Orlando Predators to a 70-42 victory over Carolina. Gruden went down with a broken ankle on the first play of the second half, with Orlando clinging to a 34-28 lead. On the same drive that he replaced Gruden, Maynor threw his first touchdown pass, a 22-yard completion to Rashad Floyd. The score sparked a 22-0 third quarter. Robert Hall completed 24-of-38 passes for 242 yards and 5 touchdowns for the Cobras. Bernard Holmes had 11 receptions for 92 yards and one touchdown, along with nine kickoff returns for 181 yards. Van Johnson caught five passes for 82 yards and two touchdowns. RAMPAGE LAST WEEK: After two weeks of squeaking by opponents with last second field goals, Sunday's game turned out to be a reversal for Grand Rapids as the Tampa Bay Storm handed the Rampage their first loss, 58-56, with a 23-yard game-winning field goal from Ian Howfield. Grand Rapids fought back from a 14-point deficit to take a one-point lead with 49 seconds remaining in the game. The Storm drove the ball to the Rampage 8-yard line and won the game on Howfield's field goal. Clint Dolezel threw for 282 yards and seven touchdowns on 24-of-35 passing. Terrill Shaw shared game MVP honors after catching nine passes for 103 yards and four touchdowns.
CAROLINA COBRAS (0-4)
HEAD COACHES: After two seasons as head coach of the af2 Augusta Stallions, Mike Hold is making his AFL coaching debut with the Cobras in 2003. He led the Stallions to a combined 22-10 record in his two years, including a 13-3 mark and playoff appearance in 2002. Prior to joining the coaching ranks, Hold spent 12 seasons as an AFL quarterback. He saw action for eight teams during his tenure and was the last remaining active player from the league's first season when he retired in 2000. Hold had training camp stints with the Denver Broncos (1986) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1987, 88). He appeared in three games for Tampa Bay during the NFL strike in 1987. A 1985 graduate of the University of South Carolina, Hold led the Gamecocks to the school's only 10-win season in 1984 and earned MVP honors of the Gator Bowl. Despite playing only two seasons, he ranks seventh on the school's all-time passing yards list with 2,981 yards.
Michael Trigg enters his sixth season with the Grand Rapids Rampage, boasting a history of achievement both on the sidelines and on the field. Last season, Trigg led the Rampage to an 8-6 regular season mark and a fourth consecutive playoff berth. He also became the fifth Arena Football League coach to reach the 60-win plateau. He has spent 15 years in the AFL, including two seasons as a quarterback with the Detroit Drive, where he won back-to-back AFL championships. Trigg is in his tenth season as a head coach.
LAST YEAR'S COBRAS-RAMPAGE MEETINGS:
Grand Rapids 64, Carolina 45 (5/17/02 at Carolina) Steve Smith caught a career-high five touchdowns and Clint Dolezel threw for six scores to lead the Grand Rapids Rampage past the Carolina Cobras, 64-45. Smith caught 11 passes for 134 yards. He hauled in three touchdown passes in a 27-point third quarter and added two more in the fourth. His five touchdowns matched a franchise record. Dolezel completed 21-of-34 passes for 252 yards. Aaron Bailey had nine catches for 153 yards and two touchdowns for the Cobras. Connell Maynor completed 14 passes for 184 yards and three scores.
Carolina 72, Grand Rapids 64 (7/28/02 at Grand Rapids)
Aaron Bailey caught 10 passes for 172 yards and tied an AFL playoff record with six touchdown receptions to lead the Cobras to their first playoff win in franchise history. John Fitzgerald completed 25-of-34 passes for 278 yards, throwing for eight touchdowns with no interceptions. Cory Fleming added 10 receptions for 75 yards and two scores. 11th seeded Carolina jumped out to a 14-0 lead over the 6th-seeded Rampage and extended their lead to 31-14 at halftime. The teams traded scores throughout the second half, as the only second half drive that did not have a touchdown was the Cobras' final drive as time expired. Grand Rapids quarterback Clint Dolezel completed 30-of-45 passes for 349 yards and eight touchdowns in the Rampage loss.
