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Destroyers Game Notes

March 4, 2003 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Buffalo Destroyers News Release


QUICK FACTS:
Buffalo Destroyers vs. Tampa Bay Storm
Date: Saturday, March 8, 2003
Kickoff: 8:00 p.m. (EST)
Site: St. Petersburg Times Forum (20,082)
Officials: David Lambros (Referee), Al Granado (Umpire), Mike McCabe (Head Linesman), Craig Worlstad (Line Judge), Dino Paganelli (Back Judge)
TV: None
Radio: None
Web: www.buffalodestroyers.com/warzone.html Live Stats and Scores
Series Record: Tampa Bay leads 1-0
Coaches: Buffalo, Ron Selesky (3-2, 1st season) Tampa Bay, Tim Marcum (145-53, 15th season)

THE SERIES:

Tampa Bay 59 Buffalo 14, July 2, 1999, Marine Midland Arena

HEAD COACH: Ron Selesky (1st season) Ron Selesky earned 2002 af2 Coach of the Year honors guiding the expansion Albany Conquest to a regular season mark of 13-3 and the Northeast Division championship. The Conquest also advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2002 Arena Cup playoffs. Selesky compiled an overall record of 19-13 in two seasons in the af2 during the regular season with a 1-1 playoff mark.

Selesky joined the Conquest after leading the expansion Louisville Fire to a 6-10 mark in 2001. Prior to his stint in Louisville, Selesky spent one season as the director of player personnel and assistant coach for the Carolina Cobras. He was the director of player personnel and assistant coach for the Tampa Bay Storm from 1997 to 1999. While Selesky was in Tampa Bay, the Storm compiled a 31-11 regular-season record and earned a berth in ArenaBowl XII in 1998.

Selesky played college football at North Central College (Division III) in Naperville, Illinois, where he was a four-year starter at left offensive tackle. Following his college career, he played in the National Football League for the Minnesota Vikings in 1987 and attended NFL camps in San Diego (1988), Miami (1990) and Detroit (1992).

GAME PREVIEW: Buffalo head coach Ron Selesky will match wits with his coaching mentor and AFL legend Tim Marcum. Selesky got his coaching start under Marcum in 1997 and was the Storm director of player personnel prior to being named head coach of the Destroyers. The only other meeting between these two teams came in the Destroyers inaugural season of 1999.

DESTROYERS NEXT WEEK: Buffalo heads west to meet the defending ArenaBowl champions the San Jose Sabercats Friday, March 14 at 10:30 p.m. EST. The game will be televised live on the Empire Sports Network.

DESTROYERS RADIO NETWORK: The Buffalo Destroyers will have 13 of 16 games broadcast on radio this season. WNSA 107.7 FM in Buffalo will serve as the flagship station for the second consecutive season. WJTN 1240 AM in Jamestown, NY and WSPQ 1330 AM in Springville, NY will pick up all 13 games this season as well.

Buffalodestroyers.com: For all the latest news on the Destroyers, log on to www.buffalodestroyers.com. During games, click on the Warzone for live scoring and stats.

LAST WEEK: Chicago 40 Buffalo 13

The top two scoring defenses in the Arena Football League squared off Saturday night as the number two scoring defense of the Chicago Rush got the better of the top ranked Buffalo Destroyers 40-13 in front of 9,543 fans at the HSBC Arena. Buffalo's defense got the first stop of the game. DS JoJo Polk intercepted QB Billy Dicken on the game's first series, but the Destroyers could not convert on their first offensive possession. Dicken redeemed himself on Chicago's second series connecting with OS Antonio Chatman on an 18 yard score. Chicago led after one, 7-0.

The Destroyers opened the second quarter with a QB Tim Carey six yard touchdown to WR/LB Cornelius White. Chicago shot right back as Dicken hit WR/LB Lindsey Fleshman for a 10 yard touchdown to go up 13-7. Late in the second, both teams exchanged interceptions. Polk picked off his second pass of the game and on the ensuing play for Buffalo, Carey was intercepted by WR/DB Halakilangi Muagututia. After a Destroyers penalty, Chicago had the ball on the one yard line with nine seconds left but could not punch it in. Buffalo DS Dwaine Carpenter denied Chatman at the goal line as the half expired.

After missing two field goals in the first half, K Mike Moser hit a 33 yard field goal early in the second half to close the gap to 13-10. Dicken hooked up with Chatman again, this time for 36 yards to extend their lead to 19-10. Moser connected on a 26 yard field goal as Buffalo was down 19-13. Two plays later, Dicken found Chatman in the end zone for the third time as Chicago led 26-13 after three quarters.

Chicago put the game out of reach early in the fourth when Dicken passed his fourth touchdown of the game to Chatman to go up, 33-13.

Carey finished 19 of 37 for 195 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. White led the Destroyers with eight catches for 90 yards and a touchdown. Polk led the defense with four tackles and two interceptions.

LAST SERIES MEETING: Tampa Bay 59 Buffalo 14 July 2, 1999, Marine Midland Arena, Buffalo, NY The Destroyers Kevin Mason scored on a one-yard TD run in the first quarter and Jay McDonaugh and Chris Perry hooked up on a 37-yard score in the second to account for Buffalo's scoring. McDonough was 9-of-19 for 113 yards and Bobby Olive accumulated 41 yards on six catches for the Destroyers.

