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AFL I Arena Football League (1987-2008)

'Cudas Hope Lightning Strikes Twice

June 7, 2002 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I) News Release


PENSACOLA, Fla. - Two weeks after ending the six-game winning streak of the National Conference Southern Division leader, the Pensacola Barracudas have the American Conference Southern Division leader and its five-game winning streak in their sights. The Barracudas (3-5) host the Tallahassee Thunder (6-2), one of af2's hottest teams, Saturday at the Pensacola Civic Center. In Week 9, Tennessee Valley came to Pensacola with a spotless 6-0 record, but left with a 51-38 loss. Now Tallahassee tries to avoid the upset against a team that's especially dangerous at home.

Tallahassee is the latest in a long line of powerhouses to line up against Pensacola, which owns the league's hardest schedule to date. The Barracudas' eight opponents are a combined 44-23, with their road foes sporting a 26-5 combined mark. The tough tests have produced an 0-4 road record, including last week's 40-39 revenge loss at Tennessee Valley. But the Civic Center has been kind to the Barracudas, who are 3-1 overall at home, including three straight wins in their arena.

The Thunder kicked off the season with a 46-41 victory over Pensacola in Tallahassee before losing back-to-back games. But its current five-game surge has vaulted the Thunder to a two-game lead over Jacksonville and Florida (both 4-4) in the American South. Tallahassee comes into this Week 11 contest off of consecutive victories over 0-9 Mobile and lays claim to the best line in the league . by the numbers. The Thunder has a league-leading 27 sacks on defense while giving up just six on offense (tied for second behind Birmingham's five allowed). In the last five games, Tallahassee has recorded at least three sacks, led by TYRONN JOHNSON and his 10.5 sacks on the year. The quarterback pressure has helped Tallahassee build the league's fifth-best pass defense (185.6 yards per game).

Pensacola, led by WILL PETTIS (five interceptions and an af2-high 27 passes defended), boasts the No. 4 pass defense, just a shade better than the Thunder with 185.4 yards per game allowed. (Pettis, by the way, is a new father - THALIA PETTIS was born Tuesday). After surrendering a team record-high 80 points at Macon on May 17, the Barracudas have buckled down and given up just 38 and 40 points, respectively, in back-to-back games with Tennessee Valley. Offensively, QB CHARLIE PETERSON has taken the passing game to a new level after the retirement of BOBBY CLAYTON. In four starts, Peterson has 1,070 passing yards and 23 TDs with just five interceptions. His 267.5 yards per game rank second in the league. JERRIAN JAMES (356 yards, seven TDs), JACK WALKER (343 yards, 11 TDs) and ROBERT STROMAS (215 yards, five TDs) all have at least 20 catches in Pensacola's balanced attack.

For Tallahassee, CHRIS PERKINS replaced CHRIS WINDSOR at QB in Week 6 and paid immediate dividends, totaling 1,167 passing yards and 26 TDs against seven INTs. CAINON LAMB is the primary target with a team-high 664 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns, including 124 yards and five scores in an MVP performance last week. JAMES DICKERSON (1,277 all-purpose yards, 13 total TDs) is dangerous as both a receiver and returner while MESIAH PORTER is a potent two-way threat. The WR/LB has 255 yards and six TDs receiving plus 88 yards and seven scores rushing. He also leads the team with 29.5 tackles and two fumble recoveries, returning one for a touchdown.

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Norfolk and Charleston meet for the first time Saturday at the North Charleston Coliseum with both teams looking to improve on 3-5 records. The Nighthawks and Swamp Foxes have been going in different directions of late, with Norfolk winning its last two contests while Charleston has dropped two straight. The Swamp Foxes score 46.9 points a game compared to the Nighthawks' 34.4. However, Norfolk produced its most impressive offensive output of the season in last weekend's 63-36 win over Greensboro. On defense, Norfolk holds a slight edge by holding opponents to 49.5 points compared to Charleston's 51.8 points allowed. Charleston's MICHAEL BROWN is tied for third in the league with six interceptions and will line up opposite Norfolk's receiving tandem of GARY BRIGGS and TRAVIS BURNS. Burns and Griggs have combined for 957 yards and 22 touchdowns. DESMOND WASHINGTON leads the Nighthawks' secondary with 23 passes defended. Charleston's offense is led by MIKE BATH, who make his third start of the season for the Swamp Foxes. Bath has thrown for 738 yards and 13 scores in limited action this season. DWAYNE WILMOT leads Charleston receivers with 49 catches for 607 yards and 13 touchdowns. These teams meet again in two weeks at the Norfolk Scope Arena.