FAMILIAR FACES: Grand Rapids head coach Michael Trigg and Cobras defensive coordinator Flint Fleming were teammates on the Detroit Drive's 1990 AFL Championship team...Rampage QB Clint Dolezel played with Cobras OS Ben Bronson, WR/LB Terence Davis, QB Robert Hall, WR/DB Bernard Holmes and head coach Mike Hold (then a QB) with the Houston ThunderBears in 1998 and 1999.
INJURY UPDATES: DS Buddy Crutchfield is probable with a knee injury...WR/LB Gabe Amey is questionable with a knee injury.
COBRAS MILESTONES:
FB/LB Jason Bratton needs:
⢠3.0 tackles to reach 50
OS Ben Bronson needs:
⢠26 receiving yards to reach 3,500
⢠2 TD receptions to reach 50
K Matt George needs:
⢠2 field goals made to reach 50
⢠18 points to reach 400
WR/LB Van Johnson needs:
⢠14 receptions to reach 250
⢠1 receiving touchdown to reach 50
WR/LB Ty Law needs:
⢠64 receiving yards to reach 2,500
⢠9.0 tackles to reach 100
DS Derek Stingley needs:
⢠2.0 tackles to reach 350
COBRAS NEXT WEEK: The Cobras return home to face the Las Vegas Gladiators on Sunday, March 9 at noon.
SNAKE BITES: Holmes Steps Up Again: WR/DB Bernard Holmes has made a huge impact for the Cobras the last two weeks. After being inactive in week one and catching just one pass for three yards in week two, Holmes caught seven passes for 110 yards and three touchdowns in week three. While filling in at OS for the injured Ben Bronson, Holmes also returned eight kickoffs for 162 yards, including a 56-yard touchdown. He followed that up in week four with 11 catches for 92 yards and one touchdown and nine kickoff returns for 181 yards. Holmes' 272 all-purpose yards in week three and 283 all-purpose yards in week four rank as the fourth and third (respectively) best single-game totals in Cobras history. In addition, Holmes reached 350 career receptions and 4,500 career receiving yards last week.
Garman's Career Night: WR/DB Jamaal Garman played one of the best games of his career last week against Orlando. While catching only three passes for 19 yards, two of his receptions were for touchdowns, giving him a career high and getting him halfway to his total of four touchdowns from last year. Garman also posted a career high with 6.0 tackles, doubling his previous high of 3.0.
Waking Up The Offense: After posting point totals of 20 and 16 in the season's first two weeks, it appeared early that week three would be more of the same for the Cobras offense. The Cobras trailed 40-21 with 14:54 remaining in the game, before scoring 23 points in the fourth quarter, including 17 points in a span of 5:24. Carolina finished with 44 points in the game, topping their season total of 36 in the first two games. They followed that up with a 42-point outing against Orlando in week four.
Changing Numbers: With some of the roster moves that the Cobras have made in the past few weeks, several players have chosen to change their jersey numbers to numbers that were previously unavailable. K Matt George has made the switch from 9 to 12, allowing him to reclaim his nickname "K-12." QB Glen Gauntt took over George's former number 9, switching from 13. Also, WR/LB Ty Law has changed from 81 to 10.
More Roster Moves: The Cobras made several roster moves this week. The team signed FB/LB Michael Blair and OL/DL Zac Zedalis, signed OL/DL Thaddeus Bullard from the practice squad, released FB/LB Deryl Lane, activated and released QB Chad DeGrenier from injured reserve and placed OL/DL Jim Stiebel and DS Robert Williams on injured reserve.
Kicking Accuracy: At a perfect 12-of-12, Matt George is one of just two kickers in the AFL that has not missed an extra point through four weeks of the season. Georgia's Steve McLaughlin is the other.
Cobras Among League Leaders: WR/DB Bernard Holmes is currently ranked in the league's Top 10 in every kickoff return category. He is tied for sixth in returns (17), tenth in return yardage (343) and tied for fourth in return touchdowns (1). In addition, K Matt George leads all AFL kickers in PAT percentage and field goal attempts.