Storm QB Peter Tom Willis and Charles Wilson hooked up on first-half scores of 19 and six yards, giving Tampa Bay a 35-14 advantage. Willis was 19-of-23 passes for 223 yards and Jason Dulick caught six passes for 59 yards for the Storm, who scored at least 10 points in each quarter. Tampa Bay scored three touchdowns in a 9:23 span of the second quarter to take control.

FAMILIAR FACES:

· Buffalo head coach Ron Selesky was the director of player personnel/assistant coach from 1997-99 and again in 2002 for the Storm.

· Buffalo OS Gunnard Twyner played two seasons for the Storm (2001-02) and is tied for seventh all-time in receiving touchdowns with 18.

· Buffalo WR/LB Sir Mawn Wilson played for the Storm from 2000-02.

· Buffalo WR/DB James Bowden played two seasons in Tampa Bay from 2000-01. He earned Second Team All-Arena Honors in 2001 as an OS.

· Buffalo OL/DL Ken Bouie appeared in one game for the Storm in 2001.

· Buffalo FB/LB Juan Long makes his off-season home in Tampa.

· Storm FB/LB David White played one season for Buffalo in 2000.

TEAM NOTES: Which Way Coach?: QB Jeff Loots is eligible to come off injured reserve this week. If Loots is not ready to come back, backup QB Tim Carey, who has started the last two games for Buffalo, will get the nod at QB.

I'll Carey The Load: Backup QB Tim Carey has started two games for Buffalo filling in for the injured Jeff Loots. His start against Georgia week four was his first start since 2000 with the New England Sea Wolves. In nine career starts, Carey is 161 of 273 (59%) for 2,095 yards, 37 touchdowns and eight interceptions.

They Can Play D!: The Destroyers forced a franchise record five turnovers week four @ Georgia. WR/DB Jarrail Jackson and WR/DB Chuck Wesley both notched their first career interceptions in the first quarter. WR/LB Cornelius White picked off a pass in the third quarter returning it 31 yards for a touchdown. Buffalo also forced two fumbles. They are second in the AFL with a +7 turnover margin.

1-2 Punch: The Destroyers DS tandem of Dwaine Carpenter and JoJo Polk rank among the league leaders in tackles, interceptions and pass defenses.

Right On Side: Buffalo returned two onside kicks for touchdowns in the fourth quarter week four @ Georgia. With 3:05 left in the game and Buffalo holding a 49-37 lead, OL/DL Ken Bouie picked the ball out of the air returning it nine yards for the touchdown. After another Georgia touchdown, DS JoJo Polk took the onside kick back 11 yards for another Buffalo touchdown.

Not In My House: The Destroyers allowed only 16 points week two against Carolina. That is the fewest points by an opponent in team history. The previous record was set last season (May 11, 2002) when the Destroyers held the Detroit Fury to 21 points.

Getting Defensive: Destroyers DS Dwaine Carpenter was named ADT Defensive Player of the Week for his performance in week two's 44-16 victory over the Carolina Cobras. This is the second time in his career that he was won this award. Carpenter was named Game MVP finishing with 3.5 tackles, an interception and four pass breakups. His total of five passes defensed ties his own Destroyers single game record, which he set last season vs. Toronto.

Dialing Long Distance: Buffalo QB Jeff Loots hit OS Gunnard Twyner on a 49 yard touchdown pass as time expired in the first half against Carolina week two. That touchdown is the longest pass play in team history. The previous mark was 46 yards, which was done twice (Jim Kubiak to Kevin Mason vs. Carolina on May 18, 2001 and Browning Nagle to Chris Perry vs. Los Angeles on July 14, 2000).

Ironman: Buffalo WR/LB Cornelius White was selected Ironman of the Game week two vs. Carolina and week three vs. Arizona. White missed the season opener with a pulled hamstring. In his first two games with the Destroyers, White caught seven passes for 146 yards and four touchdowns. He added eight tackles on defense including 1.5 for loss.

Long and Short: FB/LB Juan Long has rushed for three touchdowns this season. In his previous four seasons in the AFL, Long had two rushing touchdowns.

JJ is Dy-No-Mite: OS Jarrail Jackson is sixth in the AFL in kick return average at 24.4 yards per return. He has returned one for a touchdown week two vs. Carolina and took another down to the one yard line week three vs. Arizona. Both returns were 55 yards.

Definitely Demary: OL/DL Silas Demary recorded a sack in each of the first two games. He also forced a fumble in each of the first two games. He is currently tied for fifth in the league in sacks and tied for third in forced fumbles.

Now that's Sharp: OL/DL Jerry Sharp finished second in the North American SUMO Wrestling Championships in Toronto last September. He was featured as "McKenna" in the Oliver Stone movie "Any Given Sunday" and he also appeared on the Jerry Springer Spring Break show.

Don't Call It a Comeback: On July 15, 2000, DS JoJo Polk, playing cornerback for the af2 Tulsa Talons against the Charleston SwampFoxes, deflected a pass and crashed headfirst into the padded wall that surrounded the 50-yard field. He blacked out. When he came to, doctors told him he would never walk again. Polk had a broken bone in his neck, and doctors said he would probably be paralyzed from the waist down for the rest of his life. Polk returned to the field the very next season and led the Grand Rapids Rampage in tackles helping them win the ArenaBowl Championship. The Replacements: Head Coach Ron Selesky achieved his dream of playing professional football in 1987 when he played part of the season with the NFL's Minnesota Vikings as a replacement player.

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