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Richmond (7-1) hosts Rochester (5-4) Saturday looking to rebound from last weekend's 33-30 loss to Albany. The Conquest shut out the Speed 20-0 in the fourth quarter to rally from a 30-13 deficit. Rochester had a three-game win streak snapped by Wilkes-Barre/Scranton last week and will look to get its playoff campaign back on track. Richmond possesses the league's second-ranked offense (57.4 ppg) and the first-ranked defense (27.5 ppg), and will try to exploit a Brigade defensive unit that is yielding 43.4 points. Both teams are strong up front, and are tied for fourth in af2 by allowing just seven sacks all season. Two of the league's top quarterbacks go head-to-head as MATT D'ORAZIO and BOB BEES will sling it out. D'Orazio averages 222.1 passing yards and game and adds 18.3 on the ground. Bees throws for 220.4 yards a game with 38 touchdowns. VONKEITH SPENCER headlines the Rochester defense with six interceptions and 20 passes defended. RICHARD HOLLAND leads Richmond's defense with 24 passes defended. RODNEY SLEDGE has forced four fumbles for the Speed.

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Despite having almost identical offensive outputs (34.6 ppg to 34.5 ppg), Albany's and New Haven's seasons have taken much different paths. When the two teams meet at Albany's Pepsi Arena Saturday, the Conquest will look to improve to 8-1 and add to its current four-game winning streak. The Ninjas hope to move to 4-5 and climb into playoff contention. The difference has been defense, with Albany holding opponents to a paltry 30.2 points a contest compared to New Haven's 42.4. ALEX HOUSTON, BRANDON TINSON and MATT VITTENGL lead the Conquest defensive unit. Houston has eight sacks and three forced fumbles, Tinson leads the team with 43 tackles and Vittengl has recorded three fumbles. COREY HILL is third in the league with 72 receptions and 797 yards to lead Albany's offense. DAMON RICHARDSON leads the Ninjas' defense with five interceptions. JARROD ROUANZOIN will line up under center for New Haven. Rouanzoin has thrown for 825 yards and 17 touchdowns on the season. The Northeast Division rivals meet again next weekend in New Haven.

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Jacksonville travels to Augusta hoping to keep its recent run on track. The Tomcats have won four of their last six games, but will be up against the 7-1 Stallions, who suffered their only loss by a 60-57 score to 7-2 Macon last week. Augusta's fifth-ranked scoring offense (53.8 ppg) matches up favorably against a Jacksonville defense that allows 42.2 points a game. The Tomcats' offense has averaged 55.7 points in its last three contests and hopes to keep that pace going against the Stallions' defense. GLEN GAUNTT has thrown for 2,085 yards and a league-high 47 touchdowns this season. He has hooked up with TIM DUMAS 60 times for 729 yards and 16 scores. CHRIS JOHNSON has been just as lethal on offense for Augusta, catching at least one touchdown in every game this season for 17 total. LAVAR RAINEY heads the Stallions' defense with six interceptions and three forced fumbles. Jacksonville QB RASHARD CASEY (751 passing yards, 15 TDs overall) came on for the injured MARCUS OUTZEN in last weekend's 64-58 win over Columbus and will start against Augusta. LAWRENCE PULLEN and JAMES ADDERLY have combined for 16 touchdown receptions to lead the Tomcats' air attack.

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The Cape Fear Wildcats (6-2) take their four-game winning streak to Greensboro (2-7) for the first of two regular-season meetings with the Prowlers. Last week, the Wildcats completed a season sweep of Roanoke and, combined with Richmond's loss to Albany, moved just one game back of the Speed in the Atlantic Division. Cape Fear's specialty all season has been defense. The Wildcats rank No. 2 in af2 in that category, allowing a mere 28.6 points per contest. They also possess af2's best pass rusher in E.J. BURT. The 6-foot-3, 260-pound lineman has 14.5 sacks on the year, which, just halfway through the schedule, already puts him in a tie for third on the all-time list for most sacks in a season. Like any good team, however, the Wildcats are a balanced squad, and on the other side of the ball QB MIKE GLUSKI commands an offense that puts up more than 40 points per game. The Prowlers enter this game on a five-game skid and risk falling out of playoff contention with another loss. Looking on the bright side, the Prowlers' offense has been a shade better than Cape Fear's this season, averaging 48 points per game. Add in the return of QB CHRIS WEIBEL from injury, and the Prowlers sit poised to challenge Cape Fear and potentially shake things up in the Atlantic Division.