The AFL's Version Of Slash: Cobras QB Robert Hall has seen action as both a quarterback and offensive specialist in the AFL. He was the first player in league history to have 1,000 passing yards and 1,000 receiving yards in his career. Entering the season, Hall was ranked eighth on the AFL's all-time career completion percentage list, having completed 62.6 percent of his career pass attempts.
From Teammate to Coach: OS Ben Bronson, WR/LB Terence Davis, QB Robert Hall and WR/DB Bernard Holmes were teammates of Cobras head coach Mike Hold with the Houston ThunderBears.
It's A Small World: Defensive coordinator Flint Fleming was a teammate of OL/DL Jim Stiebel with the Buffalo Destroyers in 2000. Fleming played with WR/DB Bernard Holmes, WR/DB Tramain Jones and WR/DB Nick Ward as a member of the Florida Bobcats in 2001.
Holmes Among The All-Time Best: Entering the 2003 season, WR/DB Bernard Holmes ranked among the AFL's all-time Top 25 in several receiving categories. Holmes was tied for 22nd in receptions (338), ranked 23rd in receiving touchdowns (78) and ranked 24th in receiving yards (4204).
Coming With The Coach: QB Glen Gauntt, WR/LB Chris Johnson, OL/DL Blaine Mensch, FB/LB Glen Mitts and defensive backs coach Maurice Blanding came to Carolina with head coach Mike Hold from the af2 Augusta Stallions.
Moving On Up: The Cobras roster features six players making their AFL debut after playing in af2 last season. Not only did Gauntt, Johnson, Mensch and Mitts make the move with Mike Hold, but WR/LB Gabe Amey (Macon) and OL/DL Tim McGill (Quad City) are also making the jump.
Smile For The Cameras: In addition to his time on the AFL field, head coach Mike Hold has also spent time playing football on the silver screen. He has played roles in several football-themed movies, most notably "The Waterboy" starring Adam Sandler.
COBRAS PLAYERS TO WATCH:
WR/LB Van Johnson: Johnson made quite an impression in his Cobras debut last week, catching five passes for 82 yards and two touchdowns. He added 2.5 tackles on the defensive side of the ball, after signing with Carolina on February 19.
WR/DB Jamaal Garman: Garman had a career night last week against Orlando. He caught just three passes for 19 yards, but two of those receptions were for touchdowns, giving him a career high. His two touchdowns in the game put him halfway to his season total of four from last year. Garman also tallied a career-high 6.0 tackles on the night, doubling his previous career-high of 3.0.
WR/DB Bernard Holmes: In his last two games, Holmes has 18 receptions for 202 yards and four touchdowns. He also has 17 kickoff returns for 343 yards, including a 56-yard touchdown against Detroit, the first kickoff return for a touchdown by a Cobras player since Carl Bond did it on April 26, 2002 in week two of the 2002 season. His 272 all-purpose yards in week three and 283 all-purpose yards in week four rank as the fourth and third (respectively) highest single-game totals in Cobras history.
RECENT ROSTER MOVES:
February 26: Signed Michael Blair and Zac Zedalis, signed Thaddeus Bullard from the practice squad, placed Robert Williams on injured reserve.
February 25: Released Deryl Lane, activated and released Chad DeGrenier from injured reserve, placed Jim Stiebel on injured reserve.
February 20: Signed Chris Johnson from practice squad.
February 19: Signed Van Johnson and Ben Crosland, signed Thaddeus Bullard to the practice squad, released Michael Harrison, activated and waived Tim Dumas from injured reserve, placed Glen Mitts and Rj Anderson on injured reserve.
February 13: Signed Stewart Patridge and Decorye Hampton to the practice squad.
February 12: Signed Jason Bratton, signed Jamaal Garman and Glen Gauntt from the practice squad, placed Ethan Banning on injured reserve, signed Chris Johnson to the practice squad, released Stewart Patridge, waived Decorye Hampton and waived Dunstan Anderson from the practice squad.
February 8: Signed Dunstan Anderson to practice squad.
February 6: Signed Desmond Byrd and Derek Stingley, signed Glen Gauntt to the practice squad, placed Tim Dumas on injured reserve, waived Richard Holland and reinstated Chad DeGrenier to injured reserve.
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