Crazy Freedom Comeback falls short against Steelhawks
April 25, 2015 - Professional Indoor Football League (PIFL)
Trenton Freedom News Release
Trenton Freedom WR Colin Larmond, Jr. vs. the Lehigh Valley Steelhawks
(Trenton Freedom, Credit: Steve Hofmann)
TRENTON, N.J.-The Lehigh Valley Steelhawks were three points from ruining a 33-point lead after the first half. The Trenton Freedom fell short on Saturday night, losing to the Steelhawks 54-51.
Three of Steve Panasuk's first six passes of the game for the Freedom were intercepted. Each led to a Steelhawks touchdown, putting the Freedom in a 21-0 hole with less than 10 minutes elapsed from opening kickoff.
Panasuk also lost two fumbles in the endzone for Steelhawks touchdowns, and that gave the Hawks a 46-13 halftime lead.
Hunter Wanket replaced Panasuk late in the second quarter and the Freedom looked like a different team. He completed 18 of 29 passes for 260 yards and 5 touchdowns.
"Really, you don't have anything to lose," said Wanket. "That's the mentality, so go out and make plays. Colin (Larmond Jr.) had great plays, Spider (Roger Jackson) made great plays, it's just letting them go and make plays. I believe we really came together as a team in the second half."
Come together, the Freedom did on both sides of the ball. Their defense gave up just eight points and generated five sacks by the game's end-3.5 by defensive lineman Michael Atunrase.
He wanted to give the rivals a taste of their own medicine.
"We talked at the half, the only way to come back and win is do what they did to us right back to them," Atunrase said. "We needed to keep them under double digits. In the first half, we didn't do a good job of getting to the quarterback. [McSweeny] was sitting back there, not feeling pressure. We talked as a line saying we need to help our DBs out."
On offense, receivers Larmond, Jackson and Richie Martin made plays when Wanket needed them. Martin caught seven passes for 79 yards while Roger Jackson caught nine passes for 110 yards and two touchdowns.
Larmond in his first Freedom game had seven catches for 135 yards and three touchdowns.
"[My coaches and teammates] said to treat it like practice," Larmond said. "Stay calm, it's different when the lights come on, uniforms are on and we're going against somebody else. (Receivers) Coach (James) Sadler definitely helped me out, and I asked the veteran guys who've been there. They helped me stay comfortable and enjoy it."
The Freedom made key defensive stops late. On fourth and short, a pass defended by defensive back Dom Joseph gave the Freedom offense one last chance with under 0:30 left on the clock down just three. Wanket worked the team down the field before throwing an interception in the endzone.
Defensive lineman Gerrard Bryant, who played last season with the Freedom before joining the Steelhawks, defended two key passes on the drive and helped seal the Steelhawks win.
"That last drive, we just had to get it done," Bryant said. "We came out strong and were sluggish in the second half. They had a great plan after halftime and got the momentum going. We got lucky to get out of here with a win."
One difference maker for the Freedom each of the past few weeks had been penalties. After seven penalties in the first half of this game, they had none in the second half against their archrival.
Discipline and health are two things that linebacker Jerome Hayes admits the team will need to work on during the bye next week.
"We need to get healthy," Hayes said. "Health, resolve, and we need to get ready for Alabama next week. We can't allow anybody to get into our heads. There's no slouch with [them] either."
The Freedom will play three road games (Alabama Hammers, Erie Explosion, Richmond Raiders) after the bye before returning home on May 30 to face the Hammers at the Sun National Bank Center.
Images from this story
 Trenton Freedom WR Colin Larmond, Jr. vs. the Lehigh Valley Steelhawks (Steve Hofmann) |
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Professional Indoor Football League Stories from April 25, 2015
- Crazy Freedom Comeback falls short against Steelhawks - Trenton Freedom
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