Sports stats

Command Week 9 Game Notes

May 3, 2011 - Arena Football League (AFL)
Kansas City Command News Release


QUICK FACTS:

New Orleans VooDoo (1-6)

Vs. Kansas City Command (2-5)

Date: Saturday, May 7, 2011

Kickoff: 7:00pm (Central Time)

Site: Sprint Center

Officials: Larry Smith (Referee), Robert Colisimo (Umpire), Kelly Saalfeld (Head Linesman), Dave Meslow (Line Judge), Folayan Kindred (Back Judge)

Radio: 810 WHB, Announcers Nick McCabe and Stan Weber

TV: None

All-Time Series Record: This is the first meeting between the VooDoo and Command.

Last Meeting: N/A

Coaches: Derek Stingley (1-6; First Season)

Danton Barto (1-5; First Season)

OVERVIEW:

After a brutal stretch to start the season, the Command now play four straight games in May against teams with current records below .500. First up is the 1-6 New Orleans VooDoo. However, anything can and does happen in the Arena Football League. The one VooDoo win this year was over Cleveland who was undefeated at the time.

THE SERIES:

This is the first meeting between the New Orleans VooDoo and Kansas City Command. The VooDoo and Kansas City Brigade also never met in the three-year history of the Brigade.

Last Time Out

The Command played their best first quarter of the season and built a 29-7 lead early in the rematch with Dallas last Friday night at Sprint Center. However, the Vigilantes stormed back from a 37-28 halftime deficit by scoring a touchdown on every second half possession and won the game 72-63.

Quarterback JJ Raterink finished 20-32 for 343 yards with eight touchowns and one interception. Receiver Aaron Hosack posted his best game of the year with eight catches for 167 yards and three TDs.

"We can't come out here and expect our offense to score 70 points to win the game," Command coach Danton Barto said. "If you score 63 points you're supposed to win Arena Football League games."

One bright spot defensively was linebacker Tyus Jackson tallying two safeties and a forced fumble. But missed assignments in the secondary allowed Dallas quarterback Dan Raudabaugh to rack up 377 yards passing while throwing just six incompletions.

The Command fell to 2-5 on the season with their second loss to the Vigilantes.

Up Next

The Command go back on the road to take on their second straight Amercian Conference South Division opponent, the Tampa Bay Storm. Tampa Bay currently stands at 2-5 and will be seeking their first home win of 2011 when KC visits next week. The game will kick off at 7:30pm in Tampa, 6:30pm central time.

Savoy on SportsCenter

The Command opened the third quarter against Chicago with a 4-play, 40-yard touchdown drive to take a two score lead. The drive was capped with one of the top plays of the year in the AFL when quarterback JJ Raterink threw to wide receiver Steven Savoy who made a brilliant one-handed catch as he crossed the goal line. The play was featured on ESPN SportsCenter's Top Plays Friday night.

Former Chiefs DB Signs with Command

Last week, Kansas City added defensive back Rashad Barksdale to the roster and he made an immediate impact. He started in the secondary, played nearly every snap on defense, and was credited with seven tackles including a couple of terrific stops on special teams in kick coverage.

Barksdale has been a member of five different NFL teams since being drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the 6th round in 2007. He was released by the Eagles at the end of preseason camp and landed with the Chiefs where he made 8 tackles for the '07 squad. He most recently was in camp with the Arizona Cardinals last fall but a foot injury ended his chances of making the squad. Barksdale played college football for the University at Albany in New York but only for his senior year after transitioning from the baseball program.

Saunders Injured

Wide receiver Tommy Saunders suffered an ankle fracture in practice Monday and was placed on injured reserve. He is expected to be out 6-8 weeks.

Two Starters Returning to the Lineup

"Jack" linebacker Bradly Chavez is expected back in the starting lineup after minor knee surgery last week forced him to miss the Dallas game.

Also back in the lineup will be defensive back Kenneth Fontenette who was placed on injured reserve last month due to a broken bone in his hand.

Inside the VooDoo

New Orleans is off to a 1-6 start in 2011. The VooDoo have struggled to score, ranking last in the AFL at 36.1 points per game. Turnovers have killed the VooDoo. They have thrown 15 interceptions as a team, lost nine fumbles and rank 17th out of 18 teams in turnover margin.

The Command could have an advantage at rushing and protecting the quarterback. New Orleans has tallied just five sacks this season while giving up 25 sacks, most in the AFL.

The lone New Orleans victory this year was perhaps the biggest upset of the season. The VooDoo were the only remaining winless team in the AFL at 0-4 when they faced 3-0 Cleveland, one of two remaining unbeaten teams at the time. And yet, it was New Orleans winning a low scoring contest 34-33.

Familiar Name on VooDoo Staff

Part of the struggles on offense for New Orleans this year can be attributed to lack of continuity on the offensive coaching staff. The VooDoo have had three different offensive coordinators, but the current one is a name Kansas City arena football fans will remember, former Brigade quarterback Raymond Philyaw. He spent two seasons of his 10-year AFL career in Kansas City, leading the Brigade to the playoffs as the full-time starter in 2007. It was arguably the top season of Philyaw's career as he had individual bests of 85 touchdowns and 4,375 passing yards.

Philyaw threw for over 26,000 yards and 500 touchdowns in his career and still holds the AFL record for touchdown-to-interception ratio of 8.6-to-1.

New Orleans Connection

Kansas City arena football has a significant link to New Orleans. The Brigade were officially an expansion team in 2006, their first year in Kansas City. But the team joined the AFL as a replacement for the VooDoo who had to cease operations in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The VooDoo resumed play in 2007, the year Kansas City was originally slated to join the AFL.

Tough Early Schedule

The Command have certainly faced excellent competition the first two months of the season. The combined record of the six opponents from the first seven games is 26-16. Dallas, who KC has played twice, San Jose, Arizona, and Chicago are a combined 21-7 through eight weeks of the season.

Momentum in May'

As difficult as the early schedule has been, the Command will not have that excuse in the month of May. Through seven weeks of the season, none of the four May opponents have a winning record. New Orleans is 1-6, Tampa Bay and Tulsa 2-5, and Spokane is 3-4 after an upset victory over previously unbeaten Arizona. So despite struggling to find wins against tough competition early in the year, the Command could get right back in the playoff race with a memorable May.



Arena Football League Stories from May 3, 2011


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 Kansas City Command Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central