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The Columbus Wardogs and Macon Knights conclude their season series Saturday in Macon. Columbus comes in at 2-6 and the Knights sit at 7-2, but records are thrown out the window when these two intrastate rivals meet. The Knights took the first game 63-46 on May 25, but Columbus has found the magic since. Last week, they fell to Jacksonville 64-58, but it was the best offensive effort ever from the Wardogs. In fact, the 'Dogs broke six team offensive records in that game, including highest point total and most offensive yards (364). QB BILLY LUCKIE tossed eight touchdowns in the contest and will look to do more of the same against the Knights. Receivers PHIL TAYLOR and CLIFTON ROBINSON both will try to surpass the 100-yard mark for the third straight week. The Knights also possess a dangerous offense, averaging 54.1 points per game (fourth in af2). Earlier this week, the Knights bolstered their offense, acquiring WR/DB NORMAN MASON from the Cape Fear Wildcats at the trade deadline. Mason led the Wildcats with 41 receptions for 441 yards. Toss Mason in the mix with WR/LB GABE AMEY, OS JACQUES RUMPH and WR/LB MARTEZ WESLEY, and QB JOHN RAYBORN (the reigning af2 Offensive Player of the Week) has the luxury of throwing to one of the best receiving corps in the league.

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Tennessee Valley travels to Quad City Saturday for a rematch of ArenaCup 2000. In that game, the Steamwheelers came out on top 68-59, and never have lost to the Vipers, going 4-0 overall. However, this week Tennessee Valley (7-1) matches up against a Steamwheeler team (5-3) that uncharacteristically has lost three of its last four games. The contest pits the Vipers' 14th-ranked offense (47.9 ppg) against Quad City's 28th-ranked defense (49.4) and the Steamwheelers' eighth-ranked offense (51.4) against Tennessee Valley's sixth-ranked defense (36.1). KELLY SNELL and KENNY BAILEY lead the talented Vipers' secondary. Bailey has recorded eight picks on the year while Bailey has added six. Quad City's IRA GOOCH leads the league in scoring with 140 points. The injured TONY ZIMMERMAN will be missing at quarterback for the Steamwheelers, but backup DAN McMULLEN threw for 283 yards and four scores in last week's loss to Peoria. WES COUNTS has been steady and reliable, if not flashy, for Tennessee Valley, passing for 1,575 yards and 17 touchdowns. REGGIE WORTHY has been a scoring machine for the Vipers, recording nine TDs on the ground and eight through the air. The two teams meet again June 22 in Huntsville.

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Arkansas and Bossier City meet Saturday in a crucial Central Division showdown. The Twisters sit second in the division with a 5-3 mark while the Battle Wings are hot on their heels with a 5-4 record. Both will be desperate to win and increase their hopes of advancing to the playoffs. The two teams are almost identical on both sides of the ball, with the Twisters scoring 46.2 points per game compared to Bossier City's 45.7. On defense, it is a similar story with the Battle Wings holding the slight edge with 36.0 points against . Arkansas just 36.2. GREG TAYLOR leads the Twisters' pass rush with 7.0 sacks while LENNIE JOHNSON has picked off four passes. For Bossier City's defense, CEDRIC ROBINSON leads the way with 39.5 tackles and four interceptions. On offense, Battle Wings QB SHERARD POTEETE is the league's leading rusher with 23.6 yards a game and 13 scores, but he also is dangerous through the air with 1,849 yards and 29 touchdowns. KEVIN STEVENSON has caught a touchdown pass in every game for Bossier City, and has totaled 16 on the season. RICKY HEBERT averages 238 passing yards per game and has connected with his receivers for 37 scores. Johnson has been the recipient of 12 of those TD passes. Arkansas and Bossier City meet again on the final day of the regular season.

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Memphis and Tulsa, who meet Saturday in Oklahoma, are prime examples of how quickly fortunes can change. In mid-April, Memphis was the talk of the league, exploding out of the gate at 3-0 with touchdowns and af2 individual honors in abundant supply. The Talons, meanwhile, had a 27-14 loss to Bossier City fresh in their minds. That setback now is a distant memory as Tulsa (7-1) has reeled off six straight wins (with 60+ points in four consecutive games) to take over the league's scoring lead and, more importantly, build a two-game cushion in the Central Division. The Xplorers (4-5) have lost four straight games, stung by an ankle injury to star OS RUSSELL COPELAND that has sidelined him for most of the last three contests. QB TIM LESTER (44 touchdowns, league-leading 2,383 passing yards) and WR/DB CARLOS McNEARY (587 receiving yards, team-leading 16 total TDs) have tried to pick up the slack. OS/KR MITCH ALLNER is Tulsa's all-everything. The game MVP in Tulsa's last five wins, Allner leads af2 in kickoff return average (29.3 yds) and kickoff return TDs (five). He is third in the league in scoring (128 points), fourth in TDs (20) and fifth in all-purpose yardage (1,416). The alternating QB combo of ANTHONY BUICH (1,129 yards, 21 TDs, 4 INTs) and JOE PHEARS (806 yards, 20 TDs, no INTs) has worked like a charm for Tulsa. Phears leads af2 with a pass rating of 134.9. If Copeland, who is questionable, can play, this game will feature five af2 weekly award winners from earlier this season: Allner for Tulsa and JESSE ALLEN, Copeland, Lester and McNeary for Memphis.

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For two sub-.500 teams almost 2,000 miles apart, Wichita-Fresno has turned into a cool little rivalry. Saturday's game at Wichita (2-7) is a rematch of Fresno's 61-52 come-from-behind victory May 11 in which the Frenzy scored 14 points in the final eight seconds. The thriller fulfilled the promise of a "guaranteed win" by Fresno management; now Wichita's front office has assured its fans a victory over the Frenzy (3-6). The Stealth's chances are better with the recent addition of QB RON LOPEZ. In two games, the former Arena Football League veteran has passed for 548 yards and eight touchdowns. Defensively, OL/DL BRYAN HENDERSON ranks third in af2 with 10.0 sacks, including 3.5 at Fresno in May. LAMONT WEBB is the Frenzy's most dangerous weapon. The OS/KR ranks first with 1,912 all-purpose yards and stands second in scoring (136 points; 22 TDs). QB KENNY ROSE (16-of-34, 112 yards, one INT) makes his second start for Fresno after RICKY RAY's move to the Canadian Football League. Both teams got off to strong starts last week before their first-place opponents asserted themselves - Bakersfield 70-16 over Fresno and Tulsa 63-29 over Wichita.

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San Diego (4-5) tries to avoid a season sweep at the hands of Bakersfield (6-2) Saturday. The Blitz won the first two meetings, both in San Diego, 49-43 in overtime (April 6) and 43-33 (May 25). Bakersfield, which leads the Western Division, has homefield advantage this time in a matchup of two standout quarterbacks. The Riptide's KANE CLAUNCH is eighth in the league with 1,986 passing yards (220.7 ypg). He's thrown just seven interceptions and his 39 touchdown passes rank third in af2. Bakersfield QB CHAD ELLIOTT averages 269.6 yards per game, the best in the league. He has 37 TDs and eight interceptions to go with his 2,157 passing yards. He has two quality receivers in STEVE WOFFORD and RYAN SLOTH. Wofford's 73 receptions and 21 touchdowns (17 receiving) put him in the top three in the league. His 818 receiving yards rank seventh. Sloth plays both ways, totaling 628 receiving yards and seven touchdowns while grabbing three interceptions on the defensive side of the ball. RICO CURTIS will lead the Riptide's efforts to stop the league's No. 1 offense. He boasts No. 1 league individual rankings with 71.0 tackles and four fumble recoveries.

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The Hawaiian Islanders (1-8) face a tall order Saturday in the hopes of breaking their eight-game losing streak. The Peoria Pirates, winners of five straight games, bring a 7-2 record to the islands. Peoria has multiple standouts, including reigning ADT Defensive Player of the Week LINCOLN DUPREE, the league's interception leader with nine, and Ironman of the Week JERMAINE SHEFFIELD, a legitimate threat to score on either side of the ball. To put the Pirates' hoard of talent in perspective, OS CORNELL CRAIG quietly has ascended to the No. 2 spot on the league receiving charts with 936 yards. He also has 17 touchdown catches. Hawaii counters with af2's top rushing offense (412 yards, 23 touchdowns). FB/LB DEREK ZOLLER is the team's second-leading rusher with 75 yards and five touchdowns, scoring in four straight games. QB DARNELL ARCENEAUX leads the Islanders with 149 yards and 11 TDs (passing for 1,494 yards and 19 scores with six interceptions). Former NFL QB ERIK WILHELM recently joined Hawaii, appearing in a backup role in two games (87 yards, one TD, two interceptions).

Friday, June 7
Roanoke at Carolina, 7:30 p.m.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton at Mohegan, 7:30 p.m.
Louisville at Birmingham, 8:30 p.m.
Florida at Mobile, 8:30 p.m.
Saturday, June 8
Norfolk at Charleston, 7:00 p.m.
Rochester at Richmond, 7:00 p.m.
New Haven at Albany, 7:30 p.m.
Jacksonville at Augusta, 7:30 p.m.
Cape Fear at Greensboro, 7:30 p.m.
Columbus at Macon, 7:30 p.m.
Bossier City at Arkansas, 8:00 p.m.
Tallahassee at Pensacola, 8:00 p.m.
Tennessee Valley at Quad City, 8:00 p.m.
Memphis at Tulsa, 8:30 p.m.
Fresno at Wichita, 8:30 p.m.
San Diego at Bakersfield, 10:00 p.m.
Peoria at Hawaii, 1:00 a.m. (7:00 p.m. local)



Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from June 7, 2002